Page 174 of Lush

It was one of those rare heat waves in Northern California and everyone was out and about. Tourists filled the beach. Boats filled the marina and beyond.

“You think they can give us some shots?” Gigi frowned as the waiter placed another glass of wine in front of her, her oversize sunglasses perched atop her head. Walter barked excitedly from the high chair she insisted the staff bring out for him.

“Girl, it’s a brunch. Ain’t nobody doing shots,” Serena said dryly, stirring her cappuccino despite the heat.

“Oh, so now you’re a saint?” Gigi shot back, her perfectly arched brow lifting. “I seem to remember somebody dancing on tables atthatNew Year’s party.”

“Years ago, and you drugged me,” Serena said.

“Drugged? Girl, it wasgin.AndI told you before you drank it that gin will fuck you up, but nooo, you had to have three glasses and then you were twerking on Mrs. Dupont’s geriatric husband.”

I snorted, covering my mouth, and Serena glared over at me. “I’m sorry, but that was funny.”

“We came here to celebrate, or did I turn down my Grammy-winning rapper’s offer of an all-exclusive trip to Madrid for nothing? Let’s party! We’ve made fucking accomplishments this year.”

That was true. The gallery was thriving. The town was raking in money. Reese and I were better than ever. Arthur had told me just last week that I had turned Lush into a destination, his grin so wide it could’ve cracked glass.

And the King Foundation for Change?

Just hit its one-year anniversary. The gala we hosted last month raised over half a million dollars, doubling the number of scholarships we could award this year. I just knew Grandpa and Augustus Kingwould’ve been proud.

My phone buzzed, interrupting my thoughts, and Reese’s name lit up for the fifth time.

“You know he’s gonna find you sooner or later.” Noelle raised a brow and sipped her mimosa.

“So?” I replied, dropping the phone back into my purse. “I need a break. I told him to go ride his bike or something.”

“Married life, couldn’t be me. I like my freedom.” Gigi sniffed.

I reached for my drink and looked at Serena, ignoring G. “How’s the acquisition going?”

Serena’s mouth thinned, and she looked back down at her cappuccino. I knew running King’s Development had been Serena’s pride and joy, but lately I heard less and less about it.

“Ass,” Gigi said, taking another sip of wine and winking at Serena. “It’sass, and she ain’t even tell Mama yet.”

“Mind your business. You don’t even have a job,” Serena snapped.

“My parents are millionaires.” Gigi swatted her braids over her shoulders. “My only responsibilities are looking good and shopping. Don’t blame me ’cause you wanna be all independent and shit. I’m soaking upallmy nepotism.”

My phone buzzed on the table again. Reese, again.

“Girl, if he’s called you one more time…” Gigi swirled the last bit of mimosa in her glass. “Y’all good, right? Or should we be worried? I can’t be a child of divorce.”

“We’re fine,” I said quickly. “He’s just…being protective after everything.”

“He’s beingclingy,” Gigi quipped, sitting up straighter. “Noelle, can you put a tracking device in Laurene’s phone or something for him? So he doesn’t keep killing our vibe?”

Noelle rolled her eyes, the corners of her lips twitching in amusement. “I have better things to do than that.”

“Like what?” Gigi asked.

“Like trying to track down my biological parents.”

“What!”my sisters and I screamed. I knew years ago Noelle had been interested in her birth parents, but the McKenzies adored Noelle, and after a while she stopped bring up searching for them.

“That’s…big,” I said softly. “Have you found anything?”

“Not yet. But I’m making progress. It’s hard but I’m slowly pulling records. It’s a lot of reading and tossing out junk. I just—” She paused, letting out a small breath. “It’s important for my doctors to know.”

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