Kim watched Robert leave the janitor’s closet and then got dressed as if in a daze. Her body was buzzing with pleasure, her mind swamped with thoughts she would need time to process. She waited to hear the alarm go off, the one he’d said would signal for her to leave.

She felt weak from what had happened and, frankly, shocked. Who was that woman? How had this crazy, magical night transformed her into this? It all seemed like some sort of dream.

Kim had had only one lover in her life, Bruce. Adventurous sex for Bruce was having sex in the daylight. What happened to Kim tonight was something altogether different. She sat in the closet thinking about how sex with Bruce didn’t even belong in the same category. Her body was singing. Looking at it objectively, someone might view it as perverted. A man, a stranger really, hiding in a closet, grabbing her, tying her up and having sex with her— that was not normal. Before that moment, Kim would have thought the same. But what happened with Robert was amazing. And it felt absolutely right, every part of it. She’d never tell anyone about it, how could she? But she’d never forget it either.

Suddenly the alarm went off, and Kim opened the closet door. She walked down the hallway and found a thoroughly upset Frank coming out of gallery one.

“Oh Kim! It looks like someone stole one of the paintings! I don’t know how it could have happened! I was here the whole time—I was watching the monitors. God, this is terrible. The police will be here, and the alarms will need to be reset by the security company, so I don’t think you’ll be able to finish tonight. You might as well head home,” Frank said. “I’m sure this is all very scary for you, especially on your first night at the job.”

“Stole a painting? Really?” Kim said, feigning surprise.

“Yes! I know! I don’t know how. I was here the entire night, except for toilet breaks. It’s scary to think, but the guy must have been watching me.”

Kim chuckled to herself about that. “Yes, he must have been.”

***

AT HOME KIM COULDN’T sleep. All she kept thinking about was Robert and what they had done. Who was this man? Sonya had told her he was a billionaire, and that he inherited his money and their businesses from his wealthy parents. But who was he? What sort of person? What sort of man? What kind of a billionaire steals paintings for fun? It all made no sense. All she knew for sure was that he was handsome, he set off some serious sexual energy inside of her, and that she could never see him again.

He had made her act so recklessly in a way that scared her. She was not that person. She was a divorced mother of a small boy who needed her to be responsible and sensible. She thought about why it had been so easy for her to submit to Robert’s game in the janitor’s closet. She wondered if she was so weak and susceptible to a wealthy, handsome man’s charms. But then she thought too that maybe it had been her envy for Sonya’s carefree life. When she watched Sonya at the party, out with her friends, meeting young men, flirting, maybe going home with one of them, not having to worry about anything, yes, Kim had been envious. She had been envious, and she could not deny it. Sonya didn’t have to worry about scrimping and saving for new shoes or a dentist appointment for her son. She could spend her money on herself, buy herself fashionable dresses and shoes. She could stay out all night, or never go home at all. Kim could not imagine such freedom. But looking at Sonya last night, she wanted it.

And for that short time in the closet with Robert, she was not someone’s mother, she did not have endless bills to pay, and she didn’t have to worry about anything. She was Kim, the Kim she was before all of this—all of life—hit her and knocked her off her feet. She couldn’t stop thinking how heady and wonderful the feelings were that she had in that closet. She told herself she should keep those memories safe because it was a onetime thing. She could never let it happen again—she could not let herself loose in that way again. Though she could not say why exactly, she felt that it was dangerous and could lead to a place that she would not be able to come back from... that she might not want to come back from.

She couldn’t stop the guilt about her thoughts affecting her. She felt guilty being so selfish, if only in her thoughts. She felt as if she was resenting Derek, but she wasn’t. She knew in her heart she didn’t resent him; she loved him. And she loved her mother. And she really didn’t mind that they depended on her so much. Kim wished she could have all of it. That she could be the responsible person she tried hard to be, but also that reckless, carefree woman who Robert had in the janitor’s closet with him. But the world didn’t work like that. She’d lived enough to know that by now. She’d made the choices that she had, and now she needed to accept that.

