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Like I’ve said before in other books—it’s fiction, y’all.
Best to all of you,
RR
FOREWORD
Promise me you’ll always remember: You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.
—A.A. Milne
1
My nephew was the cutest kid ever born. He was. I mean, maybe every proud auntie feels that way, but they were all wrong because I was right. As I sat in the car driving me across town in five o’clock traffic, I grinned at the newest photos Layla had sent me of Noah. At two months old already, his cheeks only became more pinchable. I should fly out to Washington State to see him again soon. I’d been there when he was born. Bridget too. We were triplets—Bridget, Layla, and me—so it seemed only right that we were all there when the first of us to have a child gave birth to their baby.
I didn’t know if Layla’s husband, Zeke, particularly appreciated Bridget and me hanging around for the whole thing, but he kept quiet if it bothered him. He understood Layla, which meant that he didn’t interfere when she needed us. Or when we needed her.
We were a package deal in some ways. Always had been. Only when we tried to deny that truth did we get ourselves into trouble.
After minutes of stops and starts in gridlock traffic, we finally arrived downtown at the new, hip, fine dining restaurantHyperion. Ever since celebrity vlogger and all-around annoying human being Amanda Hill called the chef, Max Broadley, as delicious-looking as anything on the menu, everyone wanted to see him. Well, not me. I was going because my good friend Kylie wanted to see him, and it was her turn to pick the restaurant.
So although I lived on the Upper West Side, I headed downtown to sate her curiosity. That was what friends did, after all, and if I was nothing else, I was a good friend.
It would have been faster for me to take the subway. At this point, I could hoof it there in less time, but I wasn’tallowedto do that.
Blah, blah, blah, I should be more careful about my safety. Apparently.
I sighed. It wasn’t that I didn’t know there was danger in the world. There certainly was. My sister Layla had been kidnapped for two days by the Russian mob. Those were the worst days of my life, and I could only imagine how frightening the experience was for Layla. I thanked the universe and any deities listening for her safe return all the time, but it was over. The newest worry was that my father and brother Justin were in Russia, working for a different mob over there and pissing off the original one again.
I didn’t believe they intended to harm us. If Dad had gone to Russia, it was to fix things, I was sure of it. Bridget and Layla disagreed with me, but I liked to keep a hopeful mind. I couldn’t walk dark paths for too long. It was too…hard.
Finally, we arrived at our destination. Yes, we were in the Financial District, practically on Wall Street. The place was hopping. While the restaurant was certainly a boutique establishment, it gave off the appearance of trying to be considered upscale. Fancy drapes hanging in tall windows could be seen from the outside.
I got out of the car followed by my security guards, two of whom were provided by the same company that drove me. Michael Li, the owner of the security company, used to work for my father and I’d known him since I was sixteen. Since he started a business of his own, Zeke, Layla’s husband, hired him to take care of all of us. One of his men—Luke—would stay outside, and Theo—the other one—would find a discreet place inside to stand guard while I ate.
“Hope,” Kylie squealed. “You’re here. I thought you might be late and we’d miss our reservation.”
We air kissed each other’s cheeks. It looked pretentious, but it saved our makeup. I didn’t know why people had started doing it, but that was why I’d picked up the habit. Truthfully, I was a little bit pretentious, but I’d accepted it about myself.
“You know me—I’m never late. I’m allergic to lateness, although it was a close call. You look gorgeous.”
Kylie was always the lady in black. She pulled it off too. Tonight, she wore a long black skirt and a mock sleeveless shirt that showed off all her curves. Before she started her own fashion line, she’d been a plus size model. She turned heads wherever we went because she was so gorgeous. Her long black hair and dark eyes added to the look.
I’d dressed more simply for our meal. I wore gray khakis with a white collared shirt. I’d rolled the sleeves and unbuttoned the collar, so it showed off just a bit of cleavage. At twenty-four, I wanted to feel sexy, although it wasn’t a look I cultivated most of the time. Normally, I went for a professional and serious appearance.
Layla was gorgeous, so much so that people used to follow her around to figure out how to dress and what to wear. Bridget managed to always look like the girl next door. I was sort of Hope in the middle, never quite sure how to dress, so I was trying something new. I’d even cut my hair. It was short, and Iembraced my curls. Well, I used a lot of mousse to tame them, but I wasn’t trying to straighten them anymore.
All in all, I wanted the look to work. I wanted this to be how I presented myself to the world. It needed to work because I had to have something working in my life, since everything else was getting a little blah around the corners.
We went inside. Kylie had made the reservation, so we were quickly seated. No one waited by the door because it was a solely reservation based establishment. You either had a table waiting or you didn’t.
The waiter poured us water and handed us a menu.
I scanned through it. Truthfully, I loved food. Adored it. Eating was my favorite thing to do in the world. I would eat all the time if I could. Their menu aesthetically appealed to me. Someone took the time to make it appealing to the eye and easy to read with nice font and lace covered corners.Very nice touches.
“Will you be ordering wine tonight?”
Kylie eyed me. “I will. How about you, Hope?” I could hear the unspoken question in her voice. She wanted me to drink with her, but she knew I didn’t usually do so in public, not even in restaurants. From past experiences, I knew when I let my guard down, my world exploded. Because of that, I only indulged with a trusted friend or loved one at home. When I was out, I stuck to water. Maybe an occasional seltzer if I felt sassy.
