Manhatten: Roof Garden of the Met -- then Gramercy Park Hotel [Monday Evening]

[icecoldfrost]

It was a beautiful, clear night. The best possible kind of night to take in Manhatten, in Emma's personal opinion, and they had the best possible party to enjoy.

Ben Nishimura's charity benefit was a veritable Who's Who of interesting and powerful people, ranging from socialites to politicians and businessmen from across the globe. The cream of society had the run of the Met for the evening, and after a few rounds of the floors, Emma found herself in her favorite spot of the entire museum: the roof garden, with its sculptures and perfect view of the park.

She leaned on the ledge, looking out at the trees as she sipped her drink. Tonight was going fantastically, at least on her end. They hadn't had a single issue getting into the party, Nishimura had remembered her from Cumberland's gala (and she'd spent a good two hours with his hand on her waist as he introduced her to various people), and there was no sign of Leland. Plus, she had more than enough information to make this trip profitable, and she was definitely calling her broker in the morning.

Best yet, still no migraine. She was getting better at this.

< Jack, you ought to come up here, > she sent out, keeping her touch light so she wouldn't startle him. < The view is to die for. >

[For the other party-crasher. NFB due to off-island shenanigans. ETA: Getting NWS in the second thread, because they're a pair of delinquents with four months of UST.]

Comments

[bitten_notshy]

< On my way >

Without a start, Jack turned away from the dark-haired, slim-hipped young man he'd been having a most entertaining conversation with. Nothing Emma could use, but he now knew who was being named in who's divorce and had a date for the next time he was in town -- which was almost as good.

"Would you mind if I excused myself? I promised I'd find my friend," he said, and climbed up to the roof.

"Emma," he told the girl, when he found her, "this is beautiful. I would get over my prejudice against New York if it were like this at home."

[icecoldfrost]

"She's beautiful, isn't she?" Emma asked, looking out over her adopted city with fondness. "It's not all this glamorous or posh, but it's home."

"And I'm glad you're having fun. Made any interesting new friends yet?" she teased, holding out a hand for him to come wander the statues with her. "I'll be very cross if you leave with more invitations than I do."

[bitten_notshy]

"A few. No one I'd give up on you to stay near," Jack answered carelessly, then thought, < That girl over there swears she's the reason the CEO of the Amex group is leaving his wife, if that means anything to you. >

He snagged a glass of champagne from a roving waiter, signaling him to wait for Emma to take one if she wanted.

"How are you doing?"

[icecoldfrost]

< Might be useful eventually, > she mused, already filing the girl's face away in her memory, < But if I'm resorting to blackmail, I tend to prefer it a bit juicier. Is she legal? > With this group, it was a legitimate question.

"Ah, so I won't be abandoned on the curb once the party's over?" Emma teased, handing over her empty glass and selecting a flute from the waiter with a murmured 'thank you.' "I'm flattered, Mr. Priest, and having a fantastic time. Mr. Nishimura knows how to throw a very nice party."

[bitten_notshy]

< I didn't ask. She might not be. > Jack's eyes skipped over the girl again before returning to the current company.

"He does," Jack agreed. "How do you know him?"

[icecoldfrost]

< Bonus points if she's in the family way, > Emma replied cheerfully. < Although I would bet that he pays her off and she's gone by the end of September. >

Emma did not have great faith in humanity, no.

"We met at the last party I attended," she replied, glancing about quickly to make sure no one was listening in on them. "He's a scientist of some sort, I think, or at least used to be. He knows more about his investment projects than most people do, and he understands the science behind them all."

"And he didn't seem surprised to see me, which makes me think I might have actually been invited, or that his personal assistant handled all the invitations and he doesn't have a clue who is or isn't supposed to be here." Emma winked at Jack impishly. "Either way, we haven't been thrown out yet!"

[bitten_notshy]

< She did pass up the champagne >, Jack noted hopefully.

"Who would throw us out?" he laughed, and leaned on his arms over the wall so he could look down at the city. "We're young, we're friendly, that man over there is looking at us like he wants to eat us... is he anyone?"

[icecoldfrost]

"Let's find out," Emma giggled, eyes going unfocused for a moment as leaned against the wall and rested one hand on Jack's arm for support. Nice wall, it was definately time to slow down on the champagne if she wanted to make it through the rest of the evening.

"...well, he's trying to decide if you're my pimp, my lover, or my brother, and how much it would cost him to have us both. You don't look anything like my brother. Clearly, he's an idiot, whomever he is," she answered. "And he works for the UN in some fashion, although I'm rather sure he's less important than he thinks he is."

