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practiced. I was dual degree at Columbia with the business school.”
    “I don’t imagine you ever planned on joining a law firm.”
    “It was more about the skill set. When I was growing up Dad wasn’t exactly enthusiastic about the prospect of my joining the family biz, so a law degree seemed like a way of keeping options open.”
    “Why didn’t he want you joining the company?” Duncan asked, wondering as he did so if it was too personal a question.
    Leah didn’t look bothered by it. “Commercial real estate is still a very male world,” she said. “Even more than law, if you can believe that. Not that my dad was any more fond of the idea of my going to law school. I’m not sure how a man who’s as litigious as he is can complain about lawyers so much.”
    “He and Blake are friends, though, right?”
    “I don’t know that my father has friends , as such. But Steven is definitely a family ally.”
    “Allies are important.”
    “They certainly are, Duncan,” Leah said. “In a few years my father will retire, and I’ll take over the business. Blake has to be what, sixty?”
    Duncan noted that Leah had said that it was she alone who would be taking over the business, with no mention of her brother. “He’s around sixty,” he replied. “But spry.”
    “So he’ll presumably be out of the trenches in five years or so, certainly in ten. Hopefully we can be allies one day too, Duncan.”
    “We’re allies now,” Duncan said, smiling.
    Leah shook her head, her expression serious. Whatever it was she was getting at, it was clearly not just banter. “We’re not yet. Being my lawyer is something, but a true ally is more than that.”
    Duncan hoped he was keeping uneasiness out of his expression. “We go to the wall for our clients,” he said, unsure whether this qualified as a reply.
    Leah just studied him in response, Duncan having no idea what she was looking for. “We’re having a party for my father’s seventieth birthday next Saturday,” she finally said, pushing her half-eaten salad forward a little and dropping her napkin on top of it before leaning back in her chair. “I believe Steven is coming.”
    Duncan raised his brows, trying to look interested. Leah was clearly waiting for a response from him, but he wasn’t sure what. “Blake doesn’t exactly keep me apprised of his social life,” he finally said.
    Leah still with her evaluating look. “It would probably be useful for you to come,” she said.
    This was certainly the most passive-aggressive party invitation Duncan had ever received; he wasn’t entirely sure it was an invitation. “For my future as a rainmaker, you mean.”
    “Precisely.”
    “Does that mean you’re inviting me?”
    Leah looked at him quizzically. “Wasn’t that clear?”
    “Not completely,” Duncan said. “But sure, I’d love to come.” In truth he could hardly imagine a party he’d less like to go to.
    “I’ll e-mail you the details,” Leah said as the waiter brought him their check. “So tell me, Duncan, does family background still matter at the elite law firms?”
    Duncan had been doing his best not to be provoked all lunch, but he couldn’t fully contain his irritation. He got the feeling Leah was going to keep poking at him until she got some kind of reaction. “Certainly not at our firm, though it probably doesn’t hurt if you’re talking about a place like Sullivan and Cromwell. But I’ve never felt that being a working-class kid from the provinces was particularly hampering my legal career, if that’s what you’re asking.”
    Duncan had said it with a smile, but it came out harsher than he intended, and there was a moment of silence between them. “I apologize if I offended you,” Leah said, her expression unchanged. “You’ll find that I’m somewhat blunt on occasion. I didn’t mean to sound snobbish. I am quite snobbish, admittedly, but not in the classic Upper East Side sense. I don’t actually have much patience for