He shook his head again.

Emily sighed. “You really need to start taking better care of yourself, and think about the people around you who worry about you. You’re not a child anymore—you shouldn’t be acting so recklessly.”

He nodded obediently, like a child acknowledging a reprimand.

Then, with his right hand still on the gearshift, he reached over and patted the back of her hand, gesturing forward with a nod for her to look ahead.

Not far ahead stood a seven or eight-story building, ...