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“Morning,” Mom says when I enter the kitchen. She’s cooking pancakes, but she doesn’t wear her usual smile.
“Did Ace take you to Sterling Heights on Friday?” She turns around to face me, disappointment glistening in her eyes.
“I told you he was taking me out.”
“Yes, but you never said a word about going to Sterling Heights. Honestly, Remi, do you have any idea how dangerous it can be there?”
“I was with Ace. We went to see his friends.”
“That does not fill me with any reassurance.”
“Relax, Mom. The Heights isn’t that bad.” I’d had fun with Cruz and D. Sure, they teased me about me being from the Bay, but they had accepted me as one of their own. Unlike the kids at Sterling Prep, who go out of their way to make me feel like I don’t belong.
It’s funny, really, that the place I am supposed to fit in is the place I feel most alone, and the place I’m not supposed to fit in is the place I feel most like myself.
“I’m sorry, sweetheart, but I have to agree with James on this one. I would prefer it if you didn’t—“
“Don’t do this,” I say, letting out a frustrated breath. “I like Ace, Mom. And who knows, maybe you’d like him to if you took the chance to really get to know him.”
“Well, it seems you’ll get your wish Wednesday. James has booked a pre-birthday meal for all of us down at The Blue Bay.”
“You’re kidding me?” The Blue Bay was expensive, not to mention a favorite hotspot with Sterling Bay’s elite.
It was also the last place I could see Ace and his brothers frequenting.
“He knows it’s your favorite.”
It used to be my favorite, before my dad ruined everything.
“It sounds lovely, Mom,” I grimace, “but I’m not sure it’s the kind of place Ace and his brothers will enjoy.”
“Well it’s not their birthday, and if Ace cares about you half as much as you seem to care about him, then there shouldn’t be a problem, should there?”
My lips purse. They’re testing us. You didn’t just turn up at a place like The Blue Bay in your best jeans and shirt. You wore dinner jackets and evening gowns.
“Talk to him, please. I don’t need dinner at The Blue Bay, it’s not me anymore.”
Maybe it never was.
And the thought that James might be setting some infallible test for Ace doesn’t sit well with me.
“You really don’t want to go?”
“I’d rather do something low key.”
“Fine, I’ll talk to him. But I can’t promise anything. James dotes on you, you know that. And he just wants you to have the things you deserve in life.”
I gawk at her. “There’s more to life than fancy restaurants and expensive champagne, Mom.” It comes out more harshly than I intend, and her face pales.
“That’s not fair, Remi.”
“Just talk to him, Mom, please. It’s my birthday, and I don’t want any fuss.”
I’ve already decided what I want. My first tattoo... and Ace.
I still can’t believe I was brave enough to tell him I want to have sex on my birthday, but the beers at Sinners might have had something to do with it.
I want him more than I’ve ever wanted anything.
