nice day. Life.”
“You, too, Danny.”
He disconnected the call and shoved the phone back into its denim hiding place. Shaking his head, he swiveled the chair and concentrated on his e-mail inbox.
A message from Steph: It was so much fun getting together with you and Jessie. Thought you’d like to have the attached.
When he clicked on it, an image of Danny and Jessie came up, leaning close and both of them beaming. He made quick work of transferring it to his desktop before moving to the next message in the box.
Delete, delete, delete to the spam e-mails offering coupons and discounts and unnecessary services before opening the next one from his mother.
Are you going to keep us in suspense? What did Jessie say about the ring?
Instead of admitting he wished he knew, Danny typed a quick reply. She’s thinking it over. Stay tuned.
A few more client e-mails to be answered, a file attachment from a contact providing information on a case, and something from Francesca Dutton. He clicked it open.
Danny, I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for following that nudge you had to connect me with Rochelle Silverstein. Our nonprofit idea has blossomed in magnificent ways, and we’d very much like to take you and Jessie to dinner so that we can update you on our plans and thank you both properly. Name the day and time, as well as your favorite restaurant.
Danny quirked an eyebrow, considering the invitation for a moment before he retrieved his phone again and dialed Jessie.
“Good morning,” she answered with an eager lilt to her pretty voice. “How are you?”
“I’m good. What about you?”
“Excited. I just had the most amazing series of phone calls already this morning. I can’t wait to tell you all about it.”
“Do you have time to meet for lunch?” he asked, and she nearly cut him off to reply.
“Can you come to me? We could walk down to Nosh.”
“See you around one o’clock?”
“I can’t wait.” With a gasp, she added, “Oh! Did you call for a reason?”
“Francesca Dutton sent me an e-mail to—”
“Yeah, I saw that. She copied me. It sounds like fun, right?”
“I don’t know if I’d go as far as fun, but it might be nice to hear what they have planned.”
“How about I set something up with them,” Jessie suggested. “Later in the week at Tuscan Son?”
“Works for me. Just tell me when to be there.”
“Okay. And I’ll see you in a little while.”
As he ended the call, Frank moseyed into the sunroom and pressed his chin on Danny’s knee. A beam of sunlight seemed to point the way straight through the window to the tip of the dog’s nose, spilling out over the bridge with enough glare to cause him to squint sweetly.
The instant the front door blew open, Frank reeled and barked before setting one paw forward in a gallop toward the sound.
“Yo, Frankenstein,” Riggs greeted him from the next room. “What’s shakin’? Where’s your pops?”
“In here,” Danny called out.
“Detour for coffee,” he returned. “Need any?”
“Nope.”
When he made his way to the office, Riggs tossed himself in a downward flop to the hunter green cushions on the rattan loveseat, holding a fresh cup over his head. “You surf today?”
“Nah. Slept in and had some work to do.”
“I stopped by with Allie last night, but you weren’t around. Hot date with Jessie?”
“We went out to the marina to meet Steph and Vince for dinner on the boat.”
“Yeah? How’d that go?” he asked, slurping his coffee. “Celebrate any engagements lately?”
“If one more person asks me about that today, I just may go postal.”
“You? Postal?” Riggs snickered. “Gimme a break.”
“Just don’t get me near a gun and a rooftop.”
“Please.”
Danny wanted to ask about things with Charlotte, what he and Allie had come by about, but his mood had soured and he didn’t feel much like making polite conversation. Sinking against the back of his chair, he simply glared down into his almost empty cup and ground his teeth together.
***
Jessie finished sorting the stack of receipts from the outside of her desk while Amber sat on the working side in front of the laptop, typing in figures at warp speed.
“Data entry is definitely one of your gifts,” she remarked. “You’re so fast.”
Amber glanced up only long enough to smirk before returning her attention to the screen in front of her. “Okay,” she finally said. “That’s it for the rentals. Hand me the stack of purchases for the week, and I’ll get those entered, too.”
Jessie handed them over. “Danny’s coming by for lunch at Nosh. Can I bring you something?”
“No, I’m packing this week,” she said without looking away from her work. “I need every spare penny if I’m going to move into a bigger apartment next month.”
“I can treat you to lunch, Amber. What would you like?”
“Seriously, I’m good. I have leftovers from dinner at Mambo last night.”
“You went to Mambo? I haven’t been there in years,” Jessie exclaimed. “I love Cuban food.”
The click-click-click of Amber’s fingers across the keyboard ceased, and the silence drew Jessie’s attention. When she looked up, Amber stared at her, grinning from one ear to the other, her cheeks stained pink.
“What?”
“Promise you won’t think less of me?” Amber prefaced.
“Of course.”
She leaned forward as she spilled, “I called that friend of Danny’s, and we went out last night.”
“What friend of—” As it sank in, Jessie grinned. “Rafe? You went out on a date with Rafe Padillo?”
She nodded, nibbling on the corner of her lip. “He’s dreamy.”
“And? How did the date go?”
Amber
