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“What do you want to be doing?”
“Hell if I know. Making things better for people.”
She gave me a cautious smile. “You know… maybe you’re just cut out to be an independent agent.”
I paused, looking up from my sandwich. “What, telling me I don’t play well with others?”
“Telling you you’re on your own plane of existence. You play just fine with others, but I don’t think any of us ever really helped much with your caseload at Queen Pearl. Besides,” she said, sitting back and putting her hands up, “you do your own thing. Always have, right? With the way you make every client into your best friend, you’d have no problem with return clients.”
I looked away. “I don’t know… I’m no María.”
“Think that might be for the best? María crashed and burned in the end.”
I massaged my forehead. “Wasn’t her fault…”
“She’s the one who hired Philip. And it sure as hell isn’t your fault, because I know that’s what you’re thinking.”
I took a bite of my sandwich, looking down at my plate, thoughts swirling in my head. Finally, I set the sandwich down with a sigh, wiping my fingers. “So where do you think I should take her tonight?”
“You’re never going to win one-upping her. Might as well go the other direction. Take her to karaoke or something. Ladies’ night at Sweet Caroline tonight.”
I laughed. “You know? I like that, actually. You’re the best, Ruth.”
She shook her head, grinning at me. “I’ll just be careful with popping into your place. Never know what I’m going to find there.”
I looked away. “Just let me know if you’re going to be there until late any given night…”
“Cannot believe you went and bagged Cameron Mercier. But y’know—if anyone was going to, it was going to be you.”
“Don’t know about all that.” I finished off my sandwich, and I wiped my fingers before I kicked back with my drink. “So. Tell me more about your new job. I know there’s gossip about your new coworkers.”
Chapter 27
Cameron laughed when we got to the bar and I parked the car streetside in front of it. I could already hear the music blasting from it once I turned off the car, and Cameron smiled at me with a twinkle in her eye.
“This why you told me to dress down?”
“Bit of a faux pas to show up at the karaoke bar in your opera dress. Ever done karaoke?”
“When I was in Tokyo, once. I was told it was mandatory.”
I unbuckled my seatbelt, turning on her. “When were you in Tokyo? Just dropping that like it’s nothing…”
She laughed. “I have an outlet store in Shibuya, you know. It’s a small thing, but I was there for the opening.”
“Jesus, sometimes I forget who you are.”
“I like that.” She reached across the center console and, with that impossibly fond look in her eyes I couldn’t believe was directed at me, trailed her fingertips over my arm. “More fun this way.”
As good as she’d looked in that dress last night, I did not mind her in a fitted tank and shorts, either. I felt like I could get used to seeing her casual look. “Well… karaoke is the perfect way to forget serious things and just be a loud mess for a while. Plus, Wednesday is ladies’ night, so we’re just in time to catch a free drink.”
“Expert in the scene?” she laughed, and I shook my head.
“Ruth is. You can thank her for this.”
“Tell her I said thank you, then,” she said, stepping out of the car. I followed her out, and I was walking on air when she was the one to slip her hand into mine this time.
Miami was a small world—we were in there for half an hour, the crowds squeezed in together belting out to the music, before I bumped into an old friend of Gabriela’s I’d known a bit, transplant from Wisconsin named Grace who’d just wanted to live somewhere with sun, and I fumbled when introducing Cameron. I said friend, but I’d put a loaded pause into the word without even trying to, and Grace picked up on it but, tactfully, didn’t say anything.
