As for the other Johnny, Johnny Bulluci, I didn’t see him, since we were both so busy with work. That didn’t stop me from thinking about him, though. I replayed our date over and over again in my head. He was a rich, spoiled playboy. Smooth, suave, used to getting his own way. But he’d also been kind, considerate, and caring. How many guys would have sat there listening to a woman gush about her dead fiancé? Not many. We’d clicked, connected that night in the park. I was beginning to think maybe Johnny Bulluci had potential beyond being Rebound Guy.

Johnny hadn’t forgotten about me either. The day after our date, he had a black pepper–seasoned steak from Quicke’s H o t M a m a

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delivered to my office. I squealed so loud when I opened the package that Piper thought I’d gotten a box full of diamonds or something equally expensive. I returned the favor by sending two tickets to the Ferris wheel and a funnel cake to Bulluci Industries. Two hours later, I’d received a stick of cotton candy and a stuffed purple rabbit. We exchanged gag gifts the rest of the day. A sense of humor was another thing I liked in a man. Life was too short to be taken seriously. Especially when you went around town wearing bodyhugging orange red spandex and shooting fire out of your fingertips.

Monday rolled around. I left the final details of the fall collection in Piper’s capable, anal-retentive, obsessivecompulsive hands and went home early to get ready for my latest public appearance as Fiera.

Every couple of months, SNN, the Exposé, the Chronicle, and the other media outlets in the city sponsored Meet Bigtime’s Superheroes in Paradise Park. The events were a chance for regular folks to mix and mingle with their favorite superheroes and learn about our powers, as well as raise money for some worthy causes. The members of the Fearless Five took turns attending the functions, and I was the lucky superhero today. I didn’t mind too much, though. It was fun to show off in front of people. Kids, in particular, always got a kick out of my fireball-juggling skills.

Once I was suited up, I flipped a switch just inside the door. It looked like any other light switch, but it was a special feature Henry had installed for me when I’d moved into the apartment. The switch sent out a signal that scrambled the building’s security cameras and locked down all the elevators except for the one I used for five minutes. Since I had the whole floor to myself, I didn’t have to worry about nosy neighbors—just about getting out of the building without being seen.

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