Chapter Thirty

I follow him to a small table on the side of his office with two chairs. I unwrap my sandwich and find fluffy white bread, thick tomatoes, pickles, cheese, and piled with turkey. It's huge, and very New York deli.

It looks delicious. I know I won't be able to eat a bite.

“So, when do you think you will be able to come out to the island?” I ask.

He shrugs, as if he's not lying to my face. “It's hard to say. There's still some regulatory hoops we need to jump through. Logistical problems. Eliminating some redundant positions once it's official.”

I smile but it's not real. “You didn't answer my question.”

“It's really impossible to say, Nora. If I had to put a guess on it, I'd say the earliest I could break away for a day would be four weeks.”

“I see,” I say. “And could I come visit you before then?”

He freezes, as if he didn't expect the question. “I'd love that, Nora, but aren't you going to be pretty busy? It's not everyday you get put in charge of a Caribbean hotel.”

“Surely