"The waiter smiled at me. That's like asking."
Kim shot me a look that saidhelp meand I laughed. Xavier arrived a moment later, his tie already loosened, looking like he'd just narrowly escaped some kind of crisis. Knowing Zoe, he probably had.
"She climbed the ice sculpture," he said as a way of greeting.
"It was a mermaid," Zoe explained, as if that justified everything. "I wanted to see her face."
"Her face was at the top."
"That's why I had to climb."
I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing. Xavier caught my eye and shook his head, but he was fighting a smile, too. He'd changed so much since Kim and Zoe came into his life. The recklessness was still there, you couldn’t kill that in Xavier. But it had a purpose now. Direction. And Zoe had changed too. The well-behaved child I’d met two months ago was now becoming a rogue, just like Xavier.
They’d even begun to look alike, sharing the same mischievous glint in their eyes. One wouldn’t be able to tell that he wasn’t her father.
"Come on, trouble." He scooped Zoe up, settling her on his hip like he’d been doing it his whole life. "Let's go find Grandma before she sends out a search party."
They headed toward the table where my mother and grandmother sat. I followed them, weaving through the crowd, nodding at a few familiar faces.
My mother looked elegant in navy silk, her dark hair swept up in the style she’s worn since I was a child, the pearl choker she always wore for formal events clasped around her throat like armor. She spotted me and her face softened in that way only a mother’s face can soften, years of worry melting into relief.
"There you are, darling. I was starting to think you'd gotten lost."
"Just networking." I bent to kiss her cheek, breathing in her familiar scent. Then my grandmother's soft papery cheek. "You both look wonderful."
"You look thin," my grandmother said. It was her standard greeting, delivered with the same tone she might use to comment on the weather. I'd learned to let it roll off.
"I look exactly the same as last month."
"Last month you also looked thin."
"Then I'm consistent."
My mother hid a smile behind her champagne glass, her eyes dancing. Grandmother huffed but let it go, turning her attention to Zoe, who was now attempting to show her the olive collection with great enthusiasm.
I settled into a chair and let the conversation wash over me. Sebastian and Aria joined us eventually. Xavier kept chasing after Zoe, who had apparently decided the entire rooftop was her personal playground. Kim apologized repeatedly while also clearly finding the whole thing hilarious, her laughter bright and genuine.
This was good. This was what I needed. I reached for my champagne and let myself relax while I watched people. It was my favorite pastime. People-watching was where I found inspiration, where I saw how fabric moved on real bodies, how women held themselves, what made them feel beautiful or uncomfortable or powerful.
It’s not every day I got to enjoy an evening where the attention wasn't on me. That was one of the reasons why I enjoyed being around my family so much. They were so chaotic that I just became invisible around them.
I didn’t mind it. I could easily reclaim a room with a snap of my finger if I wished.
My eyes drifted around the room lazily. Evie and two dark-haired women were by the stage, fiddling with some sort of cable, their heads bent together in concentration. Xavier, my trusted source of entertainment, was now seated with Zoe in his lap, letting her play with his phone. I sighed and kept looking, searching for something that could draw my attention.
And then, my eyes landed on a tall frame across the room.
He was standing with his back to me, wearing a brown linen shirt tucked into tan pants. The outfit hung loose on his frame except where it pulled snug around his arms and shoulders, which were particularly filled out. Broad. Strong. The kind of shoulders that could carry the world… or a woman.
He had delicious-looking chocolate brown skin that seemed to glow under the warm lighting, with close-cropped black hair that showed the elegant shape of his head. He looked good even from behind.
I bit the inside of my cheek. Maybe I should go over there. My family lacked the necessary entertainment tonight. Maybe he would provide all the…
The man suddenly lifted the hand that had been in his pocket to wave at someone, and my gaze snagged on a very familiar tattoo on his wrist.
ID + FD
My hand froze, glass halfway to my lips.
