at five since . . .” He cocked his head, coming up empty. “See? There is no end to that sentence.”
“There’s an errand I need to run.” Changing the subject, she took the message slips from him. “Anything noteworthy?”
“Mr. Dixon called. This is becoming a regular thing. Perhaps I should add him to your speed dial?” Will grinned when she shot him a glare. “Oh, spare me the look—so I’m having fun here. I like him. And so do you, even if you won’t admit it. I see the smile on your face after you talk to him.”
She said nothing as she picked up her briefcase, refusing to be drawn into this conversation.
“Don’t forget your umbrella, Ms. Slade,” he said cheekily.
Oops—right. She grabbed her umbrella and gave him a slight smile. Cheeky or not, the man was a lifesaver. “Good night, Will.”
She headed down the hallway and made her way to the elevator bank. After pushing the down button, Will’s comment about Ford echoed in her head.
I like him. And so do you, even if you won’t admit it.
There’d been a moment on Saturday night, as she’d been lying on the bed next to Ford, when things had felt different between them. Good different.
Scary different.
At the time, she’d covered up her thoughts by asking about the stupid brownies, assuming it was just a fleeting, post-sex thing. But here she was two days later, and the little butterflies she felt in her stomach every time she thought about him still hadn’t gone away.
And that was even scarier.
When the elevator reached the ground floor, she forced herself not to think about Ford and concentrate instead on the task at hand—a task that already had her anxious enough.
Tonight, she was taking on the subway during rush hour.
As she cut across the building lobby, she took her earbuds out of her briefcase and plugged them into her phone. She scrolled through her playlist until she found the song she wanted, and felt charged as she stepped outside into the rain and the music began to play.
This girl is on fire.
Damn skippy.
And tonight, this girl was going to kick the ass of her teeny, tiny panic-attack problem.
Twenty-six
FORD STOOD UNDER the red glass overhang of the Thompson Center, trying to stay dry from the rain.
He’d just finished interviewing the director of the Department of Children and Family Services for his story on parents who’d abused or neglected their children while supposedly under the agency’s supervision. The interview had run longer than he’d expected—the director had been surprisingly willing to talk—and since it was already five o’clock he decided to scrap his plan to return to the Trib office and call it a day instead.
He checked his cell phone, hoping to have a message from Victoria.
No luck.
He was very eager to hear how her meeting with Sutter had gone, so he decided to try to catch her at work. The rain began to fall steadily as he walked the three blocks, so while waiting for a red light to change, he wrestled his umbrella out of his messenger bag.
Just then, he spotted Victoria as she stepped out of the revolving doors of her building. She opened her umbrella and began walking in the opposite direction.
He called her name, but she didn’t turn, his voice undoubtedly drowned out by the cacophony of street noise as cars, taxis, and buses whooshed between them on the rain-slick street. It took a good minute for the light to change, so by the time he crossed the street he’d lost sight of her on the crowded sidewalk that was a sea of umbrellas.
Walking quickly and weaving through other pedestrians, he saw her cross the street ahead of him, and realized with an ironic smile that she’d led him right back to the Thompson Center. Seeing her head in the direction of the underground subway station, he hurried to make the light.
“Victoria!” he called, closing the gap.
She still didn’t look back as she headed down the stairs to the station.
Not far behind her now, he pushed through the turnstile and made his way to the underground platform, which was even more crowded than usual because of the rain. While closing his umbrella, he spotted Victoria on the far end of the platform, her back to him as she waited for the train.
He made his way over and tapped her on the shoulder. She jumped and turned around, and only then did he see that she had earbuds in that were covered by her