Now That I've Found You - Kristina Forest Page 0,31

the last time he was dumped. Took him forever to get over that girl. Remember, Ben?”

Ben sighs and rolls his eyes. “It wasn’t that long ago. Of course I remember.”

To me, Raf says, “So have fun with Milo, but don’t break his heart, okay? We’re all nineteen, but he just turned nineteen. He’s a whole baby. Our little church boy. We don’t want him to have any distractions.”

I stare at him, blinking. I am truly at a loss for words.

“You’ve got the wrong idea about Milo and me,” I say slowly. “We’re not going on a date tonight. We’re not romantically involved at all.”

“Okay, sure.” He winks at me. Ben chuckles from behind his book.

“I’m serious,” I say, frowning.

I’m saved from having to defend myself further when Vinny and Milo finally walk into the living room. Milo looks much sleeker now in Vinny’s tux. It fits him nicely, except the pant legs stop at his ankles. I guess if anyone asks, we can just say he’s going for a hipster look.

And fine, if I’m being honest, the first thing I notice is that he looks even more handsome, but I keep my expression neutral because Raf wolf-whistles and then glances at me to see my reaction.

“Hi again, Evie,” Vinny says. “Milo, don’t get any food on this tux. It’s the only one I have, and my parents will kill me if it gets ruined.”

“I promise I’ll take care of it,” Milo says, running his hands over the sleeves and picking a piece of lint off his shoulder. He looks at me, gaze direct and intent. “Is this okay?”

For some reason, my stomach clenches. Maybe it’s because he actually seems concerned about what I think.

I swallow. Get it together, Evie.

“Better,” I say.

“Cool.” He smiles, relieved. “Ready?”

“Yes.” I quickly hop up, eager to finally get going. To his roommates/bandmates/friends, I say, “It was nice to see you again.”

“Have fun on your fancy non-date,” Raf says as we leave. “Milo, try not to forget we have a show tonight.”

Milo frowns at him. “You know I wouldn’t forget.”

“Are you coming tonight too, Evie?” Ben asks.

He looks so hopeful, peeking out from behind his book. It hurts my heart a little when I say, “No. I don’t think I’ll be able to.” Tonight, I’ll have to do damage control with Gigi. Even if I wanted to go to their show, I won’t have time.

“Ah, okay. I’m sure you have much better things to do.” But he doesn’t say it in a sarcastic way. He smiles at me. “Have fun at your gala.”

“But not too much fun,” Raf whispers. “Remember what we talked about.”

“What did you talk about?” Milo asks, still frowning at Raf. Is there a moment in time when someone isn’t frowning at Raf?

“Nothing,” I say, pulling on his arm. “Let’s go. I don’t want to be late.”

Once Milo closes the door and we walk down the steps, I whisper, “You didn’t tell your friends anything about what we’re doing, did you? About Gigi being gone?”

“No, of course not.”

I look at him sideways. Gigi trusts him. And now I have no choice but to trust him too. We’ll just have to put our differences aside and work together.

Chapter Nine

“Okay, so try not to talk to anyone if you can help it. But if for some reason you get tied up in conversation, just lie about who you are and why you’re here.”

“What?” Milo says.

We’re standing in line outside the Brooklyn Museum, waiting to be admitted into the gala.

“Why can’t we just be ourselves?” he asks.

I sigh. “Nobody is supposed to know that I’m here, remember? And do you actually plan on donating any money to this cause? Because if not, once Doves Have Pride blows up, you don’t want to be remembered as the musician who walked around Candice Tevin’s fundraiser and didn’t give a dime.”

“Okay, fair. But your plan would actually make sense if I had a disguise,” he says, gesturing to me. “Unlike you, I’m not wearing a wig and sunglasses. People will remember my face.”

I shrug. “That’s why I said don’t talk to anyone if you can help it.”

“I’m not a good liar.” He pulls uncomfortably at his collar.

“It’s not that hard. You’ll be fine.” I use my phone’s front-facing camera to check my smoky eye and red lip. I’m not the most skilled makeup artist, but I’ve learned a few simple tricks. Not that it matters, because I don’t really plan on letting anyone see me. I’m going to go