Page 12 of Trust Fund Baby

To: [email protected]

Wrong. I jumped because you dared me. And I’ve never turned down a dare from you. Even when it involved trespassing, tequila, and the country club goose statue. (I’m pretty sure Gary appreciated being set free from his captivity of being dressed up in all those different outfits. Who dresses up a goose statue in different outfits according to the holidays anyways?)

And they were vintage Hermes. May they rest in the Atlantic.

I glanced up at my television just in time to see Adam pull Elise in for a kiss, and I told myself the goofy smile on my face was because my favorite reality television couple was finally getting together and not because of Sebastian Whittaker.

Re: Long time, King

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Gary was a public service, not a crime. That goose lived a life of seasonal humiliation, and someone had to intervene. Also, I seem to remember you were the one who declared, “Tonight, we liberate the goose!”

But if I recall correctly, the real dare was skinny-dipping in the pool afterward. You backed out … A Whittaker with limits. Shocking.

Re: Long time, King

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

I did not back out. I was strategically cautious. There’s a difference. You were the one already halfway into the pool before you remembered the security cameras.

I still think you secretly wanted your grandfather to see what a rebel you were.

Tell me, what kind of trouble does Roxanne King get into these days?

Re: Long time, King

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Not nearly enough trouble. Turns out, paying rent and pretending to be a functioning adult takes up most of my chaos budget.

Occasionally I chase pigeons out of the gallery I work at with a broom or make the mistake of letting Hallie drag me to a bar that serves cocktails in lightbulbs.

Very avant-garde. Very sticky.

And on Sunday, I get the honor of having dinner with my parents. Which is bound to include at least two passive-aggressive questions about my “five-year-plan,” concern over my lack of a boyfriend, and at least one comment about how art isn’t a real career.

Re: Long time, King

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Lightbulb cocktails. You’ve got to share that bar with me. Sounds like a hell of a time.

As for your family dinner, let me know if you need an emergency escape plan. Greenwich is only a helicopter ride away and I still remember how to hot-wire a golf cart.

I tried to ignore the drop in my stomach at his last question as I stared at my laptop screen. The buzz from the banter lingered, but underneath it, a low, familiar ache tugged at my chest.

He remembered. The yacht. Gary. All the little things I didn’t think he would.

And yet, how could he remember all of that and still forget the part where he’d chosen the wrong side?