\[Denali’s POV\]
I kneel in front of Elise as she sits quietly with a gentle smile on her face. As I take her in, that feeling from earlier begins to claw its way up once again, but I ignore it while beginning to clean up the scrapes that she sustained while being mugged.
When I finish, I sit back and continue to take in her face. It looks so much like mine that it is impossible to think that we are simply two strangers who happened to cross paths on the street.
“Can I ask you something?” I ask, fixing my blue gaze with hers.
“Sure,” she beams. “As my savior, you can ask me whatever you like.”
“When is your birthday?”
It was a silly question, but it would confirm or deny my suspicion. This was too coincidental to not be planned out, and if that was the case, what exactly was this woman up to?
“March thirty-first,” she responds without missing a beat.
There it was. The confirmation that I need. We have the same birthday, and therefore she wasn’t just some random woman. But I’m left with more questions than answers over this revelation, but I will slowly begin to have them answered. If I just played along with whatever it was she was doing, I was sure I would eventually get them.
“Same as mine,” I say, fixing a shocked look on my face. "Amazing, isn’t it? We look just alike and have the same birthday; if I didn’t know any better, I would say that we were twins.”
“Twins?” She repeats, her eyes growing wide. “Do you think..."
Opening my mouth, I prepare to respond, but stop as I spot Rosco making his way toward us with purse in hand and a look of annoyance on his face.
“Oh, thank you!” Elise gasps. “I’m so sorry for the trouble. Please, let me do something to thank you.”
For a moment, Rosco just stares at her, and when his gaze hardens, I rush forward and grab him.
“Do you mind giving us a moment?” I ask Elise, giving her a smile of apology. “He’s a bit hesitant around strangers.”
“Sure, take your time,” she responds.
Nodding, I begin to pull Rosco away, and once I’m sure that we are out of earshot, I fix my gaze on his.
“What are you thinking?” He growls before I can even speak. “Have you already forgotten that video of you pushing Anastasia down the stairs?”
His words are harsh, and although they are directed at me, I know that his anger isn’t toward me. If anything, it is toward all those who have hurt me, and I can’t help but be appreciative.
“I know,” I murmur, wrapping my arms around him and laying my head against his chest. “But hear me out. If we push her away and reveal that we are aware of who she may be, then we won’t have a way to prove my innocence, right?”
I knew that it was dangerous to just let her close, but as the saying goes, keep your friends close but your enemies closer. We could simply play along with whatever game she is playing, and when she makes her move, we can catch her. Once we did, we could clean up the mess she left behind for us.
“Are you saying that we pretend that we are completely fooled by her?” Rosco asks, giving me a wary look. “And what if she tries something?”
“You’ll be there to protect me." I respond immediately. “Are you saying that you won’t?”
At my question, a growl escapes Rosco as he pulls me close against him and leans forward so his mouth is right by my ear.
“Watch your words, woman,” he growls, tightening his hold. “No matter who or what it is, I’ll kill them without question if they harm even a hair on my wife’s head.”
“Then everything will be fine." I giggle. “So, shall we play along with Elise?”
Growing quiet, I wait as Rosco considers my question. I can see a wave of emotions flashing in his eyes as he fights between doing what is right and what is needed, and when he finally settles on acceptance, I know that he is going to let me do this my way.
"Great!" I beam, untangling myself from his embrace. “Then we should get back to Elise.”
Turning, I prepare to move, but stop as Rosco’s arms wrap around me and I’m pulled against him once more. Frowning, I look up and meet his dark gaze, and I immediately feel my insides beginning to churn.
“One wrong move,” he husks,” leaning forward and kissing my lips. “If she makes one wrong move, she will be dead before she even realizes what happened.”
“And if that leaves us unable to prove my innocence?” I counter, shivering with delight over how protective he is being toward me. “What then?”
“Then we will go down as criminals together.”
Finished speaking, he releases me, allowing me to begin to move toward where Elise is still waiting for us. When she spots us, she jumps up and moves forward, but stops for a moment as she takes in the intimate atmosphere between us.
“Maybe I should..." she begins, looking uncomfortable.
“No,” I say, before she can get away. “You said you wanted to do something to thank us, but we want to invite you out instead. Is that alright?”
For a moment, Elise doesn’t speak as she continues to look from me to Rosco and then back.
“Sure,” she says slowly, though the sudden shift in her demeanor says otherwise. “Please, lead the way.”
"Great!" I clap, reaching out and grabbing her hands. “There is a restaurant that Rosco has been telling me about that I’ve been dying to go to,” I gush. “Please, why don’t you join us in visiting it?”
"I..." she begins, starting to look extremely uncomfortable. “I’m not…”
“Are you worried about feeling like a third wheel?” I ask, widening my eyes in shock. “That can be fixed!” Sweetie,” I continue, turning my gaze to Rosco. “Why don’t you call Marty to join us? We can make it a group meal!”
Even though I didn’t want to look too desperate, I truly felt that if I let Elise disappear now, then she wouldn’t appear in front of me again, and I just couldn’t let that happen, not until we got the answers we sought. Maybe, after getting a few drinks in her, she would talk, and maybe not, but for now, we had time while Yancy worked on my case with my father.
“Will that help you feel more at ease?” I ask Elise now. “That way, it isn’t like you are intruding on a date.”
“Yeah,” she finally sighs, seeming to give in. “That would be lovely.”