Page 134 of Joey

And that someone is Mila Sanchez herself.

She grabs my arm, pulls me back into the elevator, then presses the button for the lobby.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

But as soon as the doors close she hits the red button on the panel, and the elevator jerks to a stop. “Who are you and why are you here?”

I hold up my ring as proof. “I swear to God, I’m Joey’s fiancé.”

“I get that,” Mila snaps. “Why. Are you here?” She points to the floor when she says ‘here’.

“I need to speak to Johnny Boston.”

She laughs. And it’s not a quiet, demure, ladylike laugh, either. It’s a guffaw. “Oh, really?”

“Yes. It’s quite important.”

“First of all,” Mila says, “you didn’t answer my question. Why are you here? Asking for me, asking for… him.”

“Oh,” I say. “I get it. Well, I hear that your partner, Emma Dumas, is dating Jesse. Right? So I figure, you know Emma, and she knows Jesse, and he is Johnny’s brother.”

“Joey is also Johnny’s brother. Why,” she snaps, “do you think I have access to Johnny?”

I crinkle my nose. “Didn’t I just explain that?”

“Who else knows you came here asking for Johnny Boston?”

“Jesus Christ. I get it. He’s a badass. But why do people freak the fuck out like this any time someone mentions his name? I’ve met the man. Here, in fact. He’s quite the jerk, if you ask me. I just need to talk to him and he’s not answering Joey’s calls.”

“I cannot have my company associated with these damn Boston boys! Do you hear me? I’ve already told Emma that she needs to keep them—”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I say. “Look. You’re involved whether you like it or not. OK? I know all about the kidnapping.”

“Shh,” she hisses. “I have no pull with Johnny. I can’t help you. And why are you asking me?”

“You’ve asked me that like three times and I’ve answered you three times.” Then a lightbulb goes off. “Oh. Well, OK. Listen. I read your book—actually listened to it on audio—fucking fantastic, by the way. And so you’re kinda like my secret mentor. So I came to you first.”

“You liked my book?”

“It was amazing.”

She tilts her chin up. “It kinda was, wasn’t it?”

“I’d buy it all over again. I’m like a self-help book expert now. I know these things.”

She pauses her freakout and folds her arms across her chest. “I can get you a meeting with Emma. But I can’t be part of this whole Johnny thing. You understand?”

“Oh, believe me. I’m in way over my head. You have no idea how much I understand.”

Mila looks me up and down for a moment. “You’re handling it pretty well. Congratulations.”

“Thanks. And Joey Boston’s a keeper. I’m gonna keep him. And his two best friends. That’s why I need to talk to his brother. We have a small problem.” I exaggerate the smallness by holding my thumb and forefinger very close together.

“La, la, la. I don’t want to hear this,” she sings.

“I won’t tell you what the problem is, don’t worry. It’s our sexy foursome bonding secret. Goes to the grave. And can I just say, after being around men for the last week, you’re a little breath of fresh air. I think we’re going to be friends.”

“No,” Mila says, shaking her head. “No. I don’t think so.”