His gaze hardened, and he doubled down on an overly pleasant smile. He had a name: a name with a sully not two paces from him.

“I was just showing Nisa around town,” he said, eager to change the subject. “Are you staying in Whitby long?”

He wanted so badly to catch up with Mr. Meijer, to see if he’d been able to have the second chance he deserved – but not here. Not in front of his sister, Allah knowing what she intended whether she seemed to like him or not.

She was quiet, and that worried him.