Some part of him wondered if she’d come here, to him, for some sort of reassurance. “And every gala from now on will have armed guards.” He offered what he hoped was a calm, if grim, smile, unable to suppress that part of him that still sought to reach out, to comfort and protect. The part he’d never been able to turn off. “They’ll be apprehended soon. I promise.”
Apparently, that was all she needed to hear. She nodded, rising to her feet. Luke stood with her.
Holly’s attention drifted to the busy street behind him, a stunning view of the city visible from nearly every angle of his office. “I don’t have any friends in Gotham,” she said at last, her voice softer than he’d ever heard.
He wasn’t surprised. But Luke said politely, “Oh?”
His mother would be so proud.
Holly studied the cityscape for another heartbeat. “I heard that you and your mother are starting a nonprofit to help veterans by teaching them boxing.”
Each tick of the crystal clock on his desk was audible.
She shrugged with one shoulder. “I would like to help out.”
Luke blinked at her. He cleared his throat. “That’s very generous of you.”
“No,” she clarified. “I—I mean…” He’d never heard her stumble before. “I mean, I’ll give you money, of course.” Was that a faint hint of color on her cheeks? “But I’d like to help out. With my time. Volunteer, I mean.”
The offer stunned him. And for the life of him, he couldn’t detect a sign of anything but genuine feeling. The first he’d seen from her. Perhaps this was the person beneath the society-bred armor.
But why now? Why after this robbery? The question must have been on his face, because Holly said, “I heard you helped sneak some people out of the ballroom the other night. Got them to safety.” He didn’t ask how she knew, who’d told her. “I realized…maybe we got off on the wrong foot.”
An extended olive branch. And enough of a glimpse into who might lurk beneath the web of status symbols she used to navigate their world, to defend herself against it, that Luke found himself considering.
He was sure he or his mom could find something for her to do. So he said carefully, “We’re not official yet, still in the planning stages. But I’ll keep you posted.” He added quietly, “Thank you.”
Holly’s brows furrowed for a heartbeat. As if seeing him. Really seeing him. Something about it tugged at his memory, his chest. She shook her head a moment later, sunlight catching in her blond hair. “Of course. I’ll see you later.”
She pivoted on one of her towering stilettos and aimed for the door.
Luke knew it had nothing to do with his mother’s etiquette lessons, nothing to do with the fact that he needed to appear normal and make her think twice before wondering why he sometimes didn’t return home until late, as he took a step around the desk and asked, “Do you wanna come over for some takeout tonight?”
Holly paused on the threshold. Luke realized the woman probably had never eaten takeout in her life, and opened his mouth to suggest an alternative, but she surprised him. “Pizza?”
There was enough hope, enough relief in the question that he smiled. “Seven o’clock. Bring whatever you want to drink.” He only had beer and scotch, and he doubted she was the sort to drink either.
Holly gave him a grin, so unlike any he’d seen from her before. “Thanks. See you then.”
And as he watched her stride out, her steps smooth and unfaltering, Luke wondered if he’d opened a door he might not be able to shut.
* * *
—
She’d needed an alibi for tonight.
There was no party or dinner where Holly Vanderhees might be seen and noted. After the events of the other night, all the other galas had been postponed until further notice.
So she’d gone to Luke Fox’s office in part to check in on him after stealing his car, and in part to remind him and the rest of the gossips that she’d been at the gala two nights ago, and had been terrified and so scared and blah blah blah.
Selina certainly hadn’t expected to be caught off guard by his genuine consideration and gratitude for Holly’s offer of help. By looking at him, in that tailored suit, and realizing he’d indeed gotten people out of that room the other night.
The size of his bank account had nothing to do with it. He hadn’t stopped serving the