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“Hmm, Goddess of the Hunt. What is it you’re hunting tonight, Diana?” I ask, my tone teasing. She smiles, amused at the cheesy line.
“Honestly, just a bit of peace and quiet.”
I raise my brows, my eyes roaming over her face. Yeah, I can see that. Every other woman I speak to is aftersomething, but not Diana. If anything, she seems annoyed to find this seat occupied.
“So, you’re on the run?”
Diana shrugs, but I catch a glimpse of sorrow in her eyes before she looks away. “Aren’t you too? Otherwise, you wouldn’t be in my seat.”
I look down at my legs with a smile on my face, as if to verify that I am, in fact, in her seat. “Your seat, huh? Does that mean I’ll find you here next time?”
Diana smiles and shakes her head. “No. I don’t come here that often. But yes, when I do come to Inferno, I usually end up here.”
I grin and nod at her. “Noted.” I already know this is the first place I’ll be going every single time I come here from now on, just in case I’ll find her here.
“What is ityou’rerunning away from tonight?” she asks.
I sigh, my mind flashing back to the countless tasks waiting for me; my mother’s endless demands, my grandfather’s ridiculous requirement formarriagebefore he’ll let me take over the company that I’ve worked myself to the bone for.
“Responsibility,” I murmur.
Diana nods and looks away, as though she somehow understands, when there is no way she could. I see the cheap worn shoes, the rough unpolished nails. Diana is one of the lucky ones, the ones that think money solves everything when more often than not, they have the sort of happiness I can only dream of. A happy family, a fulfilling life, dreams of their own, a path of their own choosing.
“Since we’re both on the run… let’s run from negativity. Tell me three good things that happened to you today?” she asks, startling me out of my thoughts.
I stare at her, my eyes widening. That question… it sounds familiar, yet I can’t place it. It feels nostalgic somehow, something from my childhood, maybe? I smile at her and shake the thoughts away.
“Well, I finally closed a deal I’ve been working on for months. I took my mom out for our weekly lunch date today and we managed to have a good talk… and I metyou.”
Diana smiles, but her eyes tell a different story. A story of understanding tinged with longing. She looks down at her lap and nods.
“Hmm, sounds like a perfect day,” she murmurs as I finish my champagne. A waiter appears seemingly out of nowhere to top up my glass, startling both of us. I hand Diana a glass of champagne, and she smiles at me.
“Being Alexander Kennedy certainly does have its perks,” she says. “I’ve never had anyone come take my order here,” she adds, nudging me with her shoulder.
I chuckle, I can’t help it. She’s not pretentious, like so many others. I’ve gotten so used to the entitlement that surrounds me that her relaxed attitude surprises me.
Diana and I stare at the Manhattan skyline, both of us perfectly comfortable. I can’t even remember the last time I sat next to a woman that didn’t chat my ear off, and I’m finding this oddly peaceful, despite the noise surrounding us.
“Hey, if you could have one wish, what would it be?” Diana asks, surprising me yet again.
I stare at her blankly. “I have to admit that no one has ever asked me that question before.”
She laughs, her face tipped up, her eyes on the stars in the sky. She’s beautiful, and she looks so incredibly sweet. Far too sweet for a man like me.
“That isn’t an answer,” she says. “You’re not getting out of this one.”
I laugh and take a big swig of my champagne, lost in thought for a moment. “I’d wish for genuine happiness, Diana,” I tell her honestly. For a while, I thought I had the happiness I craved, but I was proven wrong. I shake my head, feeling lost for just a single moment. “What about you?” I ask, my voice soft.
She smiles, but her smile is bittersweet. “Health,” she says. “Good health for everyone I love.”
Health. Money can buy almost anything, but it can’t buy good health. Even if she were to ask me for something like so many other women brazenly do, this isn’t something I can give her.
I sigh and lean back in my seat, my eyes tracing over her. “Since we’re both running from something, why don’t we run together? At least for tonight.”
I offer her my hand, and she takes it. I pull Diana to her feet, and she stumbles in her high heels. I catch her, my hands on her waist.
“Care for a dance, Diana?”
