Page 23 of King of Deception

“That’s Ms. Boraine to you,” I wagged a finger in his face.

“Abel, hi!” A gorgeous brunette walked past us, rubbernecking as she hollered, “Great party!”

“Oh yeah!” he hollered back, and I couldn’t hide my surprise.

When I looked again, I recognized that she was a famous social media model. “Okay, how does she even know your name?”

He shrugged with a proud look in his eyes. “I told you. I’ve been in too deep for far too long.” He then handed his dirty tray to another passing waiter, prompting a lip smack from me. He then asked, “Did you always know that you wanted to be an accountant?”

“Totally,” I coyly lifted a shoulder. “Who wouldn’t wanna see those perfectly balanced figures on their screen?”

“I can’t tell if you’re joking.”

“Okay, in all honesty… I’ve always been into numbers. But to me, it’s a job that pays for everything else. And I’m good at it.”

“Good for you!”

While I couldn’t believe that I was spending my time at the city’s hottest event talking to a waiter, something drew me to him. “Did you always wanna be in hospitality?”

He chuckled, “Among other things.”

“Like?”

“Like…” he had a pondering look in his eyes, “I was on the swim team as a teenager and even in college.”

“Impressive!” I raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t patronize me,” he chuckled.

“I’m not, I swear. Do you still do it?”

“College?” He scrunched his nose.

“No, silly! Swimming.”

“I do whenever I get the chance.”

“That explains the tan.”

“You could say that.”

“And what was your major in college?”

“I went to business school.”

“Shit, Abel! You could do so much with that.”

Shrugging, he casually raised a hand. “Hey, it’s New York. Don’t you think it’s pretty competitive?”

“Only if you can’t keep up. You’re a man, which makes it a lot easier.”

“Spoken like a true feminist,” he smirked.

“A realist,” I corrected him. “When was the last time you applied for a job?”

“Never?”

“Jesus!”

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