escorted the guest of honor to his seat, Hayley was in the kitchen
making sure the caterer remembered which of the guests was lactose intolerant
or had other food issues.
Fiona never
meant to steal the spotlight. Like most truly magnetic people, she just walked
into a room and dazzled. Hayley, on the other hand, walked into a room and
disappeared. And she was content with that arrangement. Until one day she wasn’t.
And then everything changed.
“All right, don’t
panic,” Fiona now said. “I’ll meet with the great man. Who knows, maybe he’ll
teach me how to kiss, too. I could use a little help in that regard. I haven’t
had a date in three months.”
Fiona had turned
away, studying the calendar, and didn’t see the stricken look settle on Hayley’s
face.
TWO
It
was late when Hayley let herself into her apartment on East 86 th Street.
The building was a luxury high-rise with a doorman. It was a far cry from the
shelter down the street where she, Mikey and Luke had spent far too much time
as children. She always shriveled inside when she thought of that place.
Once Celebration started making money, she and Fiona had decided to have separate apartments. When
they lived together they would come home from the office and talk business
until it was time to go to bed.
Even now they’d
spend half the evening on the phone, going over details of whatever event they
were planning. But this new living arrangement allowed them to think about
something else, at least for a few hours every day.
There was
another reason Hayley wanted her own place, but she would never admit it to
Fiona. She needed to have somewhere for her brother to crash when he got into
one of his scrapes, as he called them. Like getting evicted, or beaten up for
not paying a debt to the wrong people. She knew Mikey was a mess, but he was
her mess. And she wasn’t about to run away from her responsibilities, like
their mother had done.
Fiona was well
aware that Hayley was constantly rescuing her brother, and Hayley knew she
knew, but it was another one of those things they never discussed.
Hayley poured
a glass of wine, clicked on the television and curled up in her favorite spot.
It was an enormous wing chair, more suitable for a wrestler than a slender slip
of a girl who was all of five foot two with shoes on. She had paid thirty-two dollars
for the chair at one of the many charity thrift shops that dotted First Avenue,
and managed to get it home tied on top of a yellow cab. She had reupholstered it
herself in rich emerald-green velvet, the color of her eyes. When she had lived
at the shelter down the street, she had dreamed of having a real home one day, and
a special chair. Now she had both.
She was later than
usual, and Luke’s news show was almost over. She watched him every night. At
the end of every broadcast, he looked into the camera and said, “I’m Luke
Thompson and I wish you a goodnight.” She liked to fantasize that he was
talking only to her.
“I wish you
goodnight too, Luke,” she said to the screen.
She froze the
frame and studied his face. His dark hair was prematurely greying at the temples,
but it only served to make him look sexier, if that was possible. He had grey eyes
with thick lashes, but he was all man, cut from the same cloth as old-time
movie stars like Clark Gable. She tried to fathom what his home was like, who
he would have dinner with tonight, and who he loved.
She hadn’t
seen him in person for more than five years. When he called her to say he was
getting an award, and would she like to organize the party for him, it took almost
an hour for her to stop trembling after she’d hung up. Life had made her tough,
but there was something about Luke Thompson that made her knees turn to jelly…when
she was eight. And now at thirty.
“Having a
drink with your lover, I see.”
Hayley almost
jumped out of her chair.
Mikey was
standing in the doorway of the bedroom, watching her intently.
“Mikey! You
making sure the caterer remembered which of the guests was lactose intolerant
or had other food issues.
Fiona never
meant to steal the spotlight. Like most truly magnetic people, she just walked
into a room and dazzled. Hayley, on the other hand, walked into a room and
disappeared. And she was content with that arrangement. Until one day she wasn’t.
And then everything changed.
“All right, don’t
panic,” Fiona now said. “I’ll meet with the great man. Who knows, maybe he’ll
teach me how to kiss, too. I could use a little help in that regard. I haven’t
had a date in three months.”
Fiona had turned
away, studying the calendar, and didn’t see the stricken look settle on Hayley’s
face.
TWO
It
was late when Hayley let herself into her apartment on East 86 th Street.
The building was a luxury high-rise with a doorman. It was a far cry from the
shelter down the street where she, Mikey and Luke had spent far too much time
as children. She always shriveled inside when she thought of that place.
Once Celebration started making money, she and Fiona had decided to have separate apartments. When
they lived together they would come home from the office and talk business
until it was time to go to bed.
Even now they’d
spend half the evening on the phone, going over details of whatever event they
were planning. But this new living arrangement allowed them to think about
something else, at least for a few hours every day.
There was
another reason Hayley wanted her own place, but she would never admit it to
Fiona. She needed to have somewhere for her brother to crash when he got into
one of his scrapes, as he called them. Like getting evicted, or beaten up for
not paying a debt to the wrong people. She knew Mikey was a mess, but he was
her mess. And she wasn’t about to run away from her responsibilities, like
their mother had done.
Fiona was well
aware that Hayley was constantly rescuing her brother, and Hayley knew she
knew, but it was another one of those things they never discussed.
Hayley poured
a glass of wine, clicked on the television and curled up in her favorite spot.
It was an enormous wing chair, more suitable for a wrestler than a slender slip
of a girl who was all of five foot two with shoes on. She had paid thirty-two dollars
for the chair at one of the many charity thrift shops that dotted First Avenue,
and managed to get it home tied on top of a yellow cab. She had reupholstered it
herself in rich emerald-green velvet, the color of her eyes. When she had lived
at the shelter down the street, she had dreamed of having a real home one day, and
a special chair. Now she had both.
She was later than
usual, and Luke’s news show was almost over. She watched him every night. At
the end of every broadcast, he looked into the camera and said, “I’m Luke
Thompson and I wish you a goodnight.” She liked to fantasize that he was
talking only to her.
“I wish you
goodnight too, Luke,” she said to the screen.
She froze the
frame and studied his face. His dark hair was prematurely greying at the temples,
but it only served to make him look sexier, if that was possible. He had grey eyes
with thick lashes, but he was all man, cut from the same cloth as old-time
movie stars like Clark Gable. She tried to fathom what his home was like, who
he would have dinner with tonight, and who he loved.
She hadn’t
seen him in person for more than five years. When he called her to say he was
getting an award, and would she like to organize the party for him, it took almost
an hour for her to stop trembling after she’d hung up. Life had made her tough,
but there was something about Luke Thompson that made her knees turn to jelly…when
she was eight. And now at thirty.
“Having a
drink with your lover, I see.”
Hayley almost
jumped out of her chair.
Mikey was
standing in the doorway of the bedroom, watching her intently.
“Mikey! You
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