[bitten_notshy]

< If you can get a name I can convince him he knows us >, Jack thought. < He's government. Even if he's a bottom-feeder, they're useful. >

"I do not look a thing like a pimp," he said in a soft but haughty voice. His fingers trailed along her arm. "How's your head?"

[icecoldfrost]

"Are you offering to put on a show, Mr. Priest?" she purred, leaning into his touch just slightly. "Don't worry, darling, my head is fine. I'm just a little tipsy on too much excitement and champagne."

[bitten_notshy]

"Not at all. Watch this." After contradicting himself, Jack deliberately set down his near-empty champagne glass and wandered over to said young man.

Emma might overhear, "Excuse me, you look familiar. We were introduced at the UN holiday party last year, weren't we?"

The man seemed to say yes. It might have just been that Jack was attractive; it certainly wouldn't bother Jack if it was. They made small talk for a few more minutes before Jack came back with pink cheeks.

"He liaises with the Saudi government on humanitarian issues," he explained softly. "And we're both invited to his hotel room after the party, if we don't have other plans. I think he decided on the first theory about us."

[icecoldfrost]

Emma clapped softly, keeping it hidden from the other man's view. "Bravo, darling," she replied, amused. "Very, very impressive."

[bitten_notshy]

"I didn't get anything from him he didn't want to give up," Jack said. "All I did was flirt a bit."

Still. He couldn't entirely keep the pride off his face.

< He gave me the name of the corporate partner they're to announce next week, if you're interested?... >

[icecoldfrost]

< Am I interested? Does a cat like mice? > she laughed silently. < Your turn, darling. Pick one for me. >

Jack wasn't the only one that liked showing off.

[bitten_notshy]

"The redheaded chap who looks like he's one cheese canape away from apoplexy," Jack said swiftly, with a nod to the gentleman in question.

[icecoldfrost]

Emma made a face. "Mean, darling," she muttered, looking over her target. "If I talk to him, he just might have a heart attack."

Still, she knocked back the last of her champagne, leaving the glass with Jack before she started on an indirect course, getting a fresh glass from one of the waiters. She let gravity take it from there, letting the natural flow of people on the roof move her along between the sculptures.

To anyone watching, it would look like pure happenstance when she got drawn into a conversation with the gentleman in question, laughing lightly at his attempts to impress her in front of his friends.

She returned a short while later, barely resisting the urge to wipe her arm where he'd kept touching it. "Private investment banker for one of the major Swiss houses. Has some interesting theories about mineral deposits in Wakanda, based on money that's been changing accounts, but nothing he can confirm or deny. Of course."

"I want a shower."

[bitten_notshy]

"Do we have a hotel room?"

It was an entirely valid question.

[icecoldfrost]

"We will," she answered, smirking slightly. "I was waiting to see how well we did tonight, but we can have any hotel we want."

"One room, two, penthouse suite," Emma hummed happily, spinning around him. "Whatever we want."

[bitten_notshy]

"Take me to a place where you've always wanted to go. The money's not an object."

Jack was flirting, but he meant it.

[icecoldfrost]

"Of course not. Between the two of us, I'm rather sure we could talk our way into anywhere," she replied, tossing him a smile. "Gramercy Park Hotel, I think. I hear they have a fine drinking cabinet in each room, and big cushy furniture, and we should celebrate."

[bitten_notshy]

"Let's make a last circuit and meet at the cloak check in 15 minutes," Jack suggested. "Would that give you time to meet everyone you want to talk to?"

[icecoldfrost]

"That should be fine. Everyone important who's going to be here is already here," Emma answered. "Then we can go off to our next great adventure."

[bitten_notshy]

"I'll be waiting," Jack said, and took off toward that slim-hipped young gentleman who he'd left to find Emma's company.

He was at the cloak check precisely on time.

"Ready to call it a night?"

[icecoldfrost]

That earned him a smirk as she watched him leave, and Emma went off in another direction.

She arrived at the check just after their agreed upon time, still smiling. "Ready when you are, darling."

Later That Night....

[bitten_notshy]

Even though she looked beautiful and the night had him high on adrenaline, Jack was good and did not leap upon Emma in the hotel lobby, or even in the elevator.

It was not the same story when they got to the room. They had hardly closed the door before he tried to back her against the wall, hand on her waist. "We're alone."