“Stash a few away for me for when I get up snacking in the middle of the night, and baby girl here will think you both are the best auntsever.”
“Don’t try to suck up,” I told Laurene. She batted her brown eyes at me, and already I was mentally contacting the baker to get an entire tray delivered to her house tomorrow morning.
Gigi chuckles, digging into the front of her dress, taking a hit of the suspect absinthe. She passed the bottle to me, and I balked at the warm feeling of the flask before she gave her cleavage a little push-up.
“Glad to help, big sis.” She swiped gloss over her lips. “Out of my way.”
Laurene and I looked at each other as Gigi pushed past us and headed straight for Mayor Castillo.
He watched her like a panther eyeing prey. A slow smile touched his face when she stopped, all hips and attitude. He had that kind of smile that saidI know exactly who you are.Gigi said something—too far away for me to hear—but it made Dante’s brow arch. He moved in slightly.
Laurene sighed beside me. “Tell me you’re seeing this.”
“Oh, I see it,” I muttered.
“I miss pâté,” then she looked at my glass. “I miss wine. Andsushi. I wish this baby would come out of me.”
I glanced at her, studying the familiar contours of her face. Laurene had always been striking—tall, with warm brown skin that glowed even more now stretched over high cheekbones, and a sharp jawline. Her long hair, dark and thick, spilled past her shoulders in soft waves, framing her face in a way that made her look regal.
But there was something different now.
The roundness of her stomach, the slight puffiness in her face. She was still my sister, but she wasn’t just Laurene anymore. She was someone’s mother.
“How did you do it, Lulu?” I said it without thinking. “Come back home after everything that happened?”
Laurene had always beentheLaurene King—perfect, admired, the one everyone gravitated toward without question. The first girl of the family. Erik, the hotshot, had his future laidout for him. And Gigi, well, Gigi had charm in excess, the kind of chaotic magnetism that made people want to be around her.
I’d learned to copy charm. Watched how Laurene tilted her head. How Gigi laughed at the right moment. I could mimic it, wear it like a dress. But it never fit.
Why couldn’t I be like them?
I didn’t need to beliked. That’s what I told myself. That was what people like Laurene were for. I was the mind, not the heart. I didn’t need the room to love me—just to follow my lead.
“It was tough.” Her eyes softened. “It was a struggle, but Lush was always home, even when I fought it.”
“But it’s always been a breeze for you,” I said. “After you left, Mama made me go to the galas and parties, but I couldn’t do it right. You always made these parties so much fun. All the guys wanted to dance with you, and the girls wanted to be like you.”
“It might’ve seemed like that,” she said. “Didn’t mean I was happy then.”
“But at least people noticed and cared about you,” I replied softly.
Laurene turned to me, her expression shifting—not defensive, not dismissive, justwatchful.
“Serena.” Her voice was quieter now. “What’s going on with you?”
I chose my words carefully. “It’s just…everything’s shifted.”
“Shifted?”
No. No.Immediately, I felt the resistance coil inside me, instinctual and unshakable. I didn’t do this. I didn’t share. I dealt with my emotions, neatly packaged them away, and kept moving forward.
“This is your baby shower. We shouldn’t be talking about this.” I wasn’t about to steal her shine.
“Hey,” Laurene said softly. “It’s okay. We can talk about it. I’m here for you, no matter what.”
I hesitated, my fingers tightening around the stem of my glass. The words were heavy, stuck in my throat. Admitting uncertainty felt like relinquishing the last bit of control I had left.
“I’ve just…lost sight of who I am, or who I thought I was supposed to be,” I said. “It’s scary, it’s not like me.”
