Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 109608 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109608 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
It took everything (and I mean everything) not to burst into tears that she was giving me this honor.
Once I locked that down, I declared, “Then, it’s done. Fashion Week is in September. I’ll start getting the invitations very soon. When I do, we’ll go over them and decide which ones we want to attend.”
“Oh my God, that would be awesome,” she breathed.
It would be.
It would be everything.
For both of us.
“And you also must come over and go through my closet with me. I’ll show you my favorite pieces and share why they’re that,” I invited.
“Oh man, I need to do that,” she stated. “I just…I don’t know. I can’t seem to get a lock on what’s me.”
“Darling, that takes years,” I reassured her. “I’ll show you pictures when I was in my early twenties.” I shivered, largely and genuinely. “I wouldn’t admit this to just anyone, but I owned several”—I leaned in again and went on in a dire voice—“tracksuits.”
Jamie’s beautiful girl burst out laughing.
Watching her, my work, in that moment, I knew was done.
But I also knew our conversation meant I had a job with Dru for the rest of my life.
And I couldn’t wait to dive in.
Once I went over this loveliness in my head two or three times, and after sitting in the gridlock without moving for twenty minutes, considering I was done for the day, it was sunny and lovely outside, I told my driver to head home, and I’d walk from there.
I’d gotten out, made my way to the sidewalk, and barely traversed a full block before I heard my phone vibrate in my bag.
I pulled it out, looked at the screen and took the call from my Allegra.
“Hello, dearest,” I greeted.
“Hey, Mom,” she replied.
“You’re well?”
“Um…kind of.”
My step slowed. “Kind of?”
“Okay, I know I shouldn’t tell you this, but I am because I think you should know, but I can’t unless you promise not to tell Val.”
“I can’t make promises about something I don’t know.”
“Mom—”
“Allegra, you know I’ll be appropriate, especially when it comes to you children. Out with it.”
“Damn,” she mumbled.
She knew I’d be appropriate.
I headed out of the thoroughfare to stand next to a building in order to focus on my girl.
“Allegra,” I prompted.
“Right, you know Darryn’s cousin who recently got divorced?”
Oh no.
I sensed I knew where this was going.
“Yes,” I said reluctantly.
“Well, um…Nico called Darryn and asked for her contact info so he could get a referral for her attorney.”
Yes, I knew where it was going.
“Damn,” I whispered.
“Yeah. And no. Felice is a pain in the ass, Mom.”
My ears perked up, because neither of my girls had ever given any indication about how they felt about Felice. They tended to support everything their brother did, love him unreservedly and act like he walked on water.
Of course, I encouraged that.
“Her holier than thou act gets on my nerves,” Allegra said. “I swear, a couple of months ago, you know, when Darryn gave me that Alhambra Van Cleef & Arpels watch, we went out to dinner with them, and I showed it off. She actually got her phone out, looked up the price of the watch, engaged the calculator and told me how many school lunches we could have paid for with that watch.”
I grimaced.
“I thought Darryn was going to throw her over the table,” Allegra carried on. “We’re lucky his parents have money, as do mine, so we don’t have student debt. But it isn’t like he sits around playing video games and mysterious forces stop by to give him money. He worked hard to buy that watch for me. And just to say, the hard work he does is stressful and saves lives.”
“It’s a beautiful watch, darling. I hope Felice saying that didn’t make it any less meaningful to you.”
“It didn’t, Mom,” she said on a sigh. “I’m just saying, she’s a pill, and it sucks, but I’m kinda glad Nico is thinking of scraping her off.”
I was “kinda” glad too, even if it broke my heart.
“Well, I won’t share this with Valentina,” I promised.
“That’s good, because even though I’m kind of glad Nico is seeing the light about her, if Valentina knows he is, she’ll wiggle in there and make it happen. And if she does that, it’s not gonna be pretty.”
“Valentina isn’t fond of Felice either?” I queried.
“She hates her, Mom. Do you know how she is with Archie?”
Oh no!
How could Felice be anything with Archie? He was as amiable as they come.
“How is she with Archie?” I asked with dread.
“Well, first, that whole ‘no one is invited to our commitment ceremony’ thing was all about Felice. Archie didn’t want her there, ruining it for them. So, the only way they thought they could do it, without Felice showing or making a big thing about not inviting Felice, was to do it on their own.”