Page 71 of Ricardo

He keeps doing that. Helping without turning me into someone helpless. Opening a door without making it symbolic. Adjusting the shade because the sun was in my eyes, not because I need rescuing from daylight.

I never knew there was a difference before.

His phone vibrates once in his pocket. He checks the screen, reads whatever appears, and types a short response.

“Mario,” he says briefly while slipping the phone away. “He asked whether I had left with you.”

My stomach dips. “Oh?”

“I said yes.”

“That’s all?”

“That is all he asked,” he says, amused.

“Right. Of course,” I say, my face warming more.

There is silence for a moment, then Ricardo says, “Mario trusts you.”

My fingers tighten around the strap of my bag. The reaction is instant, instinctive.

“He barely knows me.”

“He knows competence when he sees it.”

I stare out at the traffic.

“That's different than trust,” I say quietly.

“Competence is where trust begins.”

I look over at him.

Ricardo’s attention is on me now, direct and unnerving. It makes me want to squirm.

“He does not hand important work to just anyone,” he says. “He hands it to people he knows will get it done.”

My throat tightens.

I look down at my bag, at the file tucked safely inside. “It’s a signature.”

“It is a signature he needs. His timeline. His company. His name attached to whatever happens next.” His voice lowers slightly. “He gave it to you.”

I press my thumb against the leather strap. “You make it sound heavy.”

“You know the weight already,” he says. “I am simply saying you are carrying it well.”

The SUV glides through traffic around us. The driver remains silent. The city continues beyond the glass. All of it feels suddenly far away.

I clear my throat. “Well, thank you. That means a lot.”

“You are so often surprised by praise,” he says.

My pulse jumps, and a million excuses come to mind, none of them true.

But before I can decide on one, he continues, “You shouldn’t be.”

The SUV turns onto a quieter road lined with old houses set back behind hedges and iron gates. Wealth looks very different, even from the road. Houses are more hidden. No glass towers or glowing signs. Just manicured lawns, brick walls, mature trees, and long driveways. The noises of the city are nowhere to be found.