Evie’s phone rang, and she felt a flash of relief at the caller’s name. “Hi, Rob.”
David stepped away to give her some privacy.
“I’m in town and wrapping up for the night,” she confirmed.
“Go ahead, meet your guy,” David mouthed.
She nodded agreement. “I’ll see you in a little over an hour.”
“I’m bailing on you to have dinner at Rob’s,” she reported to David as she hung up, saved her work, and logged off.
He smiled. “Watch me do the same when my girl gets into town next week. Enjoy your evening, Evie.”
“I will. See you tomorrow, David.” Evie felt a renewed shot of energy at simply having Rob in her plans for the night. She pulled on her coat and gloves and headed out with David.
Ten
Evie curled her feet up under her on the couch, watching Rob over an oversized mug of hot chocolate she’d chosen over a glass of chardonnay, enjoying listening to details of his week as he put away the remains of their meal.
“We’re doing a deal with The Lewis Group on a television station,” he told her, “buying it from Nathan and merging ownership with one from Atlanta and another two located in Virginia.”
She could hear the satisfaction in Rob’s voice—certainly the deals, but also the people he was working with. He liked running with “the big dogs,” as he joked on occasion. The deals were large, had more on the line, got noticed by the press, and written up in the business sections of major newspapers. Rob was good at what he did, was respected by the decision-makers. She liked that about him.
She didn’t try to follow the intricate specifics of what he described, but she liked listening. The money and business transactions that had him fascinated were just things, not life and death, though they caused similar stress. Her perception was different. She would never appreciate them with the same satisfaction he did and couldn’t easily pretend that she did. But she knew he loved the work.
“Boring you?” Rob asked with a grin as he walked into the living room with his glass.
She smiled. “No. Just drifting a bit as I listen. It’s been a long workweek.” She shifted the hot chocolate to the coffee table and curled into him after he joined her on the couch, gave him a hug and simply leaned against his chest. “I missed you.”
“Very much mutual, my Evie.” He put a hand under her chin, lifted it for a gentle kiss.
He took good care of her—the meal, the quiet evening. He also liked to show her off, take her to events, out to dinner, to parties where friends and business acquaintances could meet her. But there were also nights like this one where he simply wanted a shared meal with her at his place.
“Fifteen days since we last spent an evening together—far too long a stretch,” he mentioned. “You might start forgetting me.”
She smiled at the teasing tone. “As if . . .” She gave a contented sigh as she sat up to reach for her mug, idly wondering if that was one of the ties she had given him. He’d relaxed, nixed the suit jacket but still wore the loosened tie. It suited him, her banker boyfriend, a semiformal look even when choosing comfort.
She wondered what he’d say to Ann having someone undercover at The Lewis Group to figure out who murdered Nathan’s wife. Their worlds did intersect, if not collide, at times. She smiled to herself. Not her secret to tell. Knowing Rob, he’d take in the news and rather quickly deduce who it was. He made it a point to know his clients and their associates. Someone new in the circle around Nathan would have been noticed.
“My parents were wondering if we might like to join them for dinner at the mayor’s charity benefit next Friday night.”
And their lives overlapped yet again. She nearly told him that David knew the special guest who would be performing that evening, but thought better of it. She didn’t think Rob would have more than a glancing knowledge of Triple M even if she did mention the name. “I’d like that. I can’t promise, but I can try to be there.”
“I’ll arrange tickets then. And tell Mom and Dad to go easy on expressing their concerns.”
She had wondered how Rob was taking their remarks. “They mean well,” she offered, willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.
“I’ll be charitable and say they’re just not used to making small talk with a cop.”
She smiled at his dry comment. She thought Rob was handling it about as well as he could, given his parents had someone very different in mind for their future daughter-in-law. Evie turned to lean against him once more, and Rob rested his arm around her. She felt content to share the couch and just enjoy being held. “Whether or not I understand it all, it sounds like you had a productive week.”