A creak from behind her made her turn around quickly, only to find Lily standing at the bottom step of the wooden stairs. Her friend stopped at the sound.
“Damn it,” she whispered to herself. “Forgot to take off my shoes.”
“Busted,” Amber said, standing up.
Lily gasped and whirled around. “Shit! You nearly gave me a heart attack!” She cupped her hand over her eyes, trying to see Amber. “Where the hell are you?”
Amber stepped into the lighted area. “Ta-da.”
Lily looked her over, taking in the tight dark outfit she had on. “Oh, you’re so busted yourself,” she said mockingly. “You just got home from your rendezvous with Hawk. I want all the details.”
“And you just got home from yours with Brad,” Amber retorted. “So let’s hear your excuse for creeping in after curfew hours, young lady.”
They stared at each other for a few moments, then began to giggle. Lily leaned against the banister, her shoulders shaking. Amber flopped down at the foot of the steps.
“You look dirty and tired. Doesn’t look like a romantic night out,” Lily noted as she joined her.
Amber snorted at the thought. “That man’s idea of romance is me chasing his ass all over Velesta at top speed.”
“Ooooh. You were doing the chasing, huh? Why? Where did you guys meet?”
Amber didn’t feel like sharing what she saw at thekafena.Not right now. It would only upset Lily, especially when she herself hadn’t done anything to save that girl. Guilt sat heavily inside her.
“Hey.” Lily interrupted her thoughts. “You got all serious all of a sudden. What’s the matter?”
“I’m exhausted,” Amber said. It wasn’t a lie. Now that she was off her feet and the adrenaline from the chase was gone, her energy level was near zero. “Hawk isn’t much of a talker, that’s for sure, but I managed to get an outline of his operation. I’ll tell you tomorrow, when my brain’s working again. Now tell me about your meeting with Brad. And don’t lie about talking business till the wee hours in the morning.”
“Well…” Lily studied her fingernails carefully. “We had dinner.”
“And?”
“And we talked about art and stuff,” Lily added.
“And?”
“And we watched a movie.”
Amber sighed. “Are we going to get to the good part or not?”
“And nothing. Then I came home.” Lily stood up and offered Amber a helping hand.
Amber got up slowly as her thigh muscles protested. “Normally, I would believe you,” she said, wincing as she lifted one leg onto the first step. “But we’re talking about you and Brad here. No quarrels, just a good old nice evening dining and watching movies. Uh-huh, sure, I believe you.”
“He was very charming tonight,” Lily conceded. “You sure are walking up these steps like a grandma. If Hawk’s so full of energy at night outside, can you imagine his endurance indoors? Say, in bed?”
“Nu-uh, I know a changing-the-subject tactic when I see one,” Amber mocked. “So, you find Brad charming, huh? I told you that he isn’t all bureaucrat. That’s a really interesting man once you get to know him, Lily.”
“Yeah, well, I’m not exactly in town long enough to do that. His lifestyle and mine aren’t going to converge anytime in the future, either.”
Amber admitted that that could be a problem. Brad was all black and white, and Lily was obviously as gray as one could get when it came to the law. If there were ever an example of opposites attracting, then her friends were the prime example.
“Things have a way of working out,” she said as they reached the top. She wiped her damp feet as Lily opened the door. “Maybe you’ll retire from your line of work, and who knows?”
“And maybe pigs will fly.” Lily turned on the kitchen light. She went straight to the refrigerator. “Want a drink? I think we have some mimosa left.”
Amber closed the door behind her. “Nah. I’ll just have water. I have a restaurant to run in…oh…a couple of hours.” She sighed. “We’ll talk sometime tomorrow, okay? Maybe I’ll skip the bookkeeping in the morning, stay in bed, and curse at Hawk McMillan.”
She watched Lily pour a large drink. Something had happened tonight, she could tell. She had hoped that Lily would see that she deserved Brad, no matter what her background was, but it would take time. Lily’s darkness wasn’t exactly something one light could brighten immediately. Anyway, Brad would talk to her later. She poured a glass of water for herself.
