"But that doesn't count."
"Italwayscounts."
"So the book tour was what? Just a cover story?"
"Pretty much."
"Speaking of books," I said, "how'd you getmineback from Darbie? You neverdidtell me."
He shrugged. "Eh, it wasn't hard."
"I don't believethatfor one minute," I said. "And here's another question. Why didn't you return it to me right away? You know, on the night I saw you in the lobby?"
"Because I didn't have it."
"The book?" I said. "You did, too. I saw you carrying it, remember?"
Jack shook his head. "No. You saw me with the other one."
"Ohhhhh. You mean the replacement book? The one thatwasn'tsigned?That'sthe one you were carrying?"
I smiled as I recalled the look on Darbie's face when she pulled that book from her suitcase, only to discover that Jack's signature was missing.
Disappearing ink?I gave a silent scoff.More like disappearing book.
Corny or not, it still made me smile.
Jack said, "That's the one."
"So why were you carrying it around?"
"That night?" he said. "Because I'd just picked it up."
"From where?"
"A used book store in Cleveland."
My jaw practically hit the floor. "Oh come on. You don't mean you flew to Cleveland to pick it up, do you?"
"Well, I didn’t walk to Cleveland. I can tell you that." With a grin, he added, "What's the use of having a private jet if you don't use it?"
I could hardly believe it. "But why'd you go so far?"
"It wasn't that far," he said. "And, it was the closest place that had a matching book. Same creases, same cover, same print date. You know the drill."
Actually, I didn't. But I was still blown away. "And you'rejustmentioning this?"
He put on his innocent face. "Is that a problem?"
"Definitely," I said. "I should've thanked you."
"You did."
"But not enough," I said. "And not for that." And now I couldn’t help but recall with embarrassment that I'd given Jack a pretty hard time about that very same book. "I'm surprised you didn't hate me."
He grinned. "Yeah. Me, too." But then, his gaze softened. "Trouble-maker."
I couldn't help but grin back. "You're one to talk. And you never did say. How'd you switch them out?"
