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“Look, Lindsey, right?”
She nodded, still trying to catch her breath.
“This is really sweet, but I’ve had a really long, really hard day, and I don’t have much of an appetite.”
“He told me. At least his part in it. I’ll tell you, he really feels awful about it. Just take this. It’s dinner, plus stuff for breakfast and lunch tomorrow. By the looks of you, it’ll probably last you all week.”
“By the looks of me?” I asked, not bothering to hide my scowl.
“You’re tiny. You probably don’t eat more than a bite or two at every meal, am I right?”
I was dead tired, my feet were killing me, I was starving even though I’d lied and said I wasn’t, and I was irritable. Nothing I was going through was the fault of the woman who’d run across the street to give me food.
I smiled and shook my head. “You’d be surprised how much I can pack away. My grandma always said I had the appetite of an offensive lineman. Thank you for this. I really do appreciate it.”
“There’s silverware in there and napkins, plus instructions for heating it all up. Oh, and there’s dessert too. I’m sorry you had such a shitty day.” She tried to hand me the bag, but with everything I was carrying, I had no way to take it.
“You want me to bring this upstairs for you?”
“No, thanks. I’ll get it.”
I looked up when I saw the man who’d left me sitting in the lobby of a building for two hours, about to cross the street. “I gotta go. Thanks again.” I stuck out one finger, and she hung the bag on it.
“You sure you don’t want help?”
“Nope, I got it. Thanks,” I said, hoping my finger wouldn’t bend back any farther before I got upstairs.
I rushed in the revolving door and over to the elevator, willing one of them to open when I hit the call button with my elbow.
“Ali,” I heard Cope call out, but pretended I didn’t. Not that it mattered, because the damn elevators seemed to all be stuck on the tenth floor. Where the hell was the doorman, anyway?
“Ali, I’m glad I caught you.”
I wasn’t. I heard a ding and the sound of doors opening.
“I’m sorry about earlier. Things really hit the fan, and it took a lot longer?—”
“Tell the truth,” I said, stepping into my escape route. “You forgot all about me.” I set the bag of food down on the floor and rummaged around for my key card, only remembering I needed it when the elevator didn’t move. In that time, he’d stepped inside.
“You’re right. I did forget.”
I found the card and looked up at him. “Okay. Well, thanks for the food.”
“Can I ride up with you? Help you with that?”
“No, I got it.”
Someone else rushed into the elevator and stuck his card in the slot. “What floor?” he said, looking first at me and then at Cope.
“Thirtieth.”
The man hit the button for twenty-four and then the one for thirty. I didn’t speak again until he got out.
“How did you know my floor?” I said as soon as the doors closed. They opened again, and he still hadn’t answered me.
“Well?”
“I’ll explain when we’re inside.”