“Sort of,” Jonas says. “Fish don’t havetraditionalears, but they have ear parts inside their heads that pick up sounds in the water. Functionally, they’re ears, even if not technically so.”
I laugh. “You’re a fount of useless knowledge, Jonas Patrick Faraday.”
He swigs his beer, smiling. “I really am.”
There’s a long beat as we both drink our beers and look out at the spectacular view of the river.
“Uncle William sure handled the news of our double-departure awfully well,” I say. “He shocked the fuck out of me.”
“I know. I thought it’d be like jumping off a cliff to tell him, and it was more like stepping off a curb.”
“It almost seemed like he was expecting it, didn’t it?”
“Totally,” Jonas agrees. “I had that exact same thought.”
We gaze out at the lights on the Hudson forty floors below for another long moment, drinking our beers.
“I can’t wait to get started building our baby,” Jonas finally says. “I have so many ideas for Climb & Conquer, my head’s been going a mile a minute.”
“As opposed to when?”
Jonas laughs.
“I’m pumped, too,” I say, laughing. “Telling Uncle William felt like getting freed from a lifelong cage.”
“That’sexactlyhow I felt,” Jonas says. “I feel like I’m floating.”
“Me, too.Exactly. To Climb & Conquer,” I say, holding up my beer. “And to the Faraday twins—two fucking beasts among men.”
“Hear, hear,” Jonas says, clinking my beer with his. “Fuck yeah.”
“Fuck yeah,” I agree.
“I’ll finalize the press release on my flight home. We can release it on Monday.”
“Awesome,” I say.
“Fuck yeah,” Jonas says.
“Fuck yeah.”
We look out at the river for a moment, drinking our beers, each of us apparently lost in our excited thoughts.
“So Uncle William sure took to Sarah right off the bat,” I say.
“Oh my God. You should have seen him when we first got here last night,” Jonas says. “I kept warning Sarah before we arrived not to take it personally if Uncle William was kinda standoffish or super formal, you know?—but he acted like she was his long-lost daughter the minute he laid eyes on her. Just fell totally and completely in love with her.”
I chuckle. “Just like you,” I say.
Jonas grins. “Just like me.”
“Congrats, by the way,” I say. “She’s perfect for you. I don’t know how you managed to find her. She’s a needle in a haystack.”
Jonas beams a smile at me but doesn’t reply.
“So you told her?”
Jonas looks at me funny, obviously not catching my meaning.
