I dig my teeth into my lower lip to keep from laughing. “Thank you for not calling me a horse.”
“You’re welcome,” he says in a tone of deep seriousness, and my laughter bursts free.
We arrive at the museum. The city is dark around us but alight with life and music. The benefit has attracted a lot of people, both guests and passersby, who occupy the steps.
Isaac offers me his arm. It’s unfamiliar, touching him like this for longer than a brief handshake.
“Ready?” he murmurs.
I know what awaits us. Who’s waiting inside those giant double-doors, beckoning in the warm light of the chandeliers. My former in-laws will be there. Former acquaintances and friends who chose Percy’s side. Everyone from my old life… before it imploded.
“Yes,” I say. “I am.”
Isaac’s eyes linger on mine for a moment. “All right. Let’s do this, then, Miss Bishop.”
“Sophia,” I say quietly.
“That’s right,” he murmurs. “Sophia.”
We walk up the worn stone steps and into the golden light of the chandelier-filled lobby. On a normal New York day, this hall would be filled with elementary school classes and tourists speaking languages I couldn’t understand, the commotion all echoing up the vaulted ceiling.
And tonight, it’s only for the invited guests.
Guests who, the organizers hoped, would be wealthy and generous enough to dip their hands into overflowing pockets and support the museum.
Somewhere in the distance, I catch the mellifluous tones of a string quartet. It’s interrupted by the clicking of expensive shoes against the marble floor.
“What’s your step one?” I whisper to Isaac.
He leans his head my way. “My step one?”
“Yes. Of your current networking plan.”
“Ah,” he says, and his voice warms. “Letting people come to me doesn’t require a lot of work on my part. That’s the beauty of it.”
“Do you stand in a corner and look intimidating?”
He chuckles. “That would make my life a lot easier. Unfortunately, I do have to look approachable for the method to work.”
I make my voice teasing. “Do you think you’ll find your prince here, Cinderella?”
“I haven’t spotted him yet,” Isaac says. “Will he be the tall, dark, and handsome one?”
“Most likely,” I say and can’t resist the rest. “But make sure you avoid mirrors, or you might get confused.”
There’s silence from the man beside me. But then he chuckles, the sound a bit hoarse. “Well, well,” he says finally.
We head toward the bar. I walk beside him and glance around. Lizzie and Tate Winthrop are here. So is Maud Astor. Her eyes widen when she sees me, and then she finds her composure and gives me a quick smile hello.
She’s best friends with Percy’s sister, and I’ve spent a lot of summer weekends with her and her husband. I’ve hugged her when she’s cried, and took care of her dog one weekend, and played a lot of charades on opposite teams.
She’d dropped me like a bad habit after the divorce.
But then she clocks who I’m walking beside. Her eyes linger on Isaac before returning to me and then darting quickly away.
Petty satisfaction wells up inside me. It’s not a noble emotion, but it sure is human, and I’m going to revel in all of it tonight.
“Chardonnay,” Isaac asks, “or champagne?”