“Hello,” Alice’s voice came into the phone in a hush as soon as Lombard answered the call. “You okay?” he asked as he got into the car. “Actually, I’m not sure. I’m calling you from the restroom because I don’t want Abigail to know about this. Mireya called me a few seconds ago and said she’d like to have a discussion with me, if that’s okay. I didn’t give her an answer, I just told her I’d check my schedule and get back to her. She wouldn’t tell me exactly what she wants to discuss.” “Are you free today?” Lombard asked as he started the car. “Yes. Basically,” she said. “You can call her back and tell her that you’ll be free. In the meantime, can we meet up now? You don’t have to tell Abigail about it.” “She won’t let me leave the house, not after everything that happened to me. Even now, she’s in the kitchen whipping something together for me,” she said. Lombard let out a soft groan. “I’m coming over. You and I are going out after, and we can talk. In the meantime, don’t tell

Alice had already called Mireya back and told her she was free. They’d agreed to meet at the restaurant in the next ten minutes. Lombard had driven there, and they were still in the car, watching people come and go through the entrance.Lombard’s eyes stayed on the door, but Alice wasn’t looking that way at all. Her eyes were on Lombard instead. He looked like exactly the kind of trouble she should avoid. She tried not to romanticize every inch of him she was staring at, but it was becoming impossible by the second. Twice, she’d looked away as fast as she could before he could catch her. And twice, it had been awkward.“She’s here now,” Lombard announced.Alice looked at the door. Mireya had really arrived, sunglasses on, one guard stationed outside in case anything happened, another going in with her.Lombard had already fitted himself with something that would let him hear their conversation in real time. He waited for Mireya to get out of her car, but two seconds later, she still h