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Meg r
eached out and pulled the clothes out of Alina’s grasp. “You can’t wear that.”
“Why not?” Alina frowned. “You just said it wasn’t a restaurant, which means I get to feel comfortable.”
“Not if you want to impress this guy.”
“I don’t want to impress him.”
“Yes, you do.” Meg’s eyes implored her to be reasonable. “Why do you have to be so stubborn?”
“Why would I want to impress the man responsible for taking away my home and the home of my friends?” Yes, she thought of most everyone in that apartment building as her friends, except her stepmother and two stepsisters.
It wasn’t that she’d always disliked them. In fact, in the beginning it was quite the opposite. She thought it would be nice to have a mother figure, not that anyone would ever replace her mother, but to have two sisters would be amazing. In the end, it had been an amazing disaster.
“Alina, listen to me. You need this guy on your side. He’s the only one that can stop the demolition of the building.”
As much as she wanted to argue with her friend, Meg was right. The end was in sight and her options were limited. If there was going to be a Christmas miracle, it would have to come from Mr. Scrooge, er... Mr. Toliver.
With the utmost reluctance, Alina asked, “What do you think I should wear?”
“Let me see.” Meg rummaged through Alina’s closet.
Hangers rattled together. There were a lot of no’s and Alina had a feeling putting her friend in charge of her attire for the evening was a mistake.
All the while Prince laid on her bed, staring at her as though she were a traitor for getting dolled up for the enemy. Or maybe that was her own guilt. But if there was any chance of changing this guy’s mind about where he built his high-rise, she would do what was necessary for the residents of the past, those of the present and the ones of the future.
* * *
Alina was ready to go promptly at seven.
It was already dark out but the inky black sky was clear—the big moon hovered overhead but there were too many lights in Manhattan for her to make out the stars.
A black sedan rolled to a stop in front of the Stirling. The driver got out and opened her door for her. She had no idea when Graham said he’d send a car that it would be chauffeur driven. She’d thought he’d meant he would send a taxi to pick her up. She climbed in. This black high-end sedan with tinted windows was quite a few steps up from a taxi. As her hand ran over the buttery-soft black leather seat, she realized it was way out of her league. With this sort of luxury, no wonder Mr. Toliver couldn’t understand how an old building could mean so much to so many people.
She glanced down at her little black dress, the one she’d almost refused to wear. She was thankful Meg had been so insistent on her dressing up. Like it or not, if she wanted Mr. Toliver to take her seriously, jeans and a casual sweater weren’t going to do the trick.
And maybe some inside information would help. “Excuse me.”
“Yes, ma’am,” the driver said.
“Do you drive regularly for Mr. Toliver?”
“Yes, ma’am. We should be there in five minutes.”
“Thanks. But what I was wondering is, what is Mr. Toliver like?” She had no idea if the driver would speak to her about his employer, but it was worth a try because time was running out before everyone at the Stirling was out on the street.
“Mr. Toliver is the best boss I’ve ever had.”
Now, that shocked her. Sure, she expected the man to say something nice about his boss. After all, he had his job to protect, but this man went above and beyond, saying that Graham was the best.
Maybe it was just that the man didn’t know Mr. Toliver well enough. “How long have you worked for him?”
“I’ve worked for him and his family for eleven years.”
Okay. So that wasn’t the issue. Maybe it was that the man hadn’t worked as a driver for anyone else and had no one to compare him to. “And before you became the Tolivers’ driver what did you do?”
“I’ve been a driver since I graduated high school. My father owns a fleet of cars for hire. But once I started driving for the Tolivers, they requested me regularly. And then one day, the Tolivers hired me full-time. I’ve been with the family ever since. Mr. Graham is good people. Do right by him and he’ll do right by you.”
