Chapter 2

After stowing the cash in one of his cupholders next to multiple gas station receipts and shooting off an apologetic message about a stomach bug to the real Henrietta, Miles turned back to the girl.

It was his first opportunity to get a good look at her, and he felt his breath hitch. He’d already registered that she was hot, shortly before blurting it out at her like some unstoppable moron. Up close, however, she was… striking. Brown eyes usually didn’t do it for him, but hers had some unnamable quality. Whatever it was, he was momentarily entranced.

“You good?” she said warily, and he immediately stopped staring, cleared his throat, and turned to face forward with his hands on the wheel.

Way to go, ace, make the attractive lone female in your Uber feel unsafe because you can’t keep the drool off your chin.

“Sorry, yeah, where did you wanna go?”

When she didn’t answer, he chanced a glance back and saw that she was eyeing him with a look of bemusement. After a moment, however, a small smirk appeared on her full lips, and he snapped his gaze back to the front.

“Same place you were headed,” she said, and he felt his eyebrows scrunch.

“Wait, the same place? You just happened to steal the Uber of a woman going where you wanted to go?”

“I’m sure stranger things have happened,” she said.

“Hmm,” he said, as he put the car in drive and started moving again. “Like being offered $500 to drive two exits on the Parkway?”

“Yeah, you get it.”

His mouth quirked in a smile, and they fell into silence for a bit as he made his way to the entrance and through the toll booths to get onto the Parkway.

“Well, let’s hear it,” he finally said, once he was comfortably cruising along in the left lane. “You promised to tell me everything, so spill.”

He wasn’t exactly in a rush to have her out of his car, but he also didn’t want to seem like he was trying to prolong the ride by hanging out behind some old people in an SUV doing 55 in a 65. 

“Why do you even care?”

Her tone was suddenly defensive again, and he wasn’t sure why, but now he needed to find out.

“Wouldn’t your curiosity be piqued if the situation were reversed?”

“You say that like you know me.”

“Oh, I am very clear that I know as little as there is to know about you. Not even your real name.”

The road ahead of him was a clear, straight shot, so when she didn’t answer, he looked back briefly to see her smirking yet again.

“Gonna keep that from me too, Henrietta W?” he said as his eyes moved back to the road.

“Probably, but while we’re on the subject, I don’t know your name either.”

“I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.”

He hadn’t intended it to sound flirtatious, and yet, anyone observing the situation would call bullshit on that claim immediately.

Anyone, except perhaps this girl, who did not seem to register his tone one bit.

“That’s not a fair trade.”

“Oh yeah? How do you figure?”

Peripherally, he saw her lift her hands in a shrug before saying, “You don’t know who I am.”

Miles jerked his head back in affront. “Well, if you were trying to make me want to know less, you’ve failed spectacularly.”

A giggle sparkled around the interior of the car like a string of Christmas lights. And although it was seemingly sweet, something about it also felt sinister. Who was this person sitting in his back seat?

𓂃🖊

The first rule of hiring external contractors was never to reveal your identity. Just like marks, they were on a need-to-know basis, as much for their safety as yours.

The evidence Maxine carried (still tucked against her boob) was extraordinarily volatile. She needed to get it to Brooks to set things in motion so that the proper authorities could swoop in, and she didn’t need to implicate this innocent guy in the process.

As marks went, he would… qualify for her usual tricks —he had an Anthony Ramos thing going on— but she didn’t need him long-term. This was a one-time thing. She had considered telling him to take her anywhere else, but from the looks on David and Enrico’s faces, they knew the card was missing, and they suspected her. Brooks hadn’t confided everything to her; it would be foolish of him to do so, but she knew enough to know she needed to act fast.

“Look,” she finally said to the driver, continuing to feign amusement as she passed the time with circular conversation, “I have more cash in my bag, and you’ll get a sizable tip at the end of this ride if you drop the questions.”

He fell silent instantly, and she found herself even more grateful that she’d remembered to stash that cash in the lining of her bag. It was incredible how far a few large bills could get you. A bit sad, also, but mostly incredible.

Maxine loved money, not for the material aspect, but for the power. Money and sex: the dynamic duo that runs the world.

Apparently, her driver couldn’t stand the silence, which he then broke, while still managing not to break their deal.

“Well, instead of asking questions, I’m gonna tell you some things about me, and maybe you’ll feel inspired to do the same.”

“I won’t.”

“I hear that, but I’m gonna try anyway, I’m stubborn like that.”

Maxine tried, but could not hide her amusement. Most people she offered money to would leave well enough alone, but apparently not this guy.

“My name is Miles Pérez. When I’m not driving Uber, I’m usually with my family, helping my nephews with school work, or running errands for my grandmother. I’m single, but I was engaged once, and I really don’t like to talk about it. I’ve only left the country a few times, and it was always work-related, so a big goal for me is to be able to travel for fun. I’m terrible with plants, but I want to be better. Oh, and I absolutely love riding roller coasters.”

