CHAPTER ONE #2
I stood and went over to my window, taking in the vast expanse of grass that met with the line of the woods edging our estate.
It was all privilege packed into a shiny box for the world to admire and aspire to have.
A landscape designed by a garden designer from Paris stretched from the pool to the workshop shed, flaunting neatly trimmed flower bushes, hedges, and trees of various colors and shapes.
I didn’t feel anything when I looked at it.
But then again, we didn’t truly appreciate what we had in abundance, right?
A flock of birds rose high in the sky, and I followed their pattern, unseeing.
Three years had passed since I last saw Zach. Last I heard, he quit school and left the trailer park where he’d lived with his mother, and no one knew where he was.
Guilt filled my chest, and I pressed my hand over my heart.
He would never get to hear how sorry I was.
Not that words could do much. I’d forever marked him when that fire burned his skin, and I was sure he would remember it for the rest of his life, just as I would.
The fire spreading across his skin. The screams filling my ears.
The pain he must’ve felt. The agony on his face—
I gasped for breath, forcing myself to shove all these thoughts and guilt aside.
I pushed myself away from the window and headed to my bathroom to take a shower, stepping over the Louboutins I’d discarded by the bed last night.
I didn’t remember how or when I got home last night, except that I just dropped into my bed without even bothering to take off my dress or makeup.
Now I left the dress along with my underwear in a pile on the floor and stepped into the shower, letting the hot water wash away everything.
By the time I dried my hair and finished my usual morning skin routine, my headache had lessened, but only after I took aspirin and drank two glasses of water was I ready to take on the day.
I didn’t want to bother with makeup, but Mom’s voice was always in my head, telling me everything we did sent a message.
Not making sure I looked my best would mean weakness.
Also, she never wanted me to stop reminding Lana and Aurora that I was more beautiful than they were and outdid them in every way—looks, brains, status, and power.
So I put on full makeup and got dressed, settling for a top that revealed my belly button and jean shorts.
Only a few weeks were left until summer started, but it was already very hot and sunny.
Lana, Aurora, and I had planned to go on a trip to Europe to experience “our last summer of freedom” as we called it, but I had scheduled ad shoots, and Lana was busy running her charity organization.
She’d started it last year as a PR stunt when she was caught driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol, and the tabloids got wind of it.
Seeing that all three of us were heirs to our families’ fortunes and were seen as sort of local public figures, we were always in the spotlight and had to think about our public image.
Not that I cared whether we could go on that trip or not. As far as I was concerned, the less time I had to spend around Aurora and Lana, the better. We were going to separate colleges anyway, so I wouldn’t have to put up with them as much as I did now.
I headed to the kitchen to grab something to eat before Lana and Aurora arrived, when I heard Dad talk to some guy through the cracked door of his study.
I caught the word “gardener,” and I remembered Dad saying he was going to interview someone for a gardening job today.
Our previous gardener retired last week, and Mom had already been complaining about how the lawn and garden looked untended.
I entered the kitchen and smiled at our housekeeper, Anna, who was on her way out. “Good morning.”
She chuckled, raising her brows at me. “Late night?”
“As always.”
Anna already knew this was usual for me. She’d worked for us for over fifteen years. In an ocean of fake people, Anna was an islet of good and integrity, never manipulating or treating people with hidden intentions. It helped knowing there were people like her when I was surrounded by vipers.
“Do you want me to fix you something?”
“Nah.” I opened the fridge and pulled out cheese, a patty, and a tomato, then grabbed a loaf of bread from the bread box on the counter. “Aurora and Lana are coming over later.”
“I’ll have the refreshments ready. Do Miss Sanford and Miss Devereux want to have something in particular?”
“Don’t sweat it, Anna. Whatever you make will be fine. Thanks.”
She smiled. “As you wish.” She left the kitchen.
I made quick work of my sandwich and ate it at the counter before I started to head back to my room to change into a swimsuit.
I could do a few laps in the pool before Aurora and Lana arrived.
But I had barely made it to the kitchen door when Dad came through the back door with a guy, who I assumed was the one Dad had interviewed in his study earlier, following closely.
“Blair. Just in time,” Dad said. “Tom, this is my daughter, Blair. Blair, meet our new gardener, Tom Ryde. He’ll start tomorrow.”
“It’s nice to meet you—” I started, but then the guy stepped from behind Dad, and every part of me went very still.
No, this couldn’t be real. He couldn’t be here.
I blinked, expecting the image to change, but he was still there, as real as he could be, and I felt my whole world shifting.
After three years and all the times I’d searched for him in other guys’ faces, I finally got to see Zach Curtis again.