Page 130

Kiki muttered something and dove back into her phone.

“Apart from the table drama”—Tarquin pulled his gaze away from Leia—“yesterday must’ve been ace, meeting all the Equinox Ten—”

“Fat fanboys with B.O. and acne?” Kiki cut Tarquin off, rolling her eyes as she looked up. “No, it was ghastly! And don’t get me started on their sad cosplay attempts or ridiculous questions about lasers and space bombs. It was all terribly depressing.”

“And handsomely paid,” said Tarquin.

“Contractual obligation! Anyway, enough! I don’t want to talk about it anymore!” She knocked back her fresh glass of champagne.

“You brought it up,” Tarquin mumbled, widening his eyes at Leia. “Change of topic, then. Leia just held her first fashion show in London! Got tons of buzz.”

Lowering her champagne, Kiki left a gooey crescent of pink gloss on the rim. “Oh, I know. You’re ‘the girl who makes clothes out of garbage’. What’s that called? Dumpster diving?”

That’s a new one! Leia chuckled.

Tarquin delivered a cutting glare. “For Christ sake! She doesn’t sew with garbage!”

“I don’t dumpster dive, either. Although, maybe I should? Might be fun.” Leia laughed, shrugging away the oddity of Kiki’s ridiculous comment. “My fashions are entirely upcycled, so I take unused fabric, old and damaged clothes, and use sustainable materials like hemp and organic cotton to create beautiful dresses, jackets—anything, really.”

Tarquin proudly nodded. “Leia is all about second chances, like I am with buildings.” He swung her hand reassuringly. “Just because something is old or broken doesn’t mean you toss it away, right?”

Kiki sighed. “Aww, how sweet. But wait…Leia, isn’t that what you did with Brooke? Simply tossed her away?”

WHAT?!

Leia’s stomach plummeted. How does she… ? Her eyes bulged before she could blink away the surprise. “Uh…” Smile fading, she reached up, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. “No, I don’t think that’s…how do you—”

“What am I missing?” asked Tarquin. “Who’s Brooke?”

“Darling, you don’t know?!” Kiki tsked, pointing with her phone. “Brooke is pretty important to Leia.”

Breaths lodged in Leia’s chest. “She was important.” Fuck! I DO NOT want to get into this here!

Tarquin scratched his temple, his gaze hopping between his mother and his girlfriend. “Leia, who is she?”

“Tarquin, I was going to tell you—”

“Going to?” Kiki feigned surprised indignation. “My god, you’ve obviously not told my son about the twins either!”

Shit! I should’ve told him. Why didn’t I tell him? Leia dipped her chin and let go of his hand, her arms folding protectively around her souring stomach.

Tarquin froze. “Twins?!” He blinked slowly, leaning in. “Leia, you have children?”

A lump knotted her throat. Shaking her head, she glanced up. All the joy had drained from Tarquin’s face. “Your mom’s taking everything out of context. I can explain, but not here—”

“Explain how? By lying?!” Kiki elbowed her son. “See? These money-hungry trollops latching onto you boys—I’m SICK of it! I had a bad feeling about this cheater.”

Tarquin flinched. “What?!”

Shit. Leia closed her eyes.

“I called an old friend in Manhattan,” said Kiki, scrolling through her phone. “He’s a fashion PR, knows everyone.”

And everyone’s business, I bet. Anger blazed through Leia as she dug her nails into her sides. Kiki’s using my past as a battering ram, smashing me and Tarquin apart. She opened her eyes. Well, she’s messing with the wrong woman.

Leia broke her self-soothing hug and edged closer. “Tarquin, you know me.” She grasped his hand, her gaze imploring him to listen as she kept her voice low and controlled. “What she’s saying, whatever bullshit this PR person told her—it’s not what you think.”

“No?” Kiki sneered. “So, you’re going to deny that you spent three weeks in a mental institution last September?”