Yesterday, 02:08 AM
Adrian let the conversation drift where the girl had steered it, content for the moment to become part of the furniture. It was a useful skill in his line of work. People spoke more freely when they believed they were being allowed the space to do so.
When she had addressed him, though, he had caught something in her eyes. Not recognition exactly, but familiarity, the faint echo of a face he ought to know. He ran quickly through a catalog of recent evenings, but nothing surfaced. If they had met before, it had not been in a context that mattered enough to linger.
The moment stretched into pleasant, but light exchanges that existed for its own sake and no further purpose. Adrian felt the immediate drag of small talk settling in, and with it the instinct to move on before the air grew stale. Hospitality required knowing when to arrive and when to vanish.
He glanced toward the bar, already noting the subtle choreography of staff in motion. The host he’d instructed earlier was on the far side of the room now, close enough to catch his eye.
When she had addressed him, though, he had caught something in her eyes. Not recognition exactly, but familiarity, the faint echo of a face he ought to know. He ran quickly through a catalog of recent evenings, but nothing surfaced. If they had met before, it had not been in a context that mattered enough to linger.
The moment stretched into pleasant, but light exchanges that existed for its own sake and no further purpose. Adrian felt the immediate drag of small talk settling in, and with it the instinct to move on before the air grew stale. Hospitality required knowing when to arrive and when to vanish.
He glanced toward the bar, already noting the subtle choreography of staff in motion. The host he’d instructed earlier was on the far side of the room now, close enough to catch his eye.