“I see,” Emily says.
“And who’s this sweetheart?” Dax looks at Shanna.
Like every other girl, she seems completely fascinated by him.
“Shanna,” I answer. “She’s my niece.”
No need to lie about that.
Dax’s eyebrows furrow. “But I thought your sister’s name was Sarah, not Emily. Or did she have two names?”
“Yeah, Sarah.” I try not to feel sad at the sound of her name. “Emily is my friend.”
“And Sarah is – ” Emily starts, but I give her a warning glance.
Don’t tell him, Emily. Not now.
“Not here,” Emily finishes.
“Do you work with her at NASA?” Dax asks her.
Emily’s eyebrows arch. “NASA? Um…”
Shit. This conversation is getting awkward.
“You better go,” I tell Dax as I take a step back. “It was good to see you again, but – ”
“Go out with me,” Dax cuts me off.
My eyes grow wide. What?
“Let me take you out, somewhere where the two of us can talk.”
I shake my head. “Dax, you’re not listening. I – ”
“Why don’t you?” Emily interrupts me. “Why don’t you go out, stretch your legs, have fun?”
I give her a sterner glance than before.
Emily, I swear if you say another word…
“I mean, it’s New Year’s Day,” she goes on. “You have no work. You don’t have anything to do here at home.”
“I have laundry, remember?” I tell her. “And my dad…”
“I’ll take care of the laundry and your dad,” Emily volunteers. “And Shanna and everything else.”
“Wow,” I say sarcastically. “I didn’t know you were Superwoman.”
I appreciate her offers. I just don’t like the circumstances.
“What? You think you’re the only one?” Emily answers. She pats my shoulder. “You’ve been working so hard lately, Jen. You deserve to go out once in a while.”
“I – ”
“I’ll get your coat.”
Emily goes back inside, leaving me at the doorway with my mouth gaping and Dax still in front of me.
“You’ve got a good friend,” he says.
I shake my head. “I’m not so sure she’s being one right now.”
I swear I’m going to make her pay for this.
“You know, we can just talk here,” Dax offers. “I can finally meet your dad.”
No. Bad idea.
“Maybe you can show me some of the stuff you’re working on at NASA. If it’s not classified, that is.”
Even worse.
“You know what?” I tap my arm. “If we’re going to talk, we might as well do it somewhere else.”
Dax nods. “Okay.”
“Preferably somewhere out of town,” I add.
Somewhere nobody knows who I am and what I’ve been doing this past year. Or more specifically, what I haven’t been doing.
“Sure.” Dax grins. “I can think of a place.”
“Here.” Emily hands me my coat and grins. “Have fun.”
Yeah, right.
“Shall we?” Dax glances at the Jaguar parked across the street.
Share a ride? I don’t think so.
“I’ll take my own car,” I say. “Just tell me where we’re going.”
That way, I can leave whenever I feel like it.
Dax pauses a moment, then shrugs. “Okay. How do you feel about a trip to the museum?”
Chapter Three
Dax
“Are you sure it’s okay for us to be here?” Jenna asks as we step through the doors of the museum. “It’s supposed to be closed today, right?”
“It is,” I confirm. “But it’s open just for us.”
Jenna narrows her eyes at me in suspicion. “You bribed the guard?”
“No.”
She still looks suspicious.
“I called in a favor from an acquaintance who’s on the board of trustees,” I elaborate.
Her eyebrows arch. “Wow. It must be nice being rich, huh?”
“Not really,” I confess.
Even after all this time, I still feel comfortable sharing my thoughts with Jenna, which I can’t say for a lot of people.
“Sure, I’ve got heaps of money so I can buy expensive stuff on a whim, go places in my own jet and stay in the best hotel suites.”
Jenna snorts. “Go on. Brag.”
“But I can’t really have what I want or do the things I want anymore. You know, like simply enjoying a cup of coffee without interruptions, without a time limit.”
“I know how that feels, and I’m not even rich.”
“Instead, I have to do a lot of things I don’t want to, like wear suits and go to parties…”
“Sounds awful,” she says sarcastically.
I try not to frown. “Where I’m surrounded by people watching my every move, waiting for an opportunity to land a blow or go for the kill, the same people I have to smile at and make friends with.”
“So buy a mansion or your own hotel and lock yourself up, or escape to your own island,” Jenna suggests. “Isn’t that what some rich people do?”
“I’m not that rich yet,” I answer.
Freedom comes at a high price.
“Oh.” Jenna sounds surprised. “Right.”
She enters a room filled with instruments – ancient calculating machines, scales, clocks, telescopes. I stay at the doorway and watch her as she pays close attention to each exhibit, examining them one by one. Every now and then the corner of her mouth twitches in excitement, then turns up to form a smile which lights up her entire face. Sometimes she lets out a soft gasp of childlike wonder. I smile myself.