“No. I know who to ask.”
Vincent chuckled. “This should be interesting.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Sam
If you wereto ask me whether I happened to make sure I was always in Lukas’s business when he came to shore, I’d reluctantly agree. He never willingly sought me out, which was what made the fact that he was waiting for me outside the ice cream shop after I locked up so strange.
“Lukas?”
“Good evening, Sam.”
I looked left and right. Was I being punked? “What are you doing out here skulking?”
“I’m not skulking.” He moved closer, and I slipped the shop keys into my pocket.
“Sure, whatever you need to tell yourself.”
“I was waiting to speak with you.”
I hooked my thumb over my shoulder. “At any time, you could have entered the store to talk to me.”
“It’s private.”
“I also gave you my phone number.”
Now he was pinching the bridge of his nose. “Sam, do you have a moment?”
“I have a lot of moments. What’s up?”
The streets were quiet this time of night; only a few were walking about. I moved to a bench and motioned for Lukas to sit.
“I wanted to ask you a question.”
He was obviously having some difficulty with this. It bothered me—not that he was uncomfortable speaking with me, but that whatever it was appeared to make him uneasy.
“Okay. You can ask me anything, Lukas.”
He met my eyes, and I smiled at him.
“Right. So, you remember me telling you about the gala in New York I have to attend in a couple of weeks?”
“I do. I was with you when you were all sized up for your tuxedo.” I shot him a wink.
He cleared his throat. “Of course. Well, I was informed this afternoon that I was to bring a plus-one.”
“Informed? Like the host told you to bring a date?” What an odd demand.
“Pretty much. This gala is full of elite individuals. They have rules to follow and appearances to uphold. Thing is, with such short notice, I’m left with the issue of finding a date.”
I rolled my eyes. “This gala sounds pretentious. Why don’t you just tell them they can’t make you do shit, and tell them you’re not going?”
His face was pinched. “These people are quite important, Sam. Many, if not all, keep my businesses running. To not attend would be a huge slight.”
Ah, yeah, that could be an issue. “All right, so you need me to help you find a date?”
“I was actually wondering if you’d attend the gala with me.”
