Page 116 of Promise Me Nothing
I’ll never understand what led my mother to sleep with a married man, let alone one that had also been sleeping with other women. That had already fathered one child within the elite of Hermosa Beach.
But I guess it’s easy to excuse your behavior when you’re in pain. When you’re searching for something that you think could possibly solve your problems.
I push away my thoughts, not wanting to spend any time dealing with the knowledge I hold of what’s transpired between Hannah’s dad the rich wives of Hermosa Beach.
He might have done something nefarious, something shady and underhanded, committing a betrayal against his vows and his family.
But the girl that I’m rapidly falling for has nothing to do with any of that. She’s pure. A beautiful, enchanting ray of sunshine breaking through the cracks of the tangled web that we live in. And like a moth, I am drawn to her, unable to see anything but that light.
Instead of continuing my fruitless workout, I shower, change, make myself a quick breakfast smoothie, and then head into the main house, pushing open the door to the office I use when I’m in town.
I’ve been dicking around enough since I’ve been back. Time to start planning for London.
Something squeezes inside of me at that thought, but I carry on, knowing that there’s plenty of work to get done over the next few months before the summer ends.
When Otto approached me about stepping out of solely an investor role and into something that would be much more involved with the evolution of Elite X, I’d shrugged it off. It didn’t feel like it would be a good fit, considering the small-scale of events he hosts in the local area.
But being a long-time friend, I’d sat with him and helped him brainstorm additional ideas, pushing buttons that would help him formulate longer-term plans. That’s when this whole international travel thing sparked up.
Now, he wants me to be the director for the international branch, building up the department in London to create a self-sustaining business that manages partnerships and hotels and airfare. The whole shebang.
It’s a pretty big task, and if I’m honest, I’m not sure I want to be the one to do it.
I mean, I think Icoulddo it. I’m just not sure Iwantto.
I used to be a big traveller, which is why I think Otto wanted me in on this part of Elite X. And I do love seeing the world. I spent a semester in New Zealand when I was in college. Probably the best few months of my life.
But I also don’t see myself living abroad permanently. And this London thing? Even though Otto claims it’s only for a few months, it feels long-term. Like I’d be moving to the UK for years. And as much as I want to carve a path for myself in a business like this one, I don’t want to have to move away to do it.
Being here, back in Hermosa, is making me realize that I might want to stay. Maybe not in this city, specifically. But at least nearby. The list of important things in my life is starting to shift around, and I’m starting to see the value in staying close, so I can be around for Ivy as she grows up. Maybe try to patch up my relationship with Ben.
And now, I can’t even believe I’m thinking this, but Hannah is starting to become a factor. The idea of leaving in August, even though that’s two months away… it turns something painfully in my chest. Like my heart, which was so jaded and jagged and rough around the edges, is finally starting to pulse again, and just the idea of going back to how I was before is like catching one of those unsmoothed corners.
“Knock, knock,” a voice says, and my head jerks to the doorway, where I see Lucas leaning against the doorjamb. “Hope I’m not intruding. Vicky let me in.”
I grit my jaw. Lucas showing up here unannounced isn’t surprising. But itisgrating, especially since I can see in his facial expression that his smile is all for show.
He’s not pleased with me, and he’s here to share what’s on his mind.
“Come in,” I say. “Though I feel like you would have come in whether I invited you or not.”
Lucas tucks his sunglasses into the collar of his shirt, then takes a seat in one of the two chairs that face my desk, crossing his legs, his ankle propped against his knee and his hands resting casually in his lap.
At least I have the upper hand. When this room was getting designed – by my father – he told me that every office he worked in was made specifically to make sure the other person recognized the power of the person behind the desk. Dark colors, brass, uneven chair heights, and special lighting. Do I buy into that stuff? Not really. But I’ll take any leverage I can get.
Because as casual as Lucas is trying to be right now, I can feel him bristling beneath the surface.
“I saw you and Hannah this morning, though I’ve been hearing all weekend about the two of you together. Riding up to Santa Monica, a date at Papa Louis’, getting her the day off and taking her to the beach, spending the night in my house.” He cracks his knuckles, though it seems more in stress than intimidation. “I saw your shit on her nightstand this morning.”
“It’s interesting that you have people keeping tabs on your sister.”
“They’re not. But that doesn’t mean the people in this town aren’t loyal enough to tell me when something is going on.”
My nostrils flare, and I realize that I have no idea where this conversation is going.
“The minute I realized something was going on between the two of you, it became my business. I brought her here for a reason, and the guilt I feel about it is too much.” He shakes his head. “I won’t have you using her for anything on top of that.”
“I’m not using her,” I say.
