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“Do you donate already?” I don’t know why but there’s a part of me wants to prove to myself it’s all talk, that she has these ideals but she’ll never follow through, because at the end of the day, she does want the money. Because for some reason, I don’t want to bring myself to believe otherwise.
“As much as I can,” she says, vaguely. “My stepfather controls most of it. It’ll change when I reach my twentieth birthday though. That’s when my rights and royalties are transferred to my company, and when Grams figured I’d be able to manage my money responsibly.”
“You seem pretty responsible now,” I challenge.
“Yeah, you say that, but I really would give it all to charity if I had access to it. Apparently that’s not the best way to manage it.” She grins at me.
We step onto the deck and walk alongside one of the yachts. I stand and watch as Aurelia reaches out to touch the beautifully sloping side. She presses her palm against it and closes her eyes. “They are beautiful aren’t they?” she sighs, opening her eyes again. I nod in agreement. “How far is the reef from here?”
I point out to sea. “About six miles that way.”
“I’d love to see it.”
“Well, the dive center is our next stop, so we can ask about scheduling a trip for you.”
“Really? That would be amazing.” Her face lights up and her blonde hair bobs about her shoulders as she skips back down the deck to the path. For a moment, I forget about bumping into Paris and find myself feeling the way I felt last night while I sat next to Aurelia in silence. It wasn’t the first time I’d sat in the company of a client without speaking. In fact, it is pretty commonplace in this profession to be unseen and unheard. But, there was a weird feeling in the air that I couldn’t put my finger on.
We reach the dive center and chat to Autumn and Clark about organizing a trip for Aurelia. Seeing the framed photographs of the reefs in all their technicolor glory only serves to further excite Aurelia, and I watch, curiously, as she seems to glow from the inside out.
We continue up to the spa and I introduce her to Maisie and show her some of the available treatment rooms and the yoga studio. Then we make our way towards the golf course. We walk along the lower side towards the northeast wall.
“That’s where I usually live,” I say, nodding towards the steel security gate.
“Behind that wall?” Her voice is full of intrigue as opposed to judgement.
“Yeah. The northeast wall. It’s where the real fun happens,” I say, raising an eyebrow conspiratorially.
“Can I see?”
“Really?” I backtrack. “There’s not much to see. Not right now anyway.”
“Then when?”
“Sunday nights are quite vibrant,” I say. “And we have beach parties three times a season. Things can get a little… debauched.”
“Debauched,” she repeats. “I like the sound of that. It’s a shame I’m going to be performing Sunday nights.”
“The parties go on into the early hours,” I say, then without thinking, I add, “I could bring you one night after your show.”
She claps her hands together. “I would love that!”
I smile, knowing the team would love that too.
We stop for some lunch in the café, then head back out towards Reef Street. I tell her about Barbie and Fitz, two of our famous ex-Hollywood residents, and she says she can’t wait to meet them. We bump into Esme, Tawny’s friend from Housekeeping, and chat about other singers we’ve had stay on the island. Thankfully, Esme remains tight-lipped about some of the shitshows she’s had to clean up after. It wouldn’t do to bitch about people who are effectively Aurelia’s peers.
Finally, we walk back along the boardwalk, and as we approach the Morrison villa, I hear Aurelia take a deep breath. “Who was the woman we bumped into earlier?” she asks. “Paris somebody?”
I swipe the key card and open the door. “Paris Navitsky. Roman Navitsky’s wife.”
“Roman Navitsky?TheRoman Navitsky? That washim?”
“Yeah. His wife stays here a lot.”
“Right. I thought she looked familiar. And that would explain how she knows you.”
“What do you mean?” My heart has started to thump.
“It’s clear you two knew each other. She didn’t look very happy with you.”
