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I squeeze my eyes shut. “I’m still at the office.”

“I know you’re still at the office,” he says. “I’m asking why you sound like you’ve been wrestling the furniture.”

I tip my head back toward the ceiling. “The presentation prep ran late.”

“So did your cardiovascular workout, apparently.”

I roll my eyes. “Theo.”

“What?”

“Why are you calling?”

“The city’s falling apart.” He sighs. “Power outages, flooded streets, trains canceling left and right. IT couldn’t get hold of anyone on your floor, so they asked me to make sure you hadn’t floated away.”

“We’re fine.”

“‘We’?”

I make the mistake of looking at Emma. She’s suddenly very interested in the emergency lights. “Emma’s still here.”

Silence.

I know that silence.

“Theo.”

“I’ve known you for years,” he says. “This is much funnier if I let you keep talking.”

I rub a hand over my face. “The presentation work’s finished.”

“Good.”

“The storm delayed us.”

He doesn’t stop with the teasing tone. “Makes sense.”

“We’re leaving now.”

“Excellent.”

I end the call before he can enjoy himself any more than he already has.

Emma waits until I’ve slipped my phone back into my pocket before looking at me. “I don’t think he believed a single word.”

“He never does.”

The corner of her mouth lifts. “Does he usually interrogate you?”

“Only when he thinks I’m hiding something.”

She huffs a quiet laugh, and I catch myself smiling back before I can think better of it.

Lightning tears across the skyline, throwing the conference room into white before thunder rolls through the building hard enough to rattle the windows.

Emma turns toward the rain streaking down the glass, then lets out a small breath. “I should head home before this gets any worse.”

“I should too.”