Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 96802 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96802 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Penn snorted. “How is that going?”
“Surprisingly well. English is really good at her job.”
“English? Anna English?”
“Yeah. You know her?”
“She’s friends with Lark. I met her a few times when she was at Columbia for her JD. I thought she lived in LA.”
“Yeah well, Mom wanted the best.”
“Huh,” Penn said. “Interesting. Well, it’s good to know you’re in the right hands. I can’t imagine anyone making you look like the golden boy of anything.”
I laughed. “Me either.”
“Should we go get a drink? I think I have to rescue Natalie before she decides to divorce me on our second wedding day.”
“I’m down.”
I was surprised that he even wanted to go out to get drinks with me. Before he and Natalie had gotten serious, he wouldn’t even talk to me. All we had done was egg each other on and yell at one another. But… it was good to have my brother back. He was the only other one who knew what it was really like to grow up a Kensington. That it wasn’t as glamorous as it might seem. Instead, it was a world of fucked up bullshit. And we were the pawns being moved around the board, no matter the damage.
* * *
We might have gone overboard.
Celebrating was an official sport on the Upper East Side.
Natalie dramatically rolled her eyes as we crashed into the cab that took us uptown to the primary victory party. “Can’t you boys hold your liquor?” she asked with a laugh.
“We drank a bottle, love,” Penn said, nuzzling into her neck.
She giggled and swatted at him. “You’re the worst.”
“If you say so.”
“Fuck, stop,” I groaned. “You’re so in love. It’s disgusting.”
Natalie elbowed me in the ribs. “Oh, shut up, Court. If I have to deal with your drunk ass and properly get you to Percy Tower for this party, then you can deal with our cuteness.”
I held up my hands. “Fine. Continue if you must.”
I wasn’t even upset. I was too pleasantly intoxicated for that. Plus, I was glad that Penn was happy. After all the shit he and Natalie had gone through, I could only wish them the best.
We pulled up in front of Percy Tower and headed into the ballroom where the party was already underway. Natalie pushed our way through the crowd and miraculously to the bar. Damn, she was a good woman.
I took whatever she’d offered me, and then we meandered back to the stage area. I could see most of my friends were congregated together—Lark and Sam, Katherine and Camden, Gavin and Whitley, and… English. Our eyes met across the short distance. She looked away first, returning to her conversation with a frazzled Lark.
“Should we go over?” I asked, gesturing to the group.
Natalie stalled when her eyes settled on the lot of them. “Um, you know, I think I’m going to pass.”
“I thought we were going to deal with this,” Penn said.
“Yeah, but maybe not today. I don’t know what Katherine is going to do.”
“Nothing,” I said. “She’s so far up Camden’s ass.”
Penn frowned. “You’re right. Maybe not today.”
Natalie visibly relaxed and took a sip from her glass of whiskey. “So, this is an election party.”
“Pretty disappointing, huh?” I asked.
She shrugged. “It’s not as glamorous as I thought it’d be, considering the Upper East Side.”
“That’s the election night party,” I told her. “Ballgowns, tuxedos, the like.”
“Ah, more in line with what I’d guess.”
My eyes drifted back over to my group of friends. English laughed at whatever Sam had just said. Then, she looked briefly in my direction and excused herself. Now, she was walking straight over to me. Which made no fucking sense. She’d been avoiding me like the plague, and now, she wanted to see me?
English’s smile wasn’t fake when she appeared before me. “Well, we made it,” she said with exuberance. “The election results so far look favorable. It seems we held the damage to your mother’s campaign at a minimum.”
I arched an eyebrow at her. “That’s good.”
“Lark is getting a few days off after this. So, I think you’ll be free, too.”
“Sounds like a riot.”
Penn laughed and held his hand out. “It’s English, right? You’re the one who has had the unfortunate job of keeping my brother in line?”
They shook.
“Yes. It’s good to see you again, Penn.”
“And this is my wife, Natalie. I don’t believe you’ve met.”
“Wife!” English exclaimed.
Penn laughed and ran his hand back through his hair. “Yeah. Long story.”
Natalie stepped forward. “So nice to meet you.”
“You, too. I’ve heard so much about you.”
Natalie winced. “All good things, I hope.”
English shrugged. “You caught Penn Kensington. What more could a girl want?”
I narrowed my eyes at her. Really? Really?
“Meanwhile, I’ve only heard good things about you,” Penn said. “Court said you’re the best in the business. That you’re really keeping him in line. Glad that we have you working for us even if it takes you away from your life in LA. It takes a real professional to deal with Court.”