Page 108 of Joey

“Charlotte wasn’t…” He pauses, considers something. “Well, let’s be honest here. It’s possible motherhood is not one of her callings. And I do not for one moment think she is dead.”

“No?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “She left, Joey. She left.”

“So she faked her death?”

“Possibly,” he says. “Or alternatively, she just crashed the boat and someone picked her up and… and now she’s on the other side of the world drinking, or partying, or fucking people.”

“You don’t seem to have a high opinion of her,” I say.

“Do you?”

“I don’t really have an opinion of her at all, to be honest. I’m not here for her. I’m here for Maisy.” He opens his mouth to say something but I continue before he can speak. “I wanted to stay. I’d like to make that clear before this conversation goes any further. She had another boyfriend when Maisy was born. She wasn’t interested in me or my offer to take care of them. She changed her number and disappeared. So I bowed out gracefully. If I had known…”

I let the sentence trail off.

“Understood.” Conner sighs. He pulls his phone out and taps the screen. “I’m having her governess bring her down now.”

“Thank you,” I say. And to my surprise, I mean it.

He puts his phone away and says, “I’m not going to let you see her alone. Not this time. And you’re not going to introduce yourself as her father. Not yet.”

“Fair,” I say.

“You’re Joey, her mother’s friend. And you’re here for her baby sister’s party.”

“OK. What’s her name?”

“Malinda.” And he smiles when he says it.

“Nice name,” I say.

He nods. “She’s a nice little girl. They both are. And they’re close. As close as two sisters at that age can be.”

“She’s turning three?”

“Yes.”

“That’s some party you have planned.”

“I know what you’re thinking about this place.”

“What am I thinking?”

“All the things everyone thinks. But there are a lot of ugly things in this world. All we have here? All we do here? It’s a little reprieve from that ugliness. You have money, I know that. But your lifestyle is relatively normal. Maybe even almost… average. That always surprised me, so maybe you don’t really get it? Maybe that world I live in doesn’t touch you?”

I can’t stop the laugh. “I don’t think many people would agree with you about my lifestyle.”

“No. And if I were talking about Johnny”—he eyes me carefully as he says my brother’s name—“or Jesse, then… OK. They are more… radical with their lifestyles. Johnny and his little secrets. Jesse and his wild antics. But Joey Boston doesn’t fit, does he? Joey Boston is discreet. His secrets stay secret. His private life doesn’t find its way into the public’s perception. In fact, you don’t really have a public perception, do you?”

I shrug. “I’ve found my place in the world.”

“Yes,” he says, raising his eyebrows. “You certainly have.”

“What’s that mean?”

“Nothing derogatory. I don’t judge you.”