“Excuse me.” She yanked her arm away and Jim took a confused step back, then shrugged.
“Crisis averted,” she said in a low voice when Nico followed her to the rear of the room. They watched Jim join a group of equally tanned men on the patio near the marina. Dalia passed Nico and Valerie to the sound of their hearty laughter.
“You can recognize a pod of high-net-worths by their deep, virile calls,” Dalia said in a David Attenborough voice. “Highly sensitive to the opinion of their peers and desperate for the approval that means survival in their merciless environment, each member of the pod tries to outdo the others in status through proxies such as the age of their cars and youth of their wives.” She reverted back to her normal voice. “Can you give me a hand with the Nanaimo bars?”
“I’ll get them,” said Nico. He turned to Valerie. “You might want to stay hidden for a bit.”
Fernie came by, swaying on her feet and holding another glass of wine. “Hey, Fernie,” Valerie said cautiously. “Do you think you should slow down?”
“Can you believe it?” Fernie demanded. “Some asshole told me to get a real job when I told him about Soulvinate. Do you understand how hard I work?”
Frankly, Nico didn’t, but he nodded. “I can imagine,” he said.
“Like, equipment costs money. My aesthetic costs money. It’s not like my parents help much. I asked if they’d fund my Soulvinate studio and Dad said no.”
This was honestly shocking, as Nico was used to Fernie getting her own way from her father. “No?”
“Dad had the nerve to talk to me about integrity and making good decisions, the hypocrite. The only reason we’re here is because we’re so broke he had to rent out the house while the executor figures outGrandpa’s will.” She waved her hand in disgust and wandered off, muttering about food.
“Broke is a little more extreme than being in debt.” Valerie looked at Nico, then gave David a significant look as she left to hide deeper in the kitchen. She was right. Was it because he was paying off someone? Someone like Yvette or her family? They hadn’t considered the idea that payments might be ongoing. Nico frowned, hoping Yvette wasn’t blackmailing David or something heinous. It would break Roger’s heart.
His phone buzzed and the screen showed a text from his sister holding a full plate with multiple food groups.Thanks for the delivery, she wrote.This is the most green I’ve had in weeks.
Smiling at the text, he went out to get a breath of air on the patio. His mind wandered as he took in the names of the boats.Thar She Blows.Petunia IV, leaving him to wonder about the fates ofPetunias ItoIII.Ruby 40. Forty. A distant memory sparked. Rubies were the stone for the fortieth anniversary. Gia and her boyfriend sounded an awful lot like his parents. What did she say it was called? The Gem Line?
He grabbed his phone. There it was, theDiamond Star, touring the sophisticated ports of the Mediterranean. He scrolled down and couldn’t believe his eyes. TheRuby Starwent from Vancouver to Alaska and over to Japan. His father had always wanted to see the Arctic. His mother dreamed of Tokyo.
He copied the link and sent it to the group text with his sisters, glad to be able to look at his phone without dread.I have an anniversary idea.
Kimmy was the first to answer.This is it. No notes.
Stefanie’s reply came a minute later.Agreed. Perfect idea, Nico. I love it.
We can talk about it over dinner at Steffy’s place, he wrote, feeling a buzz of relief that he’d been able to get them all to agree.
Thanks to Nico I actually have meals I can pull together without effort, Steffy wrote.With real vegetables, not the dehydrated ones in ramen packs.
The group text devolved into memories about Kimmy’s attempt atapple pie when she was thirteen and didn’t realize she had to cut the fruit, and when Nico mistook salt for sugar. It was nice to have this back-and-forth. He was still on alert, but not as much. It would take a while, but their relationship could change and grow.
* * *
Valerie checked the time and nodded at the bartender to start closing up. It was getting to the end of the event and few things hastened a guest’s departure like an empty glass. Luckily, Jim Walker had left, leaving her free to show her face.
Fernie came up to drape a loose arm around her neck. “No. Are you shutting the bar down?”
“I think maybe you’ve had enough.”
“Never.” Fernie’s hand rubbed her shoulder. “Nice dress, by the way.”
“Penny gave it to me.”
“It’s one of those?” Fernie laughed. “I heard her talking to Mom about giving you her cast-offs. She said her out-of-season wardrobe was still better than the cheap, gaudy stuff you usually wore. So rude, but Aunt Pen is all about that Badgerton image. Oh wow. You know what? I should get her onto Soulvinate so she can explore her deeper truths. It might make her less superficial.”
Fernie drifted into the thinning crowd, leaving Valerie stunned behind her. The gray shift dress burned on her skin. Penny had said that? Humiliation rose in her but was quickly snuffed out by rebellion.
Then Penny herself came up. “Valerie, please stop standing around.” She sounded brisk. “I know we’re at the end but I hate the look of empty platters. So cheap and messy. I trusted you with this event. Don’t let me down in the final minutes.”
Valerie knew that voice. Penny was treating her like staff. She did nothing, but her mind replayed the memory of Tracey Jefferies directinga small pitying smile in Penny’s direction.
