“Yeah, bye, man.” Dave answered.

Rich smiled at me. “Have a good weekend, Dani. We’ll talk next week.”

“Thanks, Rich.” I turned back to Dave, still absorbed in the snow globe. “Baby, I’m almost ready to go. Let me just collect my things.” I started packing more files and my usual junk into my bag.

“So where’s the famous Steve Jacobs?” Dave prodded, picking up a crystal skull that was a leftover gag gift from some office party.

“It’s quiet this week for the Jewish holidays. I think Steve left early because it’s Passover.”

“Really?” Dave half laughed. “I didn’t know Steve was a Super Jew.”

“I don’t know if he’s a Super Jew either, but come on, it’s Hollywood and it’s the Jewish holidays. Half the town didn’t even come into work this week.”

“He’s such a dick,” he muttered, this time not to me but to the crystal skull.

“No, he’s not a dick. He’s great. You just don’t like him.” We’d had this conversation before.

“He’s just been great to you because he wants to fuck you.”

I stepped around the desk, took the skull out of his hands, and placed it back on the desk. “Could you please cool it with that stuff? Anyone could hear you.”

“Well, they would just agree with me that it’s true.”

“So I’m a lousy writer who’s got a gig only because the boss is just biding his time waiting until I’m free, and then he’s going to pounce. That’s Steve’s plan, you think?”

“No, he’s just keeping you around because you’ve got a great ass.” Dave smiled, looking very pleased with himself. He’d somehow managed to check out my assistant’s ass, kind of insult me, and then definitely insult my boss, and now he was back in good with me with the “great ass” comment.

“You are impossible. Let’s get going. I can’t wait for my surprise.”

TWO

TWO

Exiting the lot, we headed over Barham back toward LA, with the warm San Fernando air blowing through the open windows. We dropped my car off at my place just off Highland. As I climbed in next to him, Dave smiled at me, looking immensely satisfied, sitting low in his vintage 1964 VW Bug. He hadn’t said a word since we started driving.

“You’re not going to give me any clues?” I was fishing for any kind of clue—after all, this was what I did for a living.

Dave just smiled.

I grinned back and tried to relax and enjoy whatever was to come. I deserved something special after the trauma of last night in bed. So here we were, racing through Hollywood to who knows where. Dave leaned back and smirked at me. He was going to give me nothing.