“How was the charity event?” I asked Aubrey over a cup of tea. I was perched on the edge of her couch, not quite able to relax. “What was it again?”

“One of Paul’s many philanthropic endeavors.”

“He does a lot of these things?” I felt like a reporter.

“As many as he can. He made Mertech sign an agreement to match his contributions,” she explained. “The more he attends, the more money they shell out.”

“Really? Wow. That’s generous.”

She tipped her head to the side. “It seems like the one thing that tears him away from the lab.”

I looked around their apartment. It was spacious, like ours. All the units in the building were lavish and remodeled with high-end finishes. I could see Aubrey’s touches were more bohemian than mine. It worked for her. Bright colors splashed amongst a neutral canvas.

“Sometimes I wonder if it’s because we never had children.”

“Hmm?” I pivoted from a framed oil painting over the dining hutch. I hadn’t been paying close enough attention.

“The charity work,” she offered. “It’s for the children’s home in Paris. Paul was adopted from there.”

“Oh.” I never knew what to say when intimate information was revealed. She didn’t seem to be looking for sympathy or empathy.

“What about you and Leo? Are you planning on a family?”

I pressed my lips together. “Not anytime soon. Maybe one day.”

“We talked about adopting, but Paul has always thought he was too old to be a father. Besides, I told him I wouldn’t do it if I had to raise a child alone. It’s one thing to keep me waiting every night. I’m a grown woman. I can handle it, but I don’t think that’s fair to do to a child.”

I nodded. Again. She had brought up something awkward. There were no good answers. But, I had a new glimpse into their life. Into their marriage. It was shitty, but it was just the opening I needed to make my segue way.

“Speaking of family.” I cleared my throat. I placed the cobalt mug on the coffee table. “Leo and I are here alone. To be honest, I’m a little embarrassed about the lack of support system we have.”

“You shouldn’t be. It’s only been a few months. New country. New language. That’s a lot for newlyweds to handle.”

I nodded in agreement. “Anyway, we were talking at dinner last night and we both realized it leaves us vulnerable.”

“How so?” She pulled a bright purple throw over her lap.

“It’s kind of crazy, but I twisted my ankle the other day.”

“Oh. Are you all right?” She looked down at my feet. I was wearing my high leather boots.

“Yes. It was nothing, but enough of a scare that I realized I don’t have any emergency contacts here. What if it had been worse than an ankle? What if it had been a car accident? Or if Leo and I had both been hurt?”

Her beautifully waxed eyebrows knitted together.

“Anyway, I was hoping you could be my person in Paris.” I smiled. “I’d like you to have access to all our medical information, our wishes, even our wills.” I stopped and waited for her response.

“Wow. That’s heavy, Kate.”

I swallowed. Maybe it was too heavy. “If it’s too much, just say so. But I don’t know anyone else in the building and it just seemed like the responsible thing to do. Someone should know where the life insurance policies are and all that stuff.” I reached into my pocket and pulled out the folded piece of paper. “We do have family in the States who would need to be contacted if something happened. And…” I trailed off, wondering if I had completely lost her.

“Here.” I leaned across the couch to hand it to her. “It’s the code to our personal safe. Our contacts back home. And the name of our insurance companies, attorneys, and doctors. I hope I didn’t leave anything out.”

She unfolded the paper and read the list I had scribbled this morning.

“All right. I’ll put this in a safe place. Really, I hope I never have to use it.”

“Me too.”

I held my breath. If too many more seconds passed, I’d know I had failed. Maybe I should have been more interested in Paul’s adoption story, or pressed more about the charity. Hell, I should have offered to make a contribution from our account.

“Oh, and the safe is in Leo’s office. You know, next to the study. It’s in the cabinet of his desk. It looks like two drawers, but it’s actually a safe.” That was it, the last extension I had for this conversation. I had played my cards and lost.

“You know, I was going to ask you about that paint color. I love the dark blue in there.”

“Oh sure. I have the sample color. I’ll drop if off.”

“That would be great.” She sipped her raspberry tea. Her gaze wandered to the window. “I don’t like to think about getting sick or dying.” She sighed. “Unfortunately, it’s one of those things that seems to stare me in the face every day with an older husband.” She looked at me. “He is a lot older than I am.”

“It doesn’t matter, though does it? You love each other.”

“We’re an odd couple, aren’t we?”

“Oh no,” I answered quickly. “The first time I saw you together I thought you were sweet. There’s something very deep and romantic between you two. Something that has nothing to do with your age or Paul’s.”