Upon finishing this little speech, he grinned at her in the rearview mirror and tilted his head as if to say, “Now, you go.”

She huffed out a laugh and said, “That was a mysteriously well-crafted introduction, Miles.”

“Thanks, it’s my Tinder bio. What ’d’ya think? Left or right?”

Maxine felt a swoop of annoyance in her belly when she laughed again. The reaction was involuntary, and she didn’t like that.

“To be honest, I don’t know which one means which. I don’t use dating apps.”

“Oh yeah?” he said, with a raised brow in the mirror. “You prefer the old-fashioned way of meeting people in real life? Like… in Ubers?”

With a scoff, and regrettably, another laugh, she said, “No, I just don’t date.”

“Whaaaat?” he said, and the car slowed slightly, as if he instinctively hit the brakes at the same time that the conversation did so metaphorically. “You look too young to be over dating.”

“Too young to not date, too hot to be a Henrietta… have you considered adding ‘I think I know everything’ to your bio?”

With a chuckle, he said, “Actually, my first draft had something about being a little psychic, but it attracted the wrong kinda girl.”

Another swoop of annoyance moved through her belly as she quashed the impetus to ask him a follow-up question. He’d gotten her talking, damn it. He was weirdly good at this, and she was thankful that they had reached their exit already. It would only be a few more minutes, now.

“So why don’t you date?” he then asked.

When she merely laughed and shook her head, he went on.

“Oh come on, it’s just idle chit chat, I’m not asking for your social security number or anything.”

“You know where you’re going without GPS, are you from this area?”

She knew he was too sharp to let a quick change of topic derail his line of questioning, but she was just filling space now.

“I’m from Perth Amboy, but I’ve spent a lot of time here because of my nephews,” he said, and then added without missing a beat, “So why don’t you date?”

“Wow, you’re incredible,” she said with a giggle.

“Thank you,” he said, throwing her yet another grin.

Folding her arms and looking out the window, she did her best to stifle her smile.

Unable to stop herself, she muttered, “You really should edit your Tinder bio. Name: Miles Pérez, Occupation: Overly Familiar Uber Driver.”

“Hey now,” he said, playfully narrowing his eyes at her, “don’t act like I don’t have grounds, you did just pay me off to get you out of some situation, which I will figure out, by the way.”

The indifference she’d been feigning, or trying to, faded in an instant as her attention snapped to him. “What do you mean you’re gonna figure it out?”

With a shrug, he said, “I could always go back to the catering hall. Ask those guys what was up, since you don’t wanna tell me.”

“Stop the car,” she said, noticing that they were a few blocks from the Veterinary Clinic.

“What? We’re not—”

“Here is fine, I wanna get out.”

He pulled over, and she breathed a deep sigh of relief that the interrogation was going to be over. Reaching into her bag, she grabbed the other $500 she had stashed.

Holding it up, she said, “This is for you, but only if you promise not to go around asking questions.”

He grinned at her playfully, and was about to say something, but she cut him off with a hand on his shoulder.

“Miles, I’m serious. If you love your nephews and your grandma as much as you want women on the internet to think you do… You will not go around asking questions. If you’re smart, you’ll surgically remove the memory of any of this happening from your brain. Got it?”

She wasn’t sure exactly why, but her fingers against his hoodie felt… buzzy. He seemed to notice something as well, but the moment passed as quickly as it had come.

“Damn girl, how much trouble are you in?” he said, repeating his earlier question, but in a more somber tone this time.

Then, she wasn’t sure what compelled her to do it, but while looking into his eyes and trying to convey a ton of meaning without explicitly saying anything, she said, “Maxine. My name is Maxine. Now please don’t ask any more questions, Miles.”

𓂃🖊

The car door slammed shut with a hollow finality, and Miles looked down at the cash in his hand. Dimly, he registered that it was the same amount that she’d already given him.

A grand for a ride, and his silence. Wow.

When he looked up, she was gone, and for a wild moment he wondered if he’d dreamt the whole thing.

He wasn’t sure where she’d disappeared to exactly, or what trouble she was in, but for now, he would respect her wishes and stop trying to figure it out.

However, as he drove away, missing the absence of her snarky back-seat remarks, he had a feeling that while he wasn’t going to ask questions at the catering hall, he wouldn’t be able to stanch the flow of them running through his mind about Maxine.

a/n: OMG, thank you all for the incredible support!!! Your comments have done so much, you have no idea. I'm already done with chapter 3 and moving on to 4 now. The thing I hoped would happen is happening!

I was not expecting any paid subscribers, so that really floored me 😭 I published this for them a few days early, as promised. However, this site doesn't notify regular subscribers when I change a pust from paid subs only to all subs, so I will have to repost and then delete the prvious one or something. Logistics are the easy part, I'll figure it out. Love you all!!!!