“Vivian!”
The sound of someone calling her name made her spin around.
Leo stopped a few steps away, his hands raised defensively. “Whoa there, sweetheart. You look ready for a fight.”
“Where did you come from?” Vivian demanded, her heart still racing.
“I’ve been waiting for you to get home. I’ve got some news to share.” He glanced back at the street. “Want to tell me the deal with the fancy car dropping you off? I thought you were doing deliveries today.”
“I…” Vivian bit her lip, trying to decide what to tell him. Leo didn’t entirely trust Honor as it was. What would he say if he learned she was Huxley Buchanan’s daughter?
Or did he already know? Leo had some unexpected connections with folks in high places—along with low ones—courtesy of the commissioner. What if Hattie wasn’t the only one who knew Honor Huxley had been keeping more secrets than usual?
“Viv?” Leo asked. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
Vivian shook her head. “Sorry. Yes, it’s fine. I’m fine,” she said, thinking about Eddie driving straight to her front door without a word from her. “Let’s go inside. I’m feeling jittery just standing out here.”
“Tell you what,” Leo said. He was watching her like he was worried she might bolt at any second. “How about I take you out to dinner? You’ve gotta eat at some point,” he insisted when she was about to object. Vivian scowled at him, but she couldn’t really argue with that. “And you can tell me what’s got you looking so spooked.”
“All right,” Vivian agreed, trying not to sound too reluctant as he slid his arm around her waist. He was being sweet, there was no call to be acting surly in response, no matter how much she had to think over. “There’s two things. One of them is Hattie Wilson.”
She felt Leo’s arm tense. He’d had his own encounters with Mrs. Wilson’s bruisers. “What’s she got to do with things?”
“I don’t know, and that’s part of the problem. The other thing…” She hesitated. “The other is Honor.”
Leo’s steps slowed long enough for him to turn and study her face. “Let’s find somewhere to eat,” he suggested. “And then you can tell me everything.”
The Automat wasn’t crowded, but Vivian still kept her voice down as she told him about her run-in with Hattie Wilson. He hadn’t looked happy through that, his hands clenching and unclenching, as if he wanted to be swinging at someone instead of sitting there facing a problem he couldn’t fix. But when she got to what Mrs. Wilson had said about Honor, he fell still, his expression growing stony.
Leo and Honor had crossed paths enough to develop a grudging respect, and they’d had to work together a couple of times in the past.But Leo had never really trusted her. Maybe he had been right not to. Vivian didn’t want to believe it, but suddenly, she wasn’t so sure.
“Did you know?” she asked. “That Honor was his… had the commissioner said anything?”
“I had no idea.” Leo shook his head. “Do you think Mrs. Wilson’s right about her?”
“No,” Vivian said too quickly. “I mean… I’m just all shaken up, you know? Those bruisers scare the hell out of me. And she’s even worse. On top of everything else—I don’t have that much time. And everything just keeps getting more confusing, not less…”
Leo’s expression softened. “But you’re okay,” he said, leaning forward to take her hands. “And that’s what matters, right? We’ll figure the rest of it out.”
“Yeah, I’m swell,” Vivian said, smiling weakly. She wanted to believe him—theywouldfigure the rest of it out, right? She couldn’t bring herself to think about the alternative.
Vivian pulled her hands out of his, cupping them instead around the mug of coffee to try to warm them. But it was already cooling off, so she gulped it down quickly. It made her nearly empty stomach churn, but she had a long night ahead of her, and she needed whatever energy she could get. “Have you heard anything back from your pal at Bellevue?”
Leo had frowned when she pulled her hands away, but he didn’t reach for them again. At her question, he perked up. “Hell, I can’t believe I forgot to say. That’s why I was waiting for you to get home. Norris gave me a call today.” He glanced at his wristwatch, then gave her an encouraging smile. “What d’you say we hustle over there to hear what he has to say? You’ve got enough time, right?”
Vivian reached out to turn his wrist toward her and check the time for herself, feeling better at the thought of taking some kind of action. “Yeah. Yes, we should do that. I’ll just need to change clothes after. I can’t show up at the Nightingale like this.”
“You’d look smashing even if you did,” he said, looking relievedwhen she agreed. “I’m sorry I can’t stay for your whole shift, though—I’ve actually got a job of my own to take care of.”
Vivian couldn’t help the sharp look she gave him. “For your uncle?”
“Nope,” he said, holding one hand palm up. “It’s strictly illegal, I promise.”
That made her snort with laughter, in spite of how she was feeling. “That’s what every girl wants to hear from her fella.”
“I know what you like,” he said with a wink. Vivian shook her head and went back to her coffee. “But I’ll be able to meet up with you after and bring you home.” He hesitated, then added firmly, “And then I’m staying the night.”
Vivian’s head shot up, her mug hitting the table with a thump. “Oh you are?”
