"That's nice of you to say, and of course, I agree," she said. "My mother was a teacher, too."
"Mine as well," he said, tipping his champagne glass to hers.
She gave him a smile as Max rejoined them. "Max," she said, "Do you know David Hartford?"
"I don't," Max replied as he shook hands with David.
"Are you a teacher as well?" David asked.
Max blinked, but he was a quick study. "No. I'm in security. Nothing as noble as teaching."
"Well, security is important, too. Would you excuse me? I see one of my associates looking a little lost."
"No problem," she said, watching David move across the room to greet a rather plain-looking woman in a simple dress, who would have definitely faded into the background of this glittering crowd.
"So, you're a teacher?" Max asked.
"Middle school. I borrowed my mom's profession. Turns out his mother was a teacher, too, so we had a moment."
"Your mom was a teacher?"
"Still is, actually. She teaches sixth-grade math and is very popular. Her students love her, and she loves them, despite their often bratty pre-teenage bravado."
"Sounds like it's the perfect job for her."
"Did your mother work?"
"Yes. She was a diplomat for the State Department."
Surprise ran through her. "Really? Is that how you ended up at prep school with Dominic?"
"We lived in the UK for a couple of years."
"Where else did you live?"
"All over. We moved every few years. It was both annoying and kind of exciting," he said. "I didn't like changing schools and countries. Not only was I the foreign kid, but I rarely spoke the language. That made it tougher. Although I did sometimes go to the American school wherever we were."
"What an interesting childhood you must have had. What did your father do?"
"He wrote books about history and travel articles about where we were living. He still writes and publishes now."
"That's cool. Do you see him often?"
"No. He lives in the UK and rents a cottage in Bath."
She wanted to ask more questions because Max was finally opening up to her, and she was even more intrigued, but dinner was about to begin, and they had to find their seats. There were two long tables, and they were seated at the end of one table. Olive Elliott and her husband Brent were next to Max, while Kyle Travers and his girlfriend Eliana Ribera were seated next to her. Kyle introduced himself as the owner of JQ Properties, which was currently developing a new high-rise in Hudson Yards.
Despite her not asking questions, Kyle told her about how his company was changing New York's skyline one building at a time, how he'd tripled his company's profit in the last eighteen months, and how his father, who had founded the company had now stepped aside to an in-name-only position on the board. His Brazilian model girlfriend sat next to him with a bored look on her face as she looked at her phone while Kyle did everything he could to impress her with his brilliant money-making skills, and his complete disregard for any local regulations that might slow him down. Because he was making history, and if those idiots at the planning department couldn't see that, then they were just being stupid.
She wasn't at all impressed. And she really wished she could switch seats with Max, who was talking to Olive Elliott about the biography she and her husband were co-writing about Dominic's life.
As Kyle rambled on, she heard Olive mention how sad she was to hear about Dominic's girlfriend being in the hospital, how she'd recently had drinks with Samantha, and was so impressed with her intelligence and her sharp wit, how she thought she might be the perfect match for Dominic, because she wouldn't fawn all over him the way so many others did.
"Don't you agree?" Kyle asked.
Having no idea what he'd just said, she simply nodded, and that's all he seemed to need. Thankfully, his girlfriend called his attention to something on her phone, and she could eavesdrop more openly on Max's conversation.
Olive's husband Brent said, "I'm not sure they're the right match, Olive. I think there are reasons Dominic mostly dates cheerleaders. And I can't see how Samantha's job wouldn't get in the way of Dominic's ambition."
