Talbott was at the party, too, with hopes of another encounter with her, hopes that were forlorn in any case, but she never wanted him to be sure. She’d smiled at him briefly at the beginning of the evening and told him to get her a drink, then dismissed him. She noticed his puppy-dog eyes on her from time to time, but he was a grown man and right now he was chatting with an elegant woman in an emerald-green dress. He looked over, saw her gaze pass over him, saw with whom she was talking.
And before too long had passed he managed to find his way to her in the crow. “My dear, how are you,” he smiled and kissed her hand, glancing at Archer with a slight smile. She suddenly saw Talbott as a great ape, cutting in and posturing like an alpha male, grunting and puffing his chest at Archer, sign
