James's demeanor was icy, his jaw clenched. "Say that again."

Serena realized that the best approach was to comply; provoking James would only lead to trouble. Whether they had French cuisine or returned to the city today didn't really matter to her.

Following James and saying something soothing could help smooth things over, allowing life to return to normal. But yesterday was fine, tomorrow might be fine too. Only today, tonight, this moment, wasn't fine.

"I said, fifth ...