“Yeah, but—it’s just them being good neighbors.That’s all.Nothing more.So don’t mention it to Freya because you know how she’ll get wound up about it.”
There’s dead silence on the other end of the call.
Dammit.Mason and I both wear the SEAL Trident on our uniform, even though I might not be active with the Teams anymore.There’s a kind of unspoken rule that SEALs don’t lie to other SEALs.So the silence between us is telling.
“Freya’s standing right there, isn’t she?”I ask.
More silence.
Shit.“Tell her to give it up because Ava is definitely not interested in me,” I warn.
“She’s not?”
“No.I even invited her in for coffee this morning and she turned me down.”
“You saw her again this morning?”
“Yeah, she—” I cut myself off, reminding myself that every word of this is probably going to be passed along to Freya.If I told him now that Ava dropped off a tree for me, Freya would be asking when our wedding date is.
“—she bumped into me this morning before my run,” I finish vaguely.True enough.
“Oh.Well, if she tries to recruit you for the caroling party, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“’Kay.”
I end the call, and the conversation still rolls around in my brain for a few moments, counting how many times my supposed friend brought up the topic of Ava and her kid in our brief conversation.
And a few words specifically resonate more than the others.
15:30, he had said.Like clockwork.
That’s the same time Freya told me to build a snowman.
And I can’t help wondering if Freya is up to her usual tricks.