“What do you think of him?” Vance asked.
“He’s nice.”
“Sure. A little too slick, for my taste.”
I smiled, tilting my head. “Are you jealous?”
“In the worst way.”
“Don’t be. I only have eyes for the homeowner,” I said.
Before either of us could speak again, Kenzie’s voice called out across the patio. “Vance, your mom’s here.”
He stood immediately. “I didn’t know she was coming. But she probably couldn’t resist seeing the crew and filming.”
“It would seem exciting.” I said as I stood, too, brushing invisible crumbs from my lap. “I actually caught a glimpse of her earlier conversing with the crew.”
“Come on,” he said. “I’ll introduce you.”
I followed him out to the front of the house. A petite woman with perfect posture and a swingy silver bob stood on the patio beside Kenzie, who was explaining the filming process.
“Hey, Mom.”
Her face lit up. “Hello there. I hope you don’t mind me barging in. I just had to see all this for myself.”
“It’s no problem.” Vance pulled her into a hug. “This is Lila Morgan—the star of the show. Lila, this is my mom, Irene.”
I stepped forward to shake her hand. Surprise flickered in Irene’s eyes, quickly followed by warmth.
“Lila’s the designer?”
Mia came running up, cheeks flushed with excitement. “Mom, the camera guys showed me a whole bunch of cool stuff. It’s so much fun.”
“This is Mia, my daughter,” I said to Irene.
“Hi, Mia. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Vance’s mom.”
Mia looked from one to the other, nodding. “You have the same pretty eyes.”
“Thank you,” Irene said. “You look like your mom.”
“Only we have different eyes,” Mia said. “Mine are brown—I get them from my dad. But that’s all. The rest of me is all my mom.” She paused for a second, clearly avoiding meeting my gaze. “We’re having a party next weekend to celebrate Mom’snew show and everything. It’s at our friend Seraphina Sinclair’s house, and it’s totally sick. She’s basically on the beach, with this huge deck and everything. All my mom’s best friends will be there. You guys have to come.”
Irene glanced at Vance, who glanced at me.
“I’d love it if you’d come,” I said.
“Seraphina Sinclair, the author?” Irene asked. “I love her books.”
“She’s Mom’s best friend,” Mia said proudly. “And kind of like my aunt. You’ll meet Esme, Delphine, and Gillian too. The five of them are thick as thieves. And I’m best friends with their kids. It’s kind of like a big family—which means there’s always room for more.”
“Well, goodness me, that sounds wonderful,” Irene said. “I’ll have to try and keep myself together, though. It’ll be hard not to embarrass myself in front of Ms. Sinclair. Her books got me through a lot of hard times.”
“Me too,” I said. “And a lot of other people too.”
“Vance, you’ll come, right?” Mia asked.
So much for subtlety.
