Page 95 of Never To Be Mine

“Tell me something,” she said, setting down her fork. “Something I don’t know about you.”

I considered the question. “Like what?”

“I don’t know. Family stuff. You’ve got all those brothers and cousins. There must be good stories. I know you rich kids get up to some wild shenanigans.”

I laughed, thinking about the chaos that was family gatherings. “Oh, there are stories. Where do I even start?”

“Anywhere.”

“Okay.” I took a drink of champagne, organizing my thoughts. “So, I have a cousin. Briggs. He’s a lawyer. At family get-togethers, he’d be the one telling us not to jump off the roof into the pool or shit like that. The straitlaced guy.”

“Okay.”

“The guy is always following the rules, never a hair out of place. Total opposite of me and my brothers. We used to give him so much shit for being boring.”

“Used to?”

“Not too long ago, Briggs went to Vegas to shadow the woman who helped create Blackwell Occasions with my brother and sister. They hated each other. So imagine our surprise when he ended up married to her. And here’s the best part. He didn’t remember the wedding.”

Juno’s eyes widened. “What?”

“Swear to God. He got absolutely wasted and woke up the next morning with a wedding ring and a marriage certificate. No memory of the actual ceremony.”

“Oh my God.” She was laughing now, covering her mouth with her napkin. “What did he do?”

“Oh, they’re disgustingly happy now thanks to Elvis.”

The server returned, took our empty plates, and brought out an appetizer dish of heirloom tomatoes drizzled with olive oil.

I met her gaze. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.” Juno shrugged.

“You’re close with your father. I’ve been in your dad’s office plenty of times and seen the photos on his desk.” I paused. “But you never talk about your mother.”

“She died when I was eleven,” she said quietly. “Cancer. It was brutal watching her deteriorate like that. One day she was this vibrant, beautiful woman who made everything feel safe and warm, and then she was sick. Gone six months after she found out.”

I reached across the table and covered her hand with mine. “I’m sorry, that must have been difficult.”

“My dad tried so hard to fill that void. He couldn’t replace her—no one could—but God, he tried. He learned how to braid my hair, even though it always came out lopsided. He sat through every school play and dance recital. He taught himself how to talk to me about girl stuff that probably made him want to crawl under a rock.” She laughed, but it was watery. “He was as close as possible to being both parents.”

“Sounds like a good father.”

“He is. The best.” She looked up at me and I saw the fierce love there. “That’s why I’m so grateful I get to work with him now. I know some people think it’s nepotism or that I couldn’t get a job anywhere else, but I want to be there. I feel lucky I get to work alongside him. Not everyone gets to spend that much time with their parent as an adult. It’s a gift.”

I squeezed her hand, understanding dawning. That was another reason why she was so protective of Young at Heart’s reputation. It wasn’t just business to her. It was her father’s legacy. Her mother’s memory. Everything that mattered to her wrapped up in one company.

That was a lot of pressure.

She wiped at her eyes, careful not to smudge her makeup. “Sorry. That got heavy.”

“Don’t apologize. I’m glad you told me.”

She took a shaky breath and reached for her champagne glass. “Anyway. Enough sad stories.”

I grinned, grateful for the shift in mood. “On that note, are you ready for your surprise?”

Her eyes widened. “No. Absolutely not. There have been way too many surprises for one day.”