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“Lily, are you kidding me?!”
“Sorry, I couldn’t get rid of him after a downward dog pose that took an unexpected turn.” She bursts out laughing.
“That’s great, but get him out of here before I take care of it myself… and you end up getting thrown out with him!”
“Jeez, your chakras are completely blocked today, Alma! I feel like your vital energy isn’t flowing properly…”
“All I’m asking for is to be left in peace when I get home from work. You can do whatever you like during the day. Invite all the Italians in the neighborhood if that’s what you want, and practice every position that exists, but in the evening, I just want some quiet at home.”
“Ah, so Vadim has been up to his old tricks again?” She looks at me like a mom who has her moody teenage daughter all figured out.
“Lily, don’t push me. I’m this close to throwing all your rainbow-colored junk out the window!”
“You’re starting to act more and more like a certain Edward Lancaster, you know?”
“Lil’…”
“Alright, alright. I’ll get rid of Vittorio. Man, you can be so uptight sometimes!”
“Find your own apartment!” I yell, as she turns her back on me.
“Yes, Dad!”
“And a job!”
She spins on her heel in the hallway, hands on her hips and eyes narrowed, pretending to be offended. “I already have a job: being your punching bag! Oh, and your stylist! And your interior decorator!”
“Professional chaos-maker isn’t a job, Lily, darling.”
She laughs and flips me off.
13
Alma
Locked in my bedroom, the only scrap of space I’ve managed to keep for myself, I embark on a movie marathon. Alone in front of my screen, I try to forget the chaos surrounding me by watching some great classics I already know by heart but haven’t seen in years. Gattaca, Jaws, and Forbidden Games prove to be just what I need. Nothing like mixing genres to remind me how much I love movies—all kinds of movies. Nothing but movies.
When Vittorio finally leaves, Lily knocks sheepishly on my door, wishing me good night and apologizing for the last few days. But the respite is short-lived.
“Hey, Almie, would you mind if I invited someone over tomorrow? He’s just a friend… A Japanese chef. He really wants to teach me how to make sashimi. It’s an art, you know? It’s very good for the soul. And I promise he’ll be gone by the time you get home!”
Yeah, right.
It’s been two days. Lily and Hiro are inseparable, my kitchen has become an all-you-can-eat Japanese buffet, and the chef and his sous-chef have decided to take up residence here. I’m almost relieved to head off to work every morning.
I’ve barely passed through the turnstile of the Champs-Élysées building, when Clarence pounces on me.
“She’s here! God Save the Queen!” jokes my overexcited coworker.
“Kate Monroe?” I venture, not really sure if that’s good news or bad.
“Yes, she arrived with King a few minutes ago. That woman looks like she means business. There’s going to be no messing around! But she’s hot for her age!”
“We should ban that expression from our vocabulary, Clarence. Beauty shouldn’t be associated with youth; it makes aging women invisible. And it reinforces the idea that women have to fight their whole lives to stay young, thin, and fresh, without a single gray hair… It’s exhausting.”
“You’re right, sorry. My mom says growing older is a privilege, not a flaw.”
“She sounds like a wise woman! And this old lady, Kate Monroe, is what, forty years old?” I say, laughing.
