John stared. Ralph glared. Jay watched, looking more crouching tiger than human as he snapped a photo of the card before shoving it into his pocket.
“Mr. Smith.”
“Please, John, call me Ralph.”
“It’s Mr. Sheppard, Mr. Smith.”
If that’d happened on a show I was watching, I would’ve shouted “Mic Drop!” at the TV. But I bit my lip to keep myself quiet.
“What is your business with Miss Novak?”
The bell above the door chimed as a woman walked in, pushing a baby stroller. She was chatting away on her phone and barely noticed the tension as she made her way to the counter.
She ordered her drink. Jack made the iced beverage like a pro, and she left the same way she’d come in. Clueless.
“It’s of a personal nature, not that it’s any of your business,” Mr. Smith answered.
“Perhaps, but in the future if you want to speak to Nina, you call me first.”
John held out a business card.
Mr. Smith hesitated before taking it. “I’ll be back.”
He sounded less ominous than the futuristic robot, but his words still sent a chill down my spine.
No one except Ralph moved as he walked out. As soon as the door closed, John said, “You can come out now.”
“Busted,” Mary said, laughing. She put her arm around me as we walked back to the dining room.
John turned and asked, “Nina, have you ever seen that guy before?”
“No.” Before I could stop myself, I started babbling like a nervous Nelly. “I have no idea what he’s talking about or why he asked about my family. My parents are dead. And I never met my birth parents. I don’t even know their names.”
When I finally stopped to take a breath, John said, “It’ll be okay. We’ll check out his company and run facial recognition to learn what we can.”
John probably meant to put my mind at ease, but my hands started shaking uncontrollably as he explained.
“Here, sit,” Mary helped me into a nearby booth. One away from the window.
“Jay, who do we have available tonight?”
“Blaszek and Maxwell.”
“Don’t you mean Maxwell-Sheppard?” Jack asked.
“Not at work,” Jay flipped his brother a finger.
“Jaden!”
“Sorry, Ma.”
“Nina, I’d like to have Cate escort you home tonight, if that’s okay.”
I didn’t know what SSI charged for a bodyguard, but I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I couldn’t afford it.
“That’s okay. My grandmother has a doctor’s appointment after work and that’ll take a while,” I said, leaving out the real reason.Who in their right mind wants to admit they’re broke?
John and Mary shared a look I couldn’t read. I’d noticed the non-verbal communication before, but hadn’t found it annoying until now.
