Perfect Pairing by Rachel Spangler Page B

the shadow of Buffalo’s airport much of a loss.
    â€œI am not bad at my job, Dom,” she said.
    â€œI don’t know. I hear you leveraged your own capital on a pretty risky business venture no one else would even look at.”
    She glanced around the room quickly, making sure not to let her eyes wander to his artificial limb. She did not pity him. She admired him, but for more reasons than the carbon fiber leg he was still learning to walk on. “That place is a hole in the wall, but they make good chips. I suppose I can’t help thinking with my stomach.”
    He shook his head. “Yeah, your stomach. Couldn’t be the tin woman actually had a heart all along.”
    â€œDon’t you have work to do?”
    â€œI am working. I’m having a meeting with my investor.” He grinned, the expression crinkling his eyes and rounding his unshaven cheeks. Funny how he’d kept his high and tight Marine haircut but otherwise seemed to relish looking as unkempt as possible. She supposed she understood that. Her suits and skirts served their purpose, but that didn’t mean she didn’t chafe against other restrictions of the perceptions of people around her. Maybe that’s why she came in hereso often. No one expected the high-end businesswoman to pore over investment reports in a dive bar on Buffalo’s east side.
    â€œIs there something specific you need to talk about?” Quinn asked. “Maybe another line of credit to fix the rips in the cheap material you used to cover these booths?”
    He laughed. “No, but I love the way you worked that in. You’re very subtle.”
    â€œI’ve heard that more than once this week, and in that exact same tone.”
    â€œUh-oh. Better tell Uncle Dom all about it.”
    â€œDon’t do that Uncle Dom thing. It’s creepy. You’re a year younger than I am.”
    â€œBut you’ve held up better,” he shot back quickly. “What’s her name?”
    â€œWhy do you assume it’s a her?”
    â€œBecause I’ve yet to meet a man who can offer you a serious challenge.”
    True. Men generally made the bigger show of disagreeing with her, or put her off, making snide remarks or unoriginal insults, but in her experience they fell harder and faster. Hal had a different approach. She was cautious and confident without being overblown. Still, she’d made some lapses in judgment, and not just by letting Quinn back on the truck. She’d also clearly misjudged Quinn on several levels. Her background for one. And she’d obviously been surprised by her ability to keep up in a fast-paced work environment. She probably thought Quinn came from money. It was a common mistake, one she actually prided herself on inspiring.
    The biggest fault, though, in Hal’s dismissal had been her willingness to let Quinn walk away on even terms. That mistake spoke to a misunderstanding of both her motivation and her fortitude. She might’ve felt bad about allowing the underestimation to flourish if she’d had bad intentions, but she didn’t. Looking from Dom to the little hovel of a bar he was proud to call his own, she reminded herself a few insults couldn’t shake her resolve.
    â€œYou’ve got that look on your face again,” Dom said.
    â€œWhat look?”
    â€œLike you’re proud of our dirty little hole in the wall.”
    â€œYour dirty little hole in the wall,” she corrected, “but yes, I think pride is warranted. Domski’s might not look like much to most people, but most people don’t ever take the time to see something worth saving.”
    â€œThat’s poetic.”
    â€œThere are three generations of Buffalo under all this dirt, and I do believe you were right to build your own layer on top of it.”
    â€œWhy do I get the feeling you’re about to buy something very expensive?”
    â€œNot this time Dom,” she said