Page 50 of Hello Darling

“Yeah. Something like that.”

“So have you seen him? Evan Hunter?”

I cover my mouth and make the dumbest giggly squeaky sound.

“You have? You’ve seen him?”

I somehow manage to get my shit together long enough to tell her that he’s been a member at our gym for a few weeks but we had to keep it a secret.

“Shut. Up. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!”

“I just told you it was a secret.”

“Yeah. And you told me.”

“Well it’s not really a secret anymore since filming has started. How did you find out he’s here?”

“I follow some of his fan pages on Twitter and Instagram.”

“What? Whoareyou?”

“Dude I’ve been a Hunterhoe for years, I just stopped talking to you about it after you made us walk out of theHamletmovie—which by the way I went back and saw again by myself. Twice.”

I grin. “I sat next to him at the Rose, the first night he was in town.”

“No way.”

“We took him fishing.”

“What?! Shut up. Are your brothers friends with him now?” She squeals. “Tell me everything! I can’t believe a celebrity finally comes to PT a year after I move away! Remember that time we followed the guy I thought was Frasier Crane for half an hour, but it was just some random pretentious bald guy?”

All of a sudden, I realize that the tip of my nose is tingly, there’s moisture in my eyeballs and my voice gets all croak-y. “God, I miss you. I can’t talk about this with anyone here.”

“I miss you too. I wish you’d come visit.”

“I can’t.”

“Why.” She frowns. “Is Muffin Top having another irritable bowel flare-up?”

I shake my head. That was my excuse for not visiting her in Portland the last two times, and it was a valid one. I can usually come up with ten good reasons for not leaving town, but I realize now that there’s only one reason I don’t want to for the next two months. Because I don’t want to miss out on time with Evan while he’s here.

“I’m seeing Evan,” I whisper.

“What? I know you’ve seen him, I need details.”

“I’m trying to tell you…Because I can’t tell anyone here…Evan and I are seeing each other.” I don’t know why I can’t just say “we’re fucking each other.” Yes I do, it’s because the truth is it’s more than that, I just haven’t allowed myself to think it yet. “We have been shagging each other. At his rental house. On a regular basis. For a week.”

She stares at me. “That’s not funny.”

Finally—a sane reaction to the insane concept of me and Evan Hunter together. My dad and brothers are completely bananas about this. Evan is completely bananas about this. We don’t make sense together.

“I know. It’s not funny. It’s tragic.”

She looks so confused.

“What are you…”

“I mean. If you don’t believe me, it’s fine, whatever. How’s your job? I like your hair.”