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Lily walked over and hugged me. “Welcome to the family, Aunt Claire.”
“Thank you, Lily.”
“Welcome to the family,” Ella hugged me. “You’re going to love living here with us.”
“Hey, Ella?” Conner said. “I’m curious. Did you know?”
“Yes.” She grinned. “I knew the night I met her at Four Kinds. I know a Kind when I see one. You all should know that by now.” She ran to catch up with Lily and Riley.
CHAPTER 19
Claire
“What do you do for work, Claire?” Sam asked.
“I was the financial manager for my mother’s insurance company in Connecticut. After I decided to move here, I sold my shares.”
“She didn’t leave the company to you?” Stefan asked.
“She knew I didn’t want to run it. She and Joseph started it shortly after moving to the States. He worked for an insurance company in New York, and they sent him to Paris to get the offices there up and running. After he met my mother, he decided he wanted to start his own company, so they moved to Connecticut and built one from the ground up. Before my mom passed, she appointed Richard, a close family friend who worked for them from the beginning, to take over.”
“So, you’re unemployed?” Sebastian asked.
“For now.” I smiled. “I’m not worried. I’ll find a job here.”
“Where did you go to college?” Sam asked.
“I got my MBA from Columbia.”
“Can you come by our offices tomorrow morning around ten o’clock?” Sam asked.
“Yeah. I can do that.” I smiled.
“We need to get started immediately on the plans for your new home.”
“I can get the blueprints from the city before heading into the office,” Stefan said.
“No need. I already have them,” I said.
“Even better.” Stefan grinned. “I still can’t believe I watched my sister sing on American Idol all those years ago. This is just crazy.”
“You could have sung professionally,” Shaun said. “Why didn’t you ever pursue it?”
“It wasn’t a big dream of mine. My mom and Joseph pushed me to try out for American Idol. It was fun and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I’m happy I did it but prefer singing and playing music in a more casual setting.”
“You can sing and play here all you want with us.” Sam smiled.
After talking for a while, I hugged my family goodbye, walked over to Shaun’s, and said goodbye to the girls. Nick pulled up and climbed out of his car as I approached my apartment building.
“Hey, you.” Nick smiled, hooking his arm around me.
I needed to tell him about the family, but I was too tired to do so tonight. His face told me he was tired, too.
“You’re just getting home?” he asked.
“Yeah.” I smiled. “I’m exhausted.”
“Me too. My place or yours?”
