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“I’ll bet I’ve heard you,” Graham said.
Fat chance, Piper thought. Graham would no more darken the halls of the Lyric Opera than he would throw a deliberate interception.
“Ladies, as much as I’ve enjoyed meeting you, I need to talk to Ms. Dove”—another cockroach stomped into oblivion—“about a business matter.”
Amber began to turn to the door, then stopped and moved next to Piper. Jen did the same thing. “Maybe we can help,” she said firmly.
Girlfriends stuck together, and none of them were leaving until Piper gave the word. With the greatest reluctance, Berni joined them. They were a unit: a ballsy television meteorologist, a Korean opera singer with the voice of an angel, and the number one Stars football fangirl. How screwed up could Piper’s life be when she had friends like this?
“It’s okay,” she said. “I can handle it.”
“Are you sure?” This came from Amber, who suddenly looked as formidable as Wagner’s Brünnhilde.
Not sure at all, but Piper nodded. “It’s business.”
“I’m certain this is a simple misunderstanding,” Berni said, and then, in a pseudo-whisper, “I’ll leave a retainer check in your mailbox, Piper. That’s how it’s done, right?”
“No check, Berni. We’ll talk tomorrow.” After today, what was one more challenge?
“Piper?” Jen said.
As much as Piper appreciated their concern, she couldn’t let Graham see her as a weakling. She forced a lazy wave toward the door. “Later.”
On her way out, Berni regarded Graham. “Piper is a very good person.”
“It’s been a pleasure meeting you, Mrs. Berkovitz,” he said.
She touched his arm. “I make an excellent brisket. If you ever get hungry for brisket, you let me know.”
He gave her his odious fan-smile. “I’ll do that.”
“Or my divinity fudge if you’ve got a sweet tooth.”
He smiled, the door closed behind them, and his affability vanished. Piper’s only defense was a strong offense. She set her shoulders and charged toward him. “My surveillance was legal. Yes, going into the club could be a gray area, but Spiral is a public space, and you’d have to prove that my presence caused you extreme emotional distress. Somehow I don’t think a judge would buy that from a former MVP.”
He loomed over her, six feet three to her five feet six. “Who hired you?”
She straightened her spine, trying to gain another inch of height. “I can’t tell you that. But I will say that it’s no one who wishes you harm.”
“Why don’t I find that comforting?”
“It’s the truth.”
“And you’re an expert on the truth, Esmerelda?”
She struggled to keep her cool. “Nobody likes being duped. I understand that. But I had a job to do.”
“Not impressed. Who are you working for?”
“Like I said: no one who’s a threat to you.”
“I’ll decide that for myself.”
“I have nothing else to say.”
“Is that so?” He bored in on her. “Let me put it this way: you can either tell me now or you’ll hear from my lawyers.”
He had to know a lawsuit would destroy her. She tried to channel a wealthy CEO. “Lawsuits are such a time sink.”
