“And you’re Harley?” Rian asked, shaking the offered hand.

They each observed that they were nearly the same height, with Rian being a shade shorter. In their heels, matching in height and design, they were taller than most of the women around them, and stood out in the busy airport scene.

Harley walked to Rian’s side, and snapped the handle of the Rian’s luggage up. She waved Rian’s protests off as she pulled the luggage towards the boot of the CUV. The hatch smoothly opened. “I was expecting someone much older, to be honest.”

Rian chuckled as she snapped the handle of her roller up and pulled it towards the passenger side door as it opened automatically also.

“I’m sorry to disappoint you.”

Rian saw Harley’s jacket draped over a hanger that was hooked to a notch by the backseat. It had fringe edges, black piping down the middle, and, dark grey lining to match the pearl grey color of the suit. From the way it hang, it looked smartly-tailored, with nary a stray thread piling anywhere. Gorgeous, Rian thought, admiring the suit jacket. Beautifully structured. Flawless taste. Chanel?

Harley shook her head after settling into the driver’s side seat. She flashed Rian a quick smile. “No, of course I’m not disappointed. You are who you are … but the way Philip described your firm, I really thought I’d be picking up some distinguished scholar or something.”

Rian returned the friendly smile and slipped her aviator sunglasses on. “I was just admiring your suit…”

Another flash of a captivating smile, now that Rian thought about it. “It’s one of the few suits I’ve invested in. Today’s client is really, really important. But thanks for noticing…”

Rian waved her hand, as if to say “of course.”

Harley maneuvered the car expertly into the quick-moving, bewildering, flow of airport traffic, narrowly avoiding a limo that had suddenly pulled into their lane. Without batting an eyelash, she said coolly, “And I’m glad I saved it for today, instead of wearing it to court yesterday. Helps me keep up with your own look….”

Wh-a-a-a-t?

“You’re just being nice to the Washington bumpkin, right?” Rian answered, voice laced with irony. “I swear there are no suits like yours out there. Especially now that it’s winter…”