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I sigh quietly. I shouldn’t complain, really. I spent my mid-twenties traveling the world for work — for free. It was good while it lasted.
“Hey, Paige.”
I glance up at Shirley’s smiling eyes. “Hello.”
She places two water glasses — mine with lime — down on the table. “Sorry I booked it past you there before,” she says.
“Busy busy,” I repeat. “No worries.”
“Greg’s working on your usual. Want me to fetch you anything else?”
I shake my head. “Nope. Probably going to be a quick bite here. We’ve still got a lot to do.”
“Right.” She gives the empty chair a quick glance. “I heard the new Liaison’s in town.”
“Yes, he is.”
“What do you think?” she asks. “Should we be worried?”
“Worried?” I ask. “About what?”
“Well, Graham was awesome. Firm, but awesome. It would really suck if the new guy were an unforgiving hard ass, you know?”
I chuckle. “No, Oliver’s nothing to worry about.”
Her eyes widen. “No?”
“Absolutely not. He’s like... Graham 2.0. You probably won’t even notice a difference. That’s why I’m here, actually. Smooth transition of power.”
“Good. That’s a relief.” Shirley peeks over her shoulder as she hears another party pass the entrance with a hostess. “Well, I should?—”
“Go!” I shoo her away. “The best restaurant in New York City doesn’t run itself.”
She chuckles with a bow of her head and rushes off.
As she disappears, I catch sight of Oliver stepping off the elevator. He sports a new suit, this one a dark navy color with a black tie. Simple and classy. I make a mental note to fetch his soaked clothes from his suite and have them cleaned before Thursday.
Oliver takes direction from the hostess and makes his way toward our table. As he gets closer, I notice a small shopping bag in his hand.
“Goddamn,” Oliver whispers as he sits down.
“What?”
“I’ve only been up here once before,” he says.
“Really?”
“Yeah, it’s...” He scans the surrounding skyline. “Goddamn.”
I chuckle. “You’ll get used to it.”
“Truthfully, I hope I never do,” he says.
Oliver sets the black bag down in front of me, but says nothing about it.
“What’s that?” I ask, intrigued.
“That’s for you.”
