Callahan nods. “Yes, sir.”
He ducks out of sight.
I reach the coat check just as Bree’s retrieving a jacket that’s seen better days. Not shabby, exactly, but the contrast with the dress is stark.
“Let me give you a ride,” I tell her.
She spins around, and when sees that it’s me, she looks up at my face and her eyes go wide. “What?”
“It’s late... in Tribeca.” I gesture vaguely at the world outside. “Let me give you a ride home.”
The friend looks between us, clearly trying to figure out what she missed. “Do you two know each other?”
“We met earlier,” Bree says quickly. Too quickly. “In the bathroom. I mean... near the bathroom! It’s complicated! Anyway, Nico, this is Sora. Sora, Nico.”
“Nice to meet you,” the friend squeals.
Sora extends a hand, the wrist angled downward in that particular way that suggests she’s either expecting me to kiss it or she’s confused about how handshakes work.
I take her hand in a normal handshake, because I don’t do the whole knuckle-kissing thing.
Then I return my attention to Bree. “My car’s outside. Where areyou headed?”
“Park Slope,” Sora volunteers immediately. Then she looks at Bree. “And she’s in Astoria!”
Bree shoots her friend a sharp look. “I can just take the train.”
“At eleven?” I try to keep my tone casual. “That’s a long trip. And hardly the safest.”
She raises her chin. “I’m a big girl. I can handle the subway.”
“I’m sure you can.” I meet her eyes. “But you don’t have to.”
The moment stretches. She’s assessing me, trying to figure out my angle. But there’s something else in her expression.
Interest.
“Okay,” she says finally. “But just to be clear, I have pepper spray and a very loud scream.”
“We both do,” Sora agrees.
I nod. “Noted.”
Sora grins. “This is either the best or worst decision we’ve ever made!” I could swear Bree’s friend is almost ready to jump up and down.
The Mercedes is waiting out front with Indira standing next to it on the curb.
Bree stops when she sees it. “That’syour car?”
“That’s my car,” I agree casually.
“Jesus Christ,” Sora says. “What do you do? Run a hedge fund?”
“Something less morally bankrupt.” I open the door before Indira can. “After you.”
Sora climbs in first, then Bree, moving carefully in her dress. I slide in beside her. Indira shuts the door behind me.
I smell the faint trace of that vanilla jasmine perfume that’s been driving me crazy all night.
