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“Naturally. Did you invite everyone you know?”
“Only the ones who count. Let’s get drinks. Lots of drinks.”
Eve got a drink, and managed to pretty much avoid Trina—especially when she noticed the hairdresser giving her hair that look. She saw Dennis Mira’s dreamy smile as he sat right on the floor to play some game with a gaggle of kids.
She watched McNab gallop around in his airboots with some other kid plastered to his back, who shrieked as if being stabbed—a sound everyone else appeared to assume meant pleasure. Garnet DeWinter was smiling down at some visually stunning midsized kid who talked earnestly to Mira.
Leonardo, a shiny, dome-shaped party hat on his long copper hair, beamed at his girls, manning the bar in a tunic the color of sapphires.
Louise and Charles—late to the party. Doctors and cops, Eve thought, and saw Roarke talking to Feeney. Doctors, cops, and criminals—reformed. Bouncers and ex-LCs. E-geeks and fashion designers.
And a serious boatload of kids.
She didn’t know everyone, but she knew a good chunk. Her people as much as Mavis’s. Like it or not.
Chaos got real when the time came for Bella to rip into the gifts.
“Where the hell are they going to put them all?”
Roarke slid an arm around Eve’s waist. “They’ll find a way.”
Maybe, Eve thought, but certainly at the moment the kid was ridiculously thrilled with everything.
“Looks like we’re up,” Roarke said as Leonardo signaled. He slipped away with Leonardo into another part of the apartment.
Together they carried out an enormous box of glittery pink and silver.
“I’m told this is a magic box,” Roarke said to Bella, who stared at it with huge eyes. “And you’ve only to pull that ribbon there to see what’s inside.”
With Mavis’s help, Bella pulled the long pink ribbon. The box collapsed outward to reveal the contents.
She’d wanted a dollhouse, according to Peabody—and Mavis had confirmed. And since Roarke had been in charge . . .
Like the home he’d built for himself, it was more castle than house. And in this case, all girl. Pink and white and pretty with its turrets and drawbridges, its arched windows and fussy balconies.
Eve didn’t get it, just didn’t get the concept of giving dolls a place where they could gather to plot. But she got Bella’s reaction, and couldn’t deny the little squeeze of her own heart.
Bella gasped, put her fingers to her lips, her eyes saucer wide with shock. Mavis murmured to her, and those eyes went shiny as she looked up at Roarke, over at Eve.
Then another girl squealed and rushed forward.
Bella’s shiny eyes went hot and fierce, her teeth showed. Eve was prepared to see a long, forked tongue shoot out between them.
Obviously imagining the same, the squealer stopped dead, and backed up.
Shiny eyes returned, and Bella toddled to Eve. When Bella started to lift her arms, Eve took the safer course and crouched down.
“Das,” Bella said with a world of meaning in the single syllable. Her arms went around Eve, and she swayed in the hug—as her mother often did. “Das,” she said again, and held out a hand for Roarke. “Ork. Das. Ta. Ta. Ta.”
Whatever she said after was beyond Eve’s scope, but the emotion was crystal. Pure joy, deep gratitude.
“Glad you like it.”
“Ove. Ove ou.”
Bella let out a long sigh, then sparkled as she danced in place. Whirling, she charged the dollhouse, applauded, poked at it, pulled out a throne-like chair, and hooted with laughter.
“I’d say it’s a hit,” Eve said.
