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It was just an idea, a bad one, but something I thought might give me a chance to see him again.
"Okay. Well, thank you, Foster."
He nods and starts up his bike.
A ball of regret and sorrow collects in my throat as I watch him ride away. I didn't want him to leave angry.
I sigh and hike up the hill of the driveway.
Reality awaits.
Chapter 5 Hurricane
"I'm sorry we're not going to be able to make it. The tunnel is closed because of the hurricane." The DJ for my party sounds genuinely sorry, but that doesn't help my situation.
"Can you take a helicopter in?"
"Uh. Even if I could find one right now, the storm is moving toward land, and you'd be crazy to risk it."
"Okay. Okay. Thank you."
"Stay safe out there on the Sound."
I hang up on him and survey my family's house in the Hamptons. Less than half of the guests have arrived.
My father walks up with his disappointed glare on his face. "Milana. What the hell is wrong with you? Get some music playing right away."
"Yes, Dad."
When I suggested we cancel due to the storm, he wouldn't hear anything of it. He said there's always storm warnings to scare people. It never hits as hard as they say it will.
So, here I am. Forced to play music while the Titanic sinks.
"There's a stereo in the entertainment room," he says like it's obvious I should've thought of that. My dad has old-fashioned TVs and a vintage stereo receiver in there that I have never touched and have no idea how to make work.
"I'll try, Dad, but please go talk to the Sinclairs. I worked very hard to get them here, and they braved the storm to come."
He glances over at them with his nose up. "They're too artsy."
"They are influencers, and they'll donate generously to the charity. Please be nice to them. Others will follow their lead."
He grumbles and looks away from them. "Get some goddamn music playing right now, and stop telling me how to work a room."
I bite my lip to hide my anger. He disregards my opinions and all the effort I put into planning this because of his ego. He won't take any direction from me, and he ruins everything.
Following instructions, I march into the entertainment room and study the antique stereo. The knobs, meters, and weird letters on the big wooden box mean nothing to me. Pushing thePowerbutton causes the whole thing to light up. Good. Progress. Is there a stream music button? This thing is so old it probably doesn't even have Wi-Fi.
Oh, here's one that saysPlay. I press it even though I have no idea what will happen. I just need music!
"Near…Far…Wherever you are… " Celine Dion blasts from the speakers.
The guests look around confused, as if they expect the world-famous diva to actually appear and start singing live. Although a celebrity like that would not be unusual here, it's just an old cassette tape of my mother's. She used to listen to 80's love songs before she died.
A collective "ooh" floats up from the crowd as the outdoor pool flamingos and the catering tent take flight and sail away like Mary Poppins. This same caterer had an employee fall in the pool the last time they catered this event, and now they are dealing with another fiasco. They'll never work for us again.
The catering staff runs and jumps, trying to grasp the trays and plates before they fly away. One woman is holding a flailing giant flamingo in her arms like her job depends on it.
Oh, this is terrible.
