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16
The restaurant was open to the outside with seating on the beach, but the weather was cool enough that only a few stragglers accepted those tables. Most preferred to eat inside, then walk out for a picture.
Ismay sat with Bastian at one of the best tables, which had warmthanda view—and she knew it was because the maître d’ had recognized Bastian, who’d also slipped him a few bills. Remy did the same type of thing. He expected the very best wherever they went, but it wasn’t quite so easy to obtain preferential treatment in LA, where there were a lot of rich and famous people. On Mariners, his family’s name and wealth made more of a difference.
Bastian ordered a whiskey and then bluefin tuna. The waiter said it was unusual to have tuna this early in the season, so Bastian tried to convince her to order it, too, but she got a seared scallop appetizer with butternut squash puree and a mojito.
“Are you sure you don’t want anything else?” Bastian asked as they surrendered their menus.
“No. I’m not hungry.”
“Well, save room for dessert. This is a celebration.”
“Of what?” she asked in surprise.
“My reformation,” he teased. “What else?”
His self-deprecation could be disarming, but Ismay was still wary. “I have to admit, I’m starting to like you better.”
“I knew you would.” He laughed. That he could turn on the charm so easily begged the question—why didn’t he make the effort more often? And what had finally convinced him to try with her?
“So...tell me about you and Remy,” he said.
“What about us?” she asked.
“How’d you meet? What attracted you to him? How are you still together despite his neglect while he’s studying? And when do you plan to get married?”
Since she lived with Remy, she knew the two brothers didn’t speak very often. They’d never gotten along, preferred to avoid each other. But they’d traveled to Vale and Italy together since Ismay had been with Remy. Certainly, Remy must’ve mentioned her. Or at least some of what he’d told his parents should’ve filtered through. “You don’t know any of this?”
“I’d like to hear it from your perspective.”
She leaned back as the waiter delivered her mojito and his whiskey served “up.”
“We met at the school library. I don’t know why he sat down next to me, but—”
“Quit being so modest,” he broke in. “You have to know why any single man would sit next to you. It’s obvious to everyone else.”
She felt herself blush. Now he was lavishing her with compliments to the point she was embarrassed they still flattered her. “Well, I guess he found me attractive. And then he struck up a conversation and returned the next day and the day after until, a few days later, he asked me out.”
“Where’d he take you on your first date?”
“To a fancy place called APL Restaurant on Hollywood Boulevard. He said Jake Gyllenhaal and other celebrities had been spotted there.”
She’d told Bo that Remy’s money had nothing to do with her attraction to him, but that wasn’t entirely true. She wasn’t after his money, but there was something about the confidence money could give—the safety and security—that helped her relax. Her parents had to stretch every dollar, especially while she was growing up, so it was a relief to have more than enough, even if it she could only enjoy it through someone who was close to her. Remy liked good food, fine wine, and doing fun things, and shared all of that with her.
“Why haven’t you joined for any of the family trips he’s invited you on?” Bastian asked.
“There’ve only been two, and they both fell on holidays.”
He looked confused. “When you were out of school...”
“Yes, but that was also when I’d promised my own family I’d be home.”
He took a sip of his whiskey. “So you’re loyal, even if it means missing Europe or a fabulous ski trip to Vale...”
“You could put it that way, I guess. I didn’t want to disappoint my parents. These days, I rarely get to see them and my siblings.” She didn’t volunteer that she already felt slightly disconnected from her family since leaving the religion that was such a big part of their lives. She didn’t want to do anything to separate herself further.
“What do they think of you spending the summer on Mariners?”
