“One o’clock,” Nissa said quietly, ignoring him. “They’re right there. You got them, Thorn?”
“Affirmative. How do you want to approach?”
Tommy rolled his eyes. They were acting like this was an extraction, not a meet-and-greet. “Oh, for the love of - watch and learn,” he muttered, cutting off their tactical chatter.
Ignoring Nissa’s protest, he slipped his hands into his pockets and strolled toward the couple. They were standing near the railing, watching as the zookeepers began tossing fish to the sea lions.
“Hi,” Tommy said easily, coming to a stop beside them. “How are you two enjoying New York?”
The woman blinked in surprise. “Uh, hi!” She smiled uncertainly, tightening her grip on her purse strap. “It’s been great so far.”
The man didn’t turn his head, but Tommy noticed the subtle tension in his shoulders, the stance of someone evaluatingdistance, exits, threats. Thorn had taught him how to spot that. The thought of himbeing seen as a threat was almost funny.
“That’s great.” Tommy smiled, pulling his hands out of his pockets to show they were empty. “If you like zoos, you should check out Prospect Park Zoo in Brooklyn. More animals, less crowding, and it’s right by the Audubon Center, makes a great day trip.”
“Thanks,” the man said curtly, eyes still forward. “We’ll keep that in mind.”
“Most people stick to Manhattan, Central Park, Fifth Avenue, all that,” Tommy continued, keeping his tone casual. “But honestly, Brooklyn’s better. Fewer tourists, cheaper, and it still has all the charm of the city.” He smiled and held out his hand. “But maybe I’m biased, it’s my hometown. Tommy Sloane.”
Cole let out a strangled sound and finally turned his head to look at Tommy, a spark of recognition flaring as his eyes widened. “Wait. Seriously?” He shook Tommy’s hand, chuckling in disbelief. “TheTommy Sloane? From Sloane Tech?”
“Yep, that’s me. This is my girlfriend, Nissa.” Tommy turned, taking her hand and gently pulling her forward. “She hasn’t been here since she was a kid, so here we are.”
“Hi.” Nissa smiled warmly after giving Tommy a look that clearly promised he’d be hearing about this later. “Sorry about him, he’s hard to control when someone catches his attention.”
“Right.” Cole studied them both, his suspicion obvious. “So, you just walk up to random tourists, start pitching zoo alternatives, and introduce yourself? Because that definitely sounds like something the CEO of a multinational conglomerate would do.”
“Nope, first time,” Tommy admitted, hands in his pockets, rocking back on his heels with an easy grin. He had to admit; Cole’s sarcasm was fair; it wasn’t exactly normal behavior. “Want to grab lunch?”
Lana’s face lit up. “Yes, please, we’d love -”
“Lana!” Cole hissed, cutting her off with a sharp look. “Look, man, we’re not interested in a swinger thing or some orgy, so…” He slid a hand to Lana’s lower back. “Thanks for the offer, but we’ll pass.”
Nissa raised an eyebrow and gave Tommy a look that said,this is why we needed a plan.As Cole guided his wife away, Tommy ignored her, chuckling softly.
“Yeah, no, that’s not what I had in mind,” he said, amused. “I wanted to offer you a job.”
Cole froze, his shoulders tensing before he turned back around, scanning the area with a soldier’s precision. His gaze stopped on Thorn, sitting on a nearby bench, eating an ice cream cone like he didn’t have a care in the world. The moment their eyes met, Thorn grinned and stood, tossing his cone in a nearby garbage can as he made his way over to them.
“So, this wasn’t a chance meeting,” Cole said, eyes narrowing as he looked back at Tommy. “How’d you find us?”
“No, not exactly,” Tommy admitted, still impressed that Cole had spotted Thorn so quickly. “And really? I own one of the biggest tech companies in the world. How do youthinkI found you?”
Cole groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose as he looked at his wife. “This is why I told you to delete your social media,” he muttered, half-affectionate, half-exasperated. Lana looked properly abashed by his admonishment and tucked her phone back into her pocket quickly.
“Alright,” he sighed, turning back to Tommy. “Since you went through all this trouble to track us down on our honeymoon, what kind of job?”
Tommy’s grin turned sheepish, he’d forgotten they were on their honeymoon in his excitement. “Honestly, I would’ve flown to Kentucky to talk to you. This was just a lucky coincidence that you happened to be in town.” Cole raised an eyebrow and Tommy hurriedly continued, not wanting him to walk away before he got a chance to give him the job pitch. “But that’s beside the point, let’s grab lunch, and we’ll fill you in.”
Cole studied him for a long moment, then sighed and looked at Lana, who gave a small nod of encouragement. “Fine,” he said finally. “But if this turns weird, we’re out.”
“Fair enough,” Tommy said easily, slipping his hands back into his pockets. “I know a place not far from here.”
**********
Within thirty minutes they were being shown into a private room at Marea. On the walk from the zoo, Tommy had kept the conversation light, asking where they’d been, whether he was interrupting any plans, and promising to get them to the Statue of Liberty before it closed when Lana mentioned it was the only thing left on their list.
Once their first course arrived, Tommy steered the conversation back toward the job offer. “I’m not sure if you’re aware, but I recently started a new company, Sloane Consulting and Security Services. We provide security guards and surveillance systems to businesses, and supply bodyguards for VIPs.”
