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“My heart was broken last night.”
“All the more reason to get back on the horse as soon as possible!”
“I’m not ready for that.” Shaking my head, my gaze fell to my lap and a few more tears leaked from my eyes. “Not yet.
“Alright. And the lawyer, he was legit?”
“Yeah, I checked the place out and even called the number on the website I found this morning. He’s a real lawyer, the place is real and the man he said was my father is really dead.”
“You googled him?” Lily’s eyes widened and she turned. Rummaging in one of her lovingly stained wooden desk drawers, she retrieved some tissues that she pressed into my empty hand. “Is he famous?”
“Very.” Drying my eyes, I took a few sips of my caramel latte to help compose myself, then I sniffled and sighed deeply. “Apparently, it was Francis Ashbluff.”
“No fucking way! The wine guy?”
“Yup.”
“Holy shit, that’s like vineyard royalty!”
I squinted up at my best friend. “You know him?”
“I know the family. One of my Florist subscriptions talks a lot about floral displays at dinner parties, and they always talk about his wine. That’s top-shelf stuff; we’re talking celebrities.”
“It’s just wine,” I chuckled dejectedly.
“Not to them it isn’t. My god, Scarlett. You finally know who he is after all these years!” Lily’s bright face pinched suddenly, her gaze dropped, and her dark eyes flooded with concern. “I’m sorry. How do you feel?”
“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “Part of me doesn’t care. He didn’t care about me, ever, so why should I care about him? I’m just a product of an affair he had with my mother; he’s a cheater and a liar and that’s all I need to know. I just need to go to some meeting, sign some papers and that’s it.”
“Scarlett.” Lily’s voice softened and she set her drained cup aside. “I know you. We used to talk about your dad all the time when we were little. There isn’t a part of you that’s even a tiny bit curious?”
I scrunched up the tissues in my palm and gently dragged my thumb around the edge of the plastic lid. In truth, a deep, lonely part of me yearned to know more. Learning that there was a whole family out here that I had been missing was part of a childhood fantasy when the nights were long, and the ache for a father figure had been strong. Even now, it didn’t entirely feel real, as if I had fallen into one of those dreams after too much to drink.
“I don’t know,” I said after a long moment, studying the serial number stamped into the cup. “I don’t have anyone, so it’s weird to think that there are people.”
Lily was the only person I had, even growing up. When my mother fell sick, I took over all care for her, greatly reducing my social circle. In the end, when my mother passed, I found herself in a town so small that everyone knew everyone, but no one really knew me.
“It could be fun?” Lily prompted gently. “I know it’s freaky timing but there’s a family out there that maybe you could get to know? And they’re rich, so even if they all turn out to be assholes, there should at least be some money in it for you.”
Lily’s chuckle was infectious, and I couldn’t help but laugh back.
“Besides, if anyone deserves to go traveling and be around some money and let their hair down, then it’s definitely you.”
“I don’t know.” I dragged in a shaky breath and met Lily’s gaze. “It feels like some sort of scam, don’t you think? At least it feels that way, but I got an email about a hotel reservation this morning. They’re expecting me in a few days.”
“That’s a lot to go through for a scam,” Lily chuckled. “I’m not saying it’ll be amazing but what do you have to lose?”
“Other than painful heartbreak that my potential family is just a lie?”
“Okay sure, when you put it like that,” Lily snorted. “But on the other hand, you get to spend a few days at a fancy hotel in the city. If all else falls through, you can still go shopping, go dine somewhere fancy and treat yourself!”
Lily’s words of encouragement were getting to me. The more I ran that plan through my mind, the more it made sense. And it would keep me away from the town’s gossip circle when news broke of my split with Shane. Too many people would be on hand to give advice as if they had been the ones involved in my relationship. I sipped thoughtfully and winced inwardly.
“I’ve never been to the city before. What if I fuck up? Is there any way you could come with me?”
“I wish I could,” Lily sighed with a sympathetic smile. “But there’s so much more involved with the Valentine’s Festival than I realized. I don’t have the time, I’m sorry.”
My face twisted at the thought of Valentine’s. That would be a fresh hell now that Shane had shown his true colors. My confidence faltered slightly as I considered being alone in the city.
