Emma smiled and nodded. “There might be some major changes coming down the line for Allure, so this fashion show is really important to me. I hope you can make it Saturday. At the very least, come for the food. I’m ordering beef canapés from my favorite restaurant. If I can’t sell you on anything else, trust me, you want to come for those.”

We both laughed, and she sat up straighter. “Now, enough business. How was that concert you went to the other night? You said it was, um, Ryan Hooks, right?”

I watched her face, so innocent, and I wondered if I hadn’t known the truth, if I would’ve been able to read her so easily. Her eyes were discerning as she watched me, and I knew she was sizing me up too.

“It was great,” I said. “My friend surprised me with tickets at the last minute. It’s not something I typically would’ve gone to. Her daughter is a big fan.”

“But you’re not?” she asked, again with an innocent smile.

“Oh, no, he’s great,” I said. “I’m just not much of a concert kind of person. I like his music, though. Don’t you?”

“Yeah, sure,” she said with a barely believable, disinterested shrug.

I decided to push it.

“He’s married to Tiffane, right?” I asked. “She’s a lucky woman.”

Emma blinked, and then her eyes narrowed, just a bit. “Yeah, she is.”

“It must be amazing to be married to a man like that.” I had a hard time saying the words, but I pushed them out, and as I expected, they hit the mark.

“I’m sure it is,” she said softly, and then she leaned closer and put a hand on my shoulder. “But let me tell you a secret. For the most part, men are just men,” she said with a smile, and I could tell she was trying to decide how much to tell me. “Rich men, poor men, attractive men, unattractive. They’re all just men. Even Ryan Hooks,” she said, his name rolling sharply off her tongue. “He’s just a man, like anyone else…I’d bet.”

I smiled but didn’t say anything.

“In fact, I have a date tonight, with a very rich and important man.”

I blinked and tried to keep my expression as neutral as possible. I was in the best possible situation; I was a stranger to her, nobody at all, and she obviously wanted to talk.

“Ooh,” I said, leaning in. “A new boyfriend? How’d you meet?”

She blinked as if she hadn’t expected the question, and then she smiled. “Through mutual friends.”

I smiled, and then I just went for it. “Wait, he’s not famous, is he?”

She frowned and shook her head. “No. I wish.”