“Hold down the brake with your foot and then press it,” he added.

She did. The car roared to life. She caught her breath as the vents opened and the gearshift rose up out of the console. “Oh!” she exclaimed. She looked at the controls, at the instrument panel, at the leather seats. “Oh!” she said again.

Gabriel squatted by the door, on the driveway. “Its creator said something like, ‘We will never come closer to building something that is alive.’ Each Jaguar is unique. Each has its own little idiosyncrasies. I’ve been driving them for years, and I still learn new things about them. They purr when they’re happy, they growl when they want the open road.” He laughed self-consciously. “Well, you’ll see.”

She leaned over and brushed her soft mouth against his cheek, very shyly. “Thanks.”

He chuckled and got to his feet. “You’re welcome.”

“Thanks, Sara,” she called to the other woman.

“It was truly our pleasure.” Sara yawned. “And now we really should get to bed, don’t you think? Michelle has an early morning, and I’m quite tired.” She hesitated. “Perhaps we should check to make sure the flying monkeys are locked up securely...?”

They both laughed.

The driving instructor’s name was Mr. Moore. He had a small white round patch of hair at the base of his skull. Michelle wondered if his hair loss was from close calls by students.

He was very patient. She had a couple of near-misses, but was able to correct in time and avoid an accident. He told her that it was something that much practice would fix. She only needed to drive, and remember her lessons.

So she drove. But it was Sara, not Gabriel, who rode with her that summer. Gabriel had packed a bag, told the women goodbye, and rushed out without another word.

“Where is he going?” Michelle had asked Sara.

The other woman smiled gently. “We’re not allowed to know. Some of what he does is classified. And you must never mention it to anyone. Okay?”

“Of course not,” Michelle replied. She bit her lip. “What he does—it’s just office stuff, right? I mean he advises. That’s talking to people, instructing, right?”

Sara hesitated only a beat before she replied, “Of course.”

Michelle put it out of her mind. Gabriel didn’t phone home. He’d been gone several weeks. During that time, Michelle began to perfect her driving skills, with Sara’s help. She got her driver’s license, passing the test easily, and now she drove alternately to work with Carlie.

“This is just so great,” Carlie enthused on the way to work. “They bought you a Jaguar! I can’t believe it!” She sighed, smoothing her hand over the soft leather seat. “I wish somebody would buy me a Jaguar.”