She lay in bed picking through every detail of the night, from seeing Robert across the gallery to what happened in the closet. Tiredness overcame her and she eventually managed to fall asleep.

When she woke up in the morning, her cell phone was ringing.

“Hello?”

“Hello, is that Kim Davidson?”

“Yes. Is something wrong?”

“No. I’m calling from HR at Rive Gauche. The owner of the gallery would like to meet with you this morning if you have time.”

“The owner?” Kim looked at the time. It was already 8:30 and she had to be at Joe’s at 11:00. “Okay, give me an hour.”

Kim showered and dressed. She was nervous. Was she going to be implicated in some way for Robert stealing that painting? Maybe there had been cameras in that janitor’s closet. Oh my God, Kim thought— what if they knew what she did with Robert? Was she going to get fired? She only just got this job; she couldn’t be fired already.

Her mother could see something was wrong when she came into the kitchen. “What happened?” she asked.

“Nothing. Where’s Derek?”

“I took him to school already. The teacher wanted him there early. Some man from the zoo was coming at eight, bringing a monkey apparently. Derek was so excited he woke me up at six so we wouldn’t be late.”

“He loves animals,” Kim said.

“This morning he decided he wants to be an animal doctor at the zoo,” her mother said, laughing. “Last week he was a builder. I suppose next week he’ll be a ballet dancer. He’s such a funny little guy.”

Kim felt sad about missing Derek. All her jobs to improve her and Derek’s life were making her miss all of the important things happening in his. He would only be a kid once, and she was missing all of it. It all seemed too much. That and what happened the night before, her mixed feelings about wanting to be carefree, and now she might be losing the new job. She started crying and let her head fall on the table next to the coffee she’d just poured for herself.

Her mother sat down next to her and put her arms around Kim. “What, honey? What’s wrong?”

Kim sat up and wiped her eyes. She was being a baby. She didn’t need to trouble her mother with all of her problems. Her mother had enough of her own. She still missed Kim’s dad, she had her own money problems paying off the mortgage on the house, and she was not as healthy as she could be. She had diabetes and high blood pressure. No, Kim needed to keep her problems to herself.

“Nothing, Ma, sorry. I’m just overly sensitive about things at the moment. I’m tired. And I’m a bit worried. They called me from human resources at the gallery—the boss wants to see me. Last night I had to come home early as there was a break-in. I’m just wondering what they want from me.”

“Well, I hope they don’t think you had anything to do with it. You’re the most honest woman on earth. Everyone knows that. Remember when you found the ten-dollar bill in the hallway at school and turned it in to the principal? Everyone was shocked by your honesty. Maybe you should tell that HR person that story.”

“No, I’m sure that’s not it. They don’t think I’m involved. I’m sure it’s nothing. Probably just some forms new employees have to fill out. Or maybe the owner just likes to meet all the new employees.” Kim looked at the clock. “I need to get going.”

***

AT THE GALLERY, SOMEONE else was sitting at Frank’s spot at reception, a young man with a serious look and a serious uniform to match. The ironed-in pleats looked as if they could cut your finger if you ran it along the edge.

“I was told to come for a meeting to meet the owner of the gallery,” Kim told the man. “I work here. I clean at night.”

“Are you Kim Davidson?” he asked, as if he’d been told to expect her.

“Yes... yes, that’s me.”

The man punched some buttons on the phone. “Ms. Davidson is here.” He listened, then hung up. “Ms. Lessing will be here to collect you.”

Kim stood to the side. After a few minutes, she was surprised to see a woman that she thought she recognized from the night before. Her hair was still pulled tightly into a bun, and the red business suit was replaced with a navy blue one, but the woman looked just like Robert’s PA, Debra.

“Hello again, Ms. Davidson. If you’ll follow me.” It was Debra, just as Kim had thought. What was going on?

They went to the fourth floor and down the hall, and Debra opened the door to reveal an empty apartment. Kim looked at Debra, confused about what was happening.

