He paused for a moment, gently pumping the brakes as their car filed in line for a toll booth. He reached toward the center console for his wallet.

“I can pay for this,” she said, reaching for her bag. “You’re already driving.”

Her heart raced at how poorly she’d navigated the past twenty minutes.

“Hey.” His extended hand passed over the leather wallet sitting in the cupholder and reached for her forearm, touching it just barely to keep her from searching out her wallet. “Please, let me get this.”

She kept her eyes fixed forward, heart beating so forcefully she feared it might be visible through her shirt.

“And you’re right,” he continued, guiding her to sit back and removing his hand before finally picking up his wallet. He rolled down the driver’s side window as they inched toward the booth. “We should be friends for the trip.”

“Great,” she answered, her voice barely audible.

There was another pause as Sophie tossed in her sleep behind them. Danial looked over his shoulder at her before turning to face Alex and extending his hand.

“Shake on it?”

Against every instinct in her body, she turned to face him, so frustrated with herself for having suggested this farce of a pact that she could only plaster on a smile and offer her hand. He confidently went in for the handshake, a solid yet gentle grasp. His shoulders relaxed and his eyes met hers directly as their hands moved between them. And in one fluid, subtle motion, she felt his thumb move over the back of her hand and softly brush her fingers. Her breath hitched sharply in her throat, a sound she swallowed as soon as it escaped her.

Behind them, an SUV beeped unceremoniously, jolting them apart and waking Sophie. The car in front of them had driven away, and the toll employee was sticking her upper body far out of the booth to gesture them over. Danial straightened himself in his seat, fumbling for the stick shift as the car lurched forward.

“Where are we?” Sophie asked, removing the pashmina from over her head and blinking hard against the daylight.

“We’re—” Alex turned around in her seat, clearing her throat. “We’re about halfway there. I was thinking maybe we should stop to get something to eat. Are you hungry?”

The words tumbled out of her jittery and fast, and before Sophie could respond, or even wake up enough to understand the question, Danial’s voice came from the driver’s seat, low and intense:

“Let’s definitely stop somewhere. I’m starving.”

4. Morningside Heights, USA

4

MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS, USA

Before