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I grit my teeth. She’s right.

“You need to understand something about me,” I say a moment later. “I like to joke. To laugh at the world because it’s easier than the alternative. But I will burn Vanta to the fucking ground with Rafael locked inside if he lays a finger on you.”

I stride past her, seething just at the idea of it. My phone vibrates in my pocket. It’s Serena’s number, her coffee order. I smile ruefully as she walks toward a table in the corner. Classic Serena, making me smile even when I’m angry, or get pissed even when I’m smiling.

As I wait for her iced vanilla latte, extra shot, oat milk, and I wait for my black coffee, my phone vibrates again.

Serena: For the record, I know you just want the best for me. But you also need to understand that this is our first ever proper date and, really, we’re in the early stages. I know it might feel like more. And it does for me too. But you have to get that.

I look over at her. She smiles in a beautifully awkward way, then my phone goes off again.

Serena: I know this is lame, but I find it easier to text you sometimes.

Nikolai: There’s nothing lame about you, whatever name you’re using.

I carry the coffees over, then sit back and watch her, the sun coming from behind and shining off her dark hair.

“You’re right,” I say. “Up until a few weeks ago, I was a wild man. Maybe that’s just who I am. I don’t know. But I can’t be wild about everything.”

“I’m not saying I don’t want you to be wild about me…”

I laugh, blowing on my coffee. “Now you’re confusing me.”

She smiles, looking toward the park. “That’s fair. I’m kind of confusing myself too.”

“I shouldn’t have sprung this on you,” I say.

“It’s okay. I shouldn’t have jumped your bones in your office. That was very unprofessional of me.”

A moment passes, then our eyes meet, and we both burst out laughing like loons. It comes out as silly and reckless, and a little unhinged.

“Tell me about your club,” I say.

She leans forward, smiling distantly. Like Iris was probably smiling when she texted me. This was a messed-up way to do it, maybe, but I’m so damn glad Iris and Serena are the same woman.

“I want a tall ceiling, a sparkling crystal wall. I want a stage for live music and a DJ. I want different rooms for different vibes. I want to make it so popular that I can afford to pay my staff luxury salaries, even if it means having a more reasonable life myself. But Zoe has to come first.” She stops, breathless. “I need to look into the specifics.”

“Is that the plan?”

“I was doing a business course before the money got too bad. I’ll go back to that once I’ve got enough to survive for a while.”

“Good plan, and you’re already learning the business at Vanta.”

“Why do I sense a but?” she asks.

“But I’ve been thinking about opening a second location,” I say. “You could run it⁠—”

“No, Nikolai,” she cuts in, and she just sounds tired. It makes me feel like an ass.

“I want to find your ex and break his face.”

“You don’t even know what happened there,” she says, looking down at her coffee.

“Let me guess. Some ungrateful jerk found a beautiful, funny, caring woman, and he filled her head with lies, and she let her guard down, then he broke her heart and left her wondering if she can trust a man ever again?”

“He didn’t break my heart,” she says quickly, as if she needs me to know that. “But yeah, sure, he taught me a valuable lesson. The more a man promises, the more he’ll hurt you in the end.”

“From where I’m sitting, you’re shooting yourself in the foot, beautiful. Because I know I’m not going to screw you over.”