“Nathan,” he reminded her.
She squeezed her eyes closed for a long time.
Patiently, he waited.
She eventually looked at him again.“I’m not sure I’ve ever felt more uncomfortable.”
“We could discuss it inside.That would enable us to have a little more distance between us.Make no mistake, though, we will talk, either tonight or in the future.I have questions, so do you.We both want and deserve honest answers.”
For a few more seconds, she fiddled with her purse strap.“I’m nervous.”
“Thank you for saying so.And you don’t need to be.It would be more disconcerting for you to show up for work tomorrow knowing Connor had told me you were going to Deviation.You’d be wondering what he’d said, guessing at my reactions, thinking that maybe you should resign.Let’s put it all on the table, have a look at it, discuss it, see where we are.”
“You’re making this sound very…” She let go of the thin strap of leather that she’d been playing with.“Reasonable.”
“Good.It should be.”For now.
“You can leave your car out here,” she said, pointing across the street.
Which meant she was inviting him up.He was unaccountably happy about that.
“Or there’s a parking garage.”
“Perfect.”
He followed her instructions and navigated to the guest spaces.After he’d shut off the engine, he came around to open her door then grabbed her duffel bag.
She led him up a flight of stairs then exited in her hallway.
Her building was in a vibrant area, near museums, the medical center, restaurants.By comparison, his house seemed a bit isolated.That was something he really hadn’t paid attention to until now.
“Watch out.”She put an arm across his chest to prevent him from taking a step forward.
A small plastic ball rolled past them.It appeared to have some sort of furry, honey-colored creature inside.“What the hell?”
“Sinbad.”
“Sinbad?”
“Mr.Martinez’s granddaughter left her hamster at his house about a year ago.She supposedly never came to get him, but I think the truth is that he likes the company.”
Nathan shook his head.“That’s a hamster?”
“Sinbad,” she repeated.
He looked at her to see her smiling.Damn.He wasn’t just attracted to her, he liked her.The way she’d defended Seward was admirable.Even if he didn’t agree with her, he appreciated her fierceness and loyalty.The way she’d interacted with Marvin, knowing his work schedule, told him she cared about people.And now…this.Patience, even good humor, when a fuzzball prevented her from getting to her condo at the end of the day.“Okay.I’ll ask the obvious.Why is there a hamster rolling down the hallway in a ball?”
“He’s getting his exercise.”
“Of course.I should have known.”
The ball hit the far wall, and somehow the thing—Sinbad—figured out to move to the other side to get the ball moving again.Impressive.And he had no idea whether that was unusual or not.
Sinbad rolled past them again, and he heard a door open down the hallway.
“Hi, Mr.Martinez,” she said.
The man was wearing a red fuzzy robe that appeared to be covered in fur that matched the color of the hamster.His feet and legs were bare, and his combover had seen better days.
