TNT: Ch. 17

Even while having this most interesting conversation, Vlad was quite concerned that Eric and Gina weren't in the coffee shop where they'd said they'd meet him.

Eric was quite concerned that he had no idea where Gina had ended up, and that Vlad was probably in the coffee shop waiting.

Gina was quite concerned that Rob was here, looking for her and that she couldn't risk leaving the bushes behind the back door of the Starbucks, even though she could see Eric wandering away. She was even more concerned when she ventured a look through the window and saw Rob talking to Vlad! If he found out everything, and told Eric, she'd... What exactly? Why didn't she want them to know? She'd been blindly keeping up the secrecy so long, she hadn't even given thought to telling Eric and Vlad what, of course, they deserved to know. But she still wanted them to find out from her, not Rob! She decided to find Eric while Vlad distracted Rob.

Eric, meanwhile, decided to go back to coffee shop and hope Gina had done the same. He walked in right as the man he had seen enter earlier was storming off. He saw Vlad sitting at a table and joined him.
"Where is Gina?" Vlad asked.
"She ran off when the guy with the robes came in. I just don't understand that girl."
"Do we ever understand women?"
"But, she won't tell me anything! How am I supposed to get to know her any better if she keeps her past shrouded in mystery?"
"Ahh," said Vlad understandingly, "You are in love with her, no?"
"What!?!" was Eric's incredulous response, "Where did you get that!?!"
"My dear Eric," he said, ignoring the objections, "Women are like cod. Not because they're better dried and salted, they really aren't. Women, not cod. Anyway, women are like cod. When you get a good catch, you've got to let it drag you around for a while if you ever want to reel it in. So just play along with Gina, she'll tell you when she's good and ready."
"Nice analogy, Vlad, but I really have no intention of 'reeling her in.' I just want to know who she is."
"Well she is engaged to the man who just walked out, who also happens to be the owner of this lobster."
"You couldn't have just said that?"
"It was a good analogy. I didn't want to waste it."