“Business,” Sabrina said and lifted the glass to her lips. She took a big gulp and rose from her chair. “Thank you. I won’t be ordering lunch after all.” She pointed to the money on the table

The waitress looked at it. “I’ll get your change.”

Sabrina stopped her. “No change necessary.”

She smiled at the waitress, who dropped her chin and reached for the money, leafing through the bills in disbelief. At least the money would make somebody happy. It just wasn’t something that worked on Sabrina.

And tonight she would make that clear to Daniel. And not only that, tonight she would remind him of why she’d moved to New York in the first place: because she loved him and couldn’t get enough of him. Maybe a nice piece of sexy lingerie would drive the point home and make Daniel remember his own reasons for asking her to live with him: because he loved her, too.

Sabrina walked away from the bistro and hailed a cab. She climbed into the backseat and closed the door.

“Where to?” the cabbie asked.

“Uh… ” She wondered whether she would sound like a hapless out-of-towner if she asked the cabbie what was on her mind. But her need not to waste any time won out. “Where is the best place to go shopping in this city?”

“There’s Barney’s, Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, Saks… take your pick.”

“Bloomingdale’s, please.”

“You got it.” The driver pulled onto the road and Sabrina sat back in the seat. “So, you just visiting?” He looked at her through his rearview mirror.

“No, actually I just moved here a little over a week ago. I still don’t know my way around.”

“Don’t worry, you will soon enough. New York is the best city in the world.”

Sabrina smiled and nodded. She’d heard that New Yorkers were rude and unfriendly, but this cab driver seemed nice enough.

When he pulled up in front of Bloomingdale’s, Sabrina paid him. “Thank you.”

“Have fun,” he answered as she got out.

Sabrina spent almost an hour browsing through the lingerie department until she found just the right thing. When she looked at the price tag, she almost had a heart attack, but imagining Daniel’s face when he saw her in this skimpy outfit tonight, and how his hungry eyes would devour her, made her swallow her reservations about spending an outrageous amount of money on a few specks of silk.

She approached the counter and placed the pink silk teddy on it.

“Oh, this is one of my favorite pieces,” the woman behind the counter cooed as she scanned the price tag and carefully folded the garment, wrapping it in tissue paper. “Special occasion?”

“Well, I don’t know. Not really.” Sabrina felt her face blush. “I actually just moved here to live with my boyfriend. He’s been busy with work and we’re going out tonight.”

As she was telling this stranger about her plans, she realized how much she missed her best friend, Holly. They’d shared an apartment in San Francisco and had told each other everything.

“Well, that sounds like a special occasion to me. Where did you move from?”

“San Francisco.”

“I have a cousin who lives out there. Beautiful city.” The cashier smiled. “Pretty foggy, I hear.”

“Only in the summer. The winters are sunny and beautiful.”

The sales assistant smiled. “The winters are freezing here. Be prepared.” She pointed to the lingerie item. “That won’t keep you warm in the winter.” She winked. “But I’m sure your boyfriend will.”

Sabrina refrained from fanning herself. Just thinking about how Daniel would warm her in the coming winter months made her break out in hot flashes.

“Will that be all for today?” the woman asked.

“Yes, thank you.”

Sabrina waited as her credit card was processed. Then she lifted the bag from the counter and left the store.

She felt good. It was nice to get out of the apartment and interact with other people. Sure, it was more fun when Daniel was with her, but she didn’t really need him to entertain her. She just needed to make acquaintances. And find other things to do. She still had the brochure from the Met. Maybe she could occasionally go to some of the events they were holding. It would help her pass the time while Daniel was at work. It would also give her things to talk about with him when he got home in the evenings. The last thing she wanted to be was a girlfriend who had nothing to contribute. She didn’t want to be a pretty trophy. She wanted to be his partner, his best friend—and tonight, his passionate lover.