Page 52 of The New Couple in 5B

“We’ve been to a hundred clubs.” He puts a hand on my thigh.

“Not in ages.”

“Clearly, she’s been following me for years.”

“Why?”

Because that’s really the question. Why was Dana so obsessed with Chad? Why did she call me up here? Why did she kill herself for me to find? Or did she? Chad has perfected the innocent shrug, or maybehe isjust innocent. “She’s been like this since we were kids. Weird. Jealous of me somehow.”

“Anyway,” he goes on when I say nothing. “Why would you come up here when she called?”

I tell him about her call, about the box I found, about how Abi was supposed to put it in the trunk but didn’t. He frowns at me while I talk.

“Did you really think she could tell you something about me that you don’t already know?”

The city comes into view ahead of us. I feel like Max is listening to us, but I don’t care.

“No,” I say. “But she did pique my curiosity. And I wanted to give her those photos, the letter. I thought I could offer her that, at least. Proof that Ivan loved her, thought about her. I thought it could be healing.”

“She wanted the apartment, or the money from its sale,” he says, angry now. “That’s all she cared about, hurting us because he left it to us. She never cared about Ivan.”

“It sounds like he abandoned her, his family. Hurt people hurt people, right?”

Chad pushes a strand of my hair away from my face. “You’re a good person. You only see the light in people.”

“Why would Abi do that? Not put the box in the trunk?”

He shakes his head. “There’s an explanation and we’ll ask for it.”

We drop Olivia first. On the street, I embrace her.

“Thank you for being here for us today. I don’t know what would have happened without you,” I say.

“Don’t talk to Detective Crowe again,” she warns, her voice stern. “If he calls or comes to see you, tell him he needs to make an appointment with me.”

She gives us each a hug and disappears into the midtown glass tower where her law firm sits on the top floor. She’s the youngest partner at Rinker, Yeager and Young.

Then Max drops us at our place.

“You’re a good friend, Max,” says Chad. “Thanks for going with Rosie. I hate to think of her facing that alone.”

We all stand on the street. “That’s what friends are for, right?”

“Are you okay?” I ask him. “That was hard on both of us. Come up for a drink.”

“I’m okay,” he says, glancing at Chad. “I have a work dinner to get to.”

He must see my concern. “Don’t worry, I’ll just drink away the trauma like all healthy adults. Maybe do some tele-therapy.”

I want to reach for him, embrace him. He seems lost, lonely, and I feel bad that he’s been cast in this best-friend role when maybe he still wants more. I touch his arm, and he puts his hand over mine.

“Take care of your girl,” he says to Chad. It’s a challenge; a subtle one.

But Chad is the winner, and he knows it, doesn’t need to get ruffled. “Always.”

Max pushes up his glasses, smiles at me, then climbs back in the car and is gone.

“But, Ms. Lowan,” says Abi, looking earnest and sweetly confused. “I’m so sorry. You did not have a box with you when you left this morning.”