"Mind if I smoke?" Valentine asked Mike when they went out to the patio.
"…No," Mike answered a short moment later.
He didn't like Valentine, that was for sure, but Mike could tell that his only sister was in deep already, and a big part of him trusted her judgment and wanted the man to surprise him. He was partially convinced that the arrogant fox was putting on a show of good manners to get Summer to sink in his quicksand some more, so the fact that he didn't try to hide his bad habits from her brother strangely struck Mike as a good sign.
