“The world,” Petra says, “doesn't come to a screeching halt on account of ‘big waves’!”
“Yes,” Boone says, “ it does.”
He disappears into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. The next sound is that of running water. Cheerful looks at Petra and shrugs, as if to say, What are you going to do?
10
Petra walks in to the bathroom, reaches into the shower, and turns on the cold water.
“Naked here!” Boone yells.
“Sorry-didn't notice.”
He reaches up and turns off the water. “That was a sketchy thing to do.”
“Whatever that means.”
Boone starts to reach for a towel but then gets stubborn and just stands there, naked and dripping wet, as Petra looks him straight in the eyes and informs him, “Mr. Daniels, I intend to make partner within the next three years, and I am not going to achieve that goal by failing to deliver.”
“Petra, huh?” Boone says. He finds a tube of Headhunter and rubs it over his body as he says, “Okay-your dad was Pete and he wanted a boy child, but that didn't work out, so he glossed you Petra. You figured out pretty young that the best way to earn Daddy's affection was to add a little testosterone to the mix by growing up to be a hard-charging lawyer, which sort of accounts for that log on your shoulder but not the analretentiveness. No, that would be the fact that it's still the law firm of Burke, Spitz and Culver, not Burke, Spitz, Culver and Hall.”
Petra doesn't blink.
Actually, Daniels's shot in the dark isn't far off. She is an only child, and her British father, a prominent barrister, had wanted a son. So, growing up in London, she had kicked a football around the garden with her dad, attended Spurs matches, and accompanied him to British Grand Prix at Silverstone.