Page 27 of Nerdplay
How about that? Charlie’s actually being a good sport. Probably a legal tactic to throw me off his shady scent. Then again, all his interactions with Olivia have been positive so far. He seems like a natural with kids. I bet he’d make a great dad.
Ugh. My ovaries have entered the chat.
I quickly shut them out of the conversation and return to reality.
Charlie’s hands are on his hips. “What else do heroes do? Is there a cat that needs saving from a tree?”
“Those are emergency rescue workers,” Gloria says.
“I know, but aren’t they heroes too?”
“Darn right they are,” John agrees.
“Last year we filmed training montages,” Bradley reminds me.
Ben smiles. “Yes, we did. I added the Rocky theme song to mine.”
Charlie appears uneasy. “I’m not up for a video.”
I sense his tension and decide to poke. “Why not? Afraid it’ll make the rounds at the office?”
“The Internet is forever,” he says.
“I didn’t post mine anywhere,” Ben objects. “It was for my own enjoyment.”
Charlie chuckles. “You’ve never helped a client recover a sex tape and it shows.”
“You’ve actually done that?” I ask in a low voice.
“It isn’t my specialty, but when you have an important client, and that important client has a daughter…” He shrugs. “I was glad I could help.”
“But you said the Internet is forever. How did you help?”
“We were able to recover the video before the ex-boyfriend managed to do anything with it.”
Angela edges closer to him. “And might you have a copy of said video?”
Ben clears his throat. “We have a minor present.”
“A minor who’s worked up an appetite,” Olivia adds. “Can we eat now?”
I gesture to the main area. “The cafeteria is open. First come, first served.”
Charlie taps the brim of Adam’s mask. “Don’t you get hot in there, buddy?”
“Sweltering, but some of us must suffer for our art.”
“Make sure you stay hydrated. It’d be too easy to pass out in this heat.”
“I have electrolyte powder packets in my cabin, but I appreciate your concern.”
“Just looking out for the little folks.” He stops to give me a pointed look. “Like a hero would do.”
Either Charlie’s a great actor, or he actually had fun today. Is it wrong to hope it’s the latter?
He falls in step beside me as we follow the hungry mob.
“How’d I do?” Charlie asks.
