Asha laughed. “He’s turned your children into walking encyclopedias.”
“He really has.”
Asha smiled. “And what can I say about you,chére? You’ve always been generous, charitable and compassionate. And you don’t have a materialistic bone in your body. As we both know,” she said wryly, “your frugality has driven me absolutely mad at times. Remember our power struggles over your salary and your corner office and your clothing allowance?Mon Dieu.You opposed me at every turn.”
Samara laughed. “I’m already earning way more than my executive counterparts at other major companies. The clothing allowance seemed like overkill, an unnecessary extravagance.”
“Nonsense,” Asha scoffed mildly. “You’re my daughter and my vice president of marketing. As the face of House of Dubois, you represent my brand and my legacy everywhere you go. I can’t have you parading around in bargain-basement clothes.”
Samara gave a mock shudder. “The horror.”
“Mock all you want, but you know I’m right. Appearance is everything in our business, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Asha chuckled softly. “Anyway, darling, the point I was trying to make is that you and Marcus are instilling character in your children and raising them to be responsible, productive adults who will understand the value of hard work and discipline. So let them be kids. Let them enjoy all the Christmas presents provided by their tremendously accomplished parents. Greed may be a sin, but success is a virtue. Never apologize for being able to give your children the very best in life.”
Samara let out a deep sigh and nodded. “I hear you.”
“I hope you do.” Asha smiled down at her. “So how was the holiday party?”
“It was great. Everyone had a wonderful time.”
“That’s good.”
Samara smiled warmly. “Derek and Hayden are engaged.”
“Really?”
“Yup. He proposed to her yesterday before the party.”
“How lovely,” Asha said, sounding pleased. “It’s about time.”
“What do you mean? They’ve only been dating for three years.”
“And I guarantee you those three years felt like an eternity to Hayden,” Asha asserted. “Marcus proposed just two weeks after he met you. It was three weeks for Michael and Reese.”
Samara grinned. “Those were exceptions, not the norm.”
“Perhaps,” Asha conceded humorously. “But Michael’s college friends aren’t getting any younger. Goodness, they’ll be old and gray before they’re all married off.”
Samara laughed. “A few of them have already gone gray. As for them eventually settling down, better late than never, right?”
“I suppose.” Asha was smiling as she stroked Samara’s hair. “I predict that Liam will come back with a Kenyan bride, Jagger’s going to marry one of those exotic Chinese models he’s been over there dating. And Percy’s coming back with some Silicon Valley blonde.”
Samara chuckled. “Your predictions always come true—”
“I know. It’s a gift.”
“—but he’d betternotmarry some blonde.”
“Who? Percy?”
“Yes. He’ll break Lexi’s heart if he marries anyone other than her sister.”
“But isn’t Summer the one who accepted a promotion at Sotheby’s and moved to London?” Asha challenged, sounding amused. “She wasn’t willing to leave New York and return home to Atlanta to be with Percy, but she jumped at the chance to go to London. I certainly don’t blame her, of course. She’s young and beautiful and ambitious, and it was an opportunity of a lifetime. There’s no law stating that women always have to uproot their lives for marriage the way you, Reese and Taylor did. Summer obviously weighed her options and decided that her career was more important than exploring a relationship with Percy, and that’s perfectly okay.”
“I totally agree,” Samara said, “but I think it was more complicated than that. Lexi thinks something happened between them during the weekend they spent together. She tried to pry it out of Summer, but all she would say was that Percy was a great guy who simply wasn’t built for monogamy.”
“Hmm,” Asha murmured thoughtfully. “Interesting.”
Samara sighed. “And now Summer’s dating that gorgeous Egyptian tycoon who showed up at an auction one day and bid, like, a gazillion dollars on a rare blue diamond that belonged to some Egyptian queen.”
