Page 71 of Kissing the Villain

He waved his hand to dismiss me. “It’s been a hectic week.”

I nodded. “What are you working on?”

“Second additions for a few families in town. Your mother is meeting with the Wanamakers to discuss a fresco restoration.”

“I can go with her.”

“No, stay here and answer the phone.”

“Dad, I studied under Madeline Laveau. I can help with the restoration.”

“Let your mother handle it.” He shoved a hand through his dark hair and sighed. “We need you here.”

“I lost everything overnight, and now you won’t even let me do my job?”

“Alexandrea,” he groaned. “Please. We’re not even open yet. This transition hasn’t been easy for any of us.”

“Don’t talk to me about what’s hard for you. I can guarantee what I’m going through is much worse.”

He lifted a pencil and rolled it between his fingers, unable to look at me. “You should set up your new office. I have to get back to work.”

“Father of the year, ladies and gentlemen.”

Kali Marx arrived at noon.With her blonde hair fashioned into an elegant updo, she wore a black sheath dress and Manhattan shades that made her look like Audrey Hepburn inBreakfast at Tiffany’s. She drove us to Blue Moon Cafe in her new 6 Series, which had the prettiest blue paint and cream interior.

We sat in the back booth at the upscale cafe. Blue Moon had everything from gourmet burgers and fries to steak and lobster. They even had milkshakes that cost twenty-five dollars, whichmade me gasp when I saw the price. Who the hell would pay that kind of money for ice cream?

“You were right,” I said between bites. “These are the best chili cheese fries I’ve ever tasted.”

Kali shoved the plate in front of me. “Finish them off.”

I rubbed my belly, the button on my jeans ready to pop from eating so much. “I’m good.”

“The socialites drink their water with a straw,” Kali said as she raised the glass bottle of French carbonated water. “How weird?”

“This town reminds me of the movieThe Stepford Wives.”

“They act like them, too,” she said, laughing. “Wait until you see the Devil’s Creek Belles dolled up for their Sunday brunches at the yacht club with their full faces of makeup, talking about stupid shit no one cares about as they stuff their spoiled faces with cream puffs between snorting pills.”

We laughed so hard the table shook.

“The founders’ wives are the worst,” Kali muttered, then bit her lip when she realized her mistake. “I mean, no offense, but the founders kinda suck, and so do their minions.”

I rolled my shoulders. “I’m an outsider to these people.”

She set her fork on the plate and wiped her mouth with a cloth napkin. “I lived in Devil’s Creek until I was five. After my parents divorced, my mom moved back to Southern California. I lived with her until my last semester of high school.”

“So that’s why Sonny calls you Kali from Cali.” I smiled at the cute nickname. “Now, I get it.”

“My mom is from Orange County. She moved to the East Coast to be with my dad.”

“Is your mom still in California?”

“Yeah. I would love to go home,” Kali admitted, tapping the keyboard on her phone to answer a text message. “I miss my mom. She’s lonely out there by herself.”

“Does she visit you?”

She dropped her phone onto the table with a frown. “My dad lets me see her at the start of every summer.”

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