The car rolled to a gentle stop as they reached her drop-off point.
Cherry hopped out, slamming the door behind her.
"Gracias!" she said with a bright smile, waving enthusiastically.
"Adiós!" Gabriel called from the driver's seat.
"¡Chao!" she replied, watching as he honked twice and sped off into the night.
*
*
*
*
Inside the car, Gabriel glanced sideways at Rafael, shaking his head with a smirk.
"You really made me put on quite the performance back there. So… who is she, anyway?"
"Just one of the workers," Rafael answered coolly, leaning back in his seat.
"Oh, I get it now," Gabriel said knowingly, piecing together why Rafael had spun the car ownership lie.
He knew all too well how his friend avoided exposing his true identity whenever possible.