“Go in. He’ll be with you shortly.”

Kim went inside. She walked to the large windows at the back of the apartment that looked out over Lake Michigan. She tried to be patient and not let her mind jump to any conclusions. Was Robert the owner of Rive Gauche? If so, what did all of this mean?

She heard the door close behind her and turned to see Robert. His tuxedo was replaced with jeans and a casual shirt, but he was just as handsome, and her heart quivered looking at him.

“So you like looking at the lake too?” he asked.

“Yes, I’ve always loved the lake with its complex moods.” She started to ask him about what was going on, but he held up his hand.

“Let me explain. I know it must seem crazy to you. It’s crazy to me.”

“What’s going on, Robert? Who are you really? I really don’t like this kind of behavior, these sorts of games. Why are you being so deceptive?”

“Am I?” he asked. “Maybe I am. I do own the gallery; I bought a few galleries after my parents died. I’ve always loved art, and I wanted to be more involved with it. But I didn’t want the artists to know. I’m tired of being judged and interacted with in a way that always involves my money and the power it gives me. I wanted to meet these artists free of all of that, at least as much as I can. So I own the gallery, but no one knows. Debra is the owner as far as people know.”

“And the painting? Why steal it?” Kim was still very confused.

“Kim, you don’t know how my life is. After my parents’ death, I suddenly had so much money, but I was still very young. Everything went crazy. All I did was party. I’ve lived a meaningless, hedonistic life, and I’m so tired of it. It’s relentlessly boring. I know you think I’m crazy; I know you work very hard to provide for your son, and money is always tight. But sometimes walking in another person’s shoes can make you see that things are not that wonderful on the other side of the fence either.

“I’ve been searching for something, but I didn’t know what. For some crazy, stupid moment I thought it might be exciting to try to steal a painting. It sounds ridiculous just saying it—I see that now. But I wanted to know if I could do it. That’s why I was in the janitor’s closet. Really. I wasn’t waiting there for you. I was waiting for everyone to leave so I could sneak into the gallery. And then suddenly you were there, this extraordinary woman who I’d just met only a few hours before and then had lost—or thought I’d lost. When I came back, you were gone.”

Kim couldn’t deny she was annoyed about his complaints regarding being too rich and too carefree. She would do anything for such a life—anyone would. But now he wanted everything. He wanted to commit crimes without consequence; he wanted to take the woman he wanted. It wasn’t right. Just because he had money didn’t mean he owned her. It didn’t mean he owned the world and could live without consequences. No one had that right.

“So then you thought since I was there you could just tie me up and have your way with me?” Kim asked angrily. “What? Is that how you get the women you want, then?”

“No, God no, don’t think of it like that, Kim, I beg of you. I don’t know what happened to me... or maybe I do. From the moment I saw you across the gallery I knew. You were someone different, someone special. You were so beautiful and unpretentious, so free of all of the social games most women play. But I thought you were gone. And then you weren’t ... you were there. I felt something come over me. Like nothing before. I knew I had to be with you. I’m sorry if I messed everything up last night. I never wanted that, ever.”

Kim heard the honesty in his words, and she recognized the feelings he described because they were the same feelings she felt for him.

“No, don’t feel bad about what happened. If I had wanted it to stop, I would have said so, but I didn’t,” Kim said. “I felt that energy too, from across the gallery as well. And when you were near... well, it was palpable.”

Robert came nearer to her but made no move to touch her. She wasn’t sure what might have happened if he had.

“Can we start over?” he asked. He held out his hand and she shook it. “Would you let me take you out for dinner tonight?”

“I can’t. I have to work.”

“I’ll get someone to cover for you. I own the gallery, remember?”

Kim laughed. “I don’t know. I don’t think this thing can work.”

“Please don’t make me beg. A billionaire on his knees is something you really don’t want to see.”

Kim laughed. On top of everything, he also had a good sense of humor. “No, I suppose not.”

“So?” Robert asked.

“Okay... yes. Should I meet you here?”

“No, I’ll have someone collect you.”