“I don’t know why you took it,” said Rafe. “I know why I took it. I took it because you took it.” He sipped his wine. The Swiss white was excellent. You couldn’t get it outside Switzerland, because it was never exported, because the Swiss, no fools, drank it all. He put down his glass and leaned forward. “It’s really good to see you again. I didn’t know you were here. I don’t know why we haven’t been in touch. I—”

“I’m seeing Majid now,” she said. Cutting this off.

“Majid? Oh.” He took another sip of wine. “I didn’t know you two even liked each other back in Cambridge.”

“I was engaged, and I was seeing you. My plate was kind of full.”

Rafe nodded. Couldn’t argue with that.

“Majid and I met again when I moved here.”

“Oh.” He paused. “At that Harvard Club party, you and he didn’t seem too, you know, very . . .”

“What exactly do you think we might have been doing in front of two hundred people?”

“Well,” he said. “Majid. I always liked Majid.”

“That’s nice. But I wasn’t actually asking for your endorsement.”

Then I fucking withdraw it.

Her phone rang. She glanced at the Caller ID. “Work,” she said and answered. “Really?” she said into the phone. “When? Oh my God . . .” She sighed. “I guess that means the deal will go through but . . . I’ll call him.” She clicked off.

“You have a deal going through?” Rafe said. “Congratulations. I should make you pay for lunch.”

“It’s . . . complicated. It’s been pending. A corporate takeover.”

“So the executives cash out and a bunch of employees get made redundant.”

She picked up her phone. “I have to call the client.”

“Bosses win, workers get fired. Corporate takeover 101.”

“Thank you, Karl Marx. I thought you took Comrade Nitzberg’s course because of me.” She was punching a number on her cell.

“I did occasionally listen to the teacher. I mean, as long as I was there.”

“Hello,” she said into the phone, turning away. “It’s Catherine Cole. I have some good news. The deal is going through. Well, actually, it’s kind of awful. The grandson is out of the picture. He died. An auto accident.” She listened. “Yes. Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She ended the call.

“Somebody died?” Rafe said.

She nodded. “He was involved in the deal. Sort of.”

“The deal that is now going through.” Rafe looked at her. “So the news was good, or the news was awful?”

“Both,” she said.

Rafe sipped his wine. “Well, speaking of clients, I’m starting a fund that could be a good match for some of yours. Long-short, low beta, a real quant shop. You do put some of your clients’ money into outside funds, don’t you?”

She looked at him, surprised. “I didn’t realize this was a business lunch.”

“Both,” he said.

Oysters

OYSTERS