“It’s not like we don’t talk about it, or think about it. My sister told me he was too old, but I didn’t want to listen to her. I loved him. His quirky nerdy Frenchness. All of him. I didn’t care that he loved science and I loved art. It didn’t matter. When we were together, that was all that mattered.”

“Did something change? Are you unhappy?” I was afraid to ask. She made it seem as if all of the love was in the past. It was a contradiction from what I had witnessed.

“No. No.” She waved me off. “I’m just thinking about the beginning—back when I made the decision that this was going to be the marriage I had. I knew there wouldn’t be children. I knew he was a workaholic. What you said about being responsible. Having all your affairs in order—it’s bringing up something I hate thinking about, that’s all. Our age difference isn’t going to suddenly diminish. The older we get—the older he is…”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”

She rose from the couch. “It’s all right. Hold on.”

I eyed her as she disappeared down the hall. A few minutes later she returned.

She sighed. “You’re completely right. We should have someone. Paul’s brother is older than he is, and frankly, I wouldn’t trust the man if we needed something in an emergency. He’s just too damn old.”

I opened my hand as she dropped a notecard into my palm.

“My sister is back home, but if something were to happen, that’s all the important stuff.”

I stared. I had it. The code. It was in my hand. It was that easy. One lie had led to another, and another, until she gave me exactly what I wanted. It was supposed to be a triumph but I felt sick. Disturbed it was so easy to deceive someone who trusted me.

“Are you sure?” I asked. Part of me was giving her an out. She could snatch the piece of paper back and I could tell Eloise it just wasn’t possible to get the code. Blackwing would have to find another way.

“Yes. Of course. The safe is actually behind that painting.” She pointed to the one on the wall I had studied only a few minutes earlier. “It used to be in Paul’s study, but we moved it when we had a problem. It wouldn’t fit flush against the wall, and he’s just too OCD to handle something sticking out two inches.” She laughed. “Anyway, just punch in those numbers and voila. Our lives will be in your hands.” She grinned.

I exhaled. “I hope neither of us ever need these.” I tucked it in my pocket. “But this is smart. Now we have a buddy system. Paul’s work is in there too. You won’t need it, but he just stacks things like it’s an old shoe box, not a safe.”

I laughed. “Somehow I can see him doing that.”

She returned to the corner of the couch and nuzzled under the fluffy blanket. “That man is so particular in certain areas of his life, and a complete slob in others. He’s a fascinating case study on human behavior.” She winked. “Enough about my quirky husband. I was thinking. Why don’t you and Leo go with us to the next event?”

“Oh, really?”

“It’s sort of work-related for Leo. But it would be fun, and you’d get to dress up that handsome husband of yours. How often does he wear a tux?”

I blushed. Everyone noticed Vaughn. Even very happily married women.

“Not enough,” I admitted.

“We could go shopping together. Next week there’s a black tie event at the Ritz. It’s a silent auction for the children’s home.”

I nodded. “Sure. We’d love to go. And I will make sure we bid on some very expensive items.”

I wanted to leave as many good deeds behind as I could before we were gone and Aubrey realized how I had betrayed her trust. I knew it wouldn’t matter by then. She would be mired in the breach of trust. She wouldn’t care if we had given a million dollars to parentless kids. But for now, it was something that helped me move to the next day. To keep this friendship going.

“I’ll tell Leo.” I smiled. “Speaking of Leo, I better get going.” I had an hour before he’d be home.

“Making another gourmet dinner?” she teased. “Paul still talks about that chicken you made.”

“I think it’s just going to be spaghetti tonight. I need a break from gourmet.”

I walked to the door. “Thanks for the tea. And for all the other things. I appreciate it.”

“We’ll go shopping soon. We need stunning dresses.”

I smiled. “Bye. I’ll talk to you later.”

I stepped into the hallway and walked to the elevator. On my way, I passed the small office. The door was ajar. I paused in front of it for a second. Oh shit. There was someone in there today. I scurried past, mortified that someone had to work at the desk today. I’d experienced new things on that desk. Over-the-top eroticism that still made my clit tingle.

I tapped the button for the elevator. I jumped inside and rode to the top floor.

Last night would always be burned in my memory. Like so many nights with Vaughn. I leaned into the carriage wall. I rubbed my hand over my pocket where the numbers to Paul’s safe were written. Now, it was up to me to make sure we had an entire future ahead of us of nights like that. Only, I wanted them to be in our own bed. In our own house. With no prying ears or eyes.