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After a moment, she nodded “Okay”
Just then, Da his wife’s hand and waist in his own “Excuse me”
I backed off, letting hirabtoward me already
“Guests are arriving,” she said “Let’s go light the chandelier”
Oh, that’s right
“Jett,” I called, waving hter toward me “Indie? Finn?”
Guests began drifting in, Rika and Michael standing near the door to greet people as coat checkers took the ladies’ wraps and gloves Ereen and her hair pulled into a low ponytail and curls falling down her back, circled the chandelier, handing out markers and basil leaves to all the kids
Spreading out on the foyer floor, guests moved around them to watch as the kids wrote their wishes for the new year ahead on the leaves in silverthem on fire with a candle from the chandelier
“Why do we burn it?” Gunnar asked as Dag dropped his ashen leaf into the copper bowl Emmy held
“It releases the wish into the universe,” Indie explained
“Well, I wished for fame last year,” her sister retorted, “and it didn’t co”
I s all the kids, one by one, rise up and toss their burning leaves into the dish
“It hasn’t come true yet,” Winter chimed in
Will started the ritual about eight years ago A new tradition A way to keep cere fun for the kids to remember and maybe pass on to their own children someday
My gaze stopped at Mads, seeing hi it, he pulled it back Tucking it inside his suit jacket, he turned to help Octavia, steadying her hand as she touched the leaf to the flame
A figure appeared on the stairs, and I looked up, seeing Athos descend in an extreoith a low-cut V neckline that I’d have a hard tihter hen she was seventeen
Her face glittered with gray and whitedown her back with a pair of s her look like soht’s Dream
Alex had taught her how to do her makeup when she was ten, but unfortunately, Alex wasn’t here to suffer Michael’s wrath tonight She and Aydin were spending the holidays with his fa Micah and Rory, ere in Fiji
Misha and Ryen were invited, but I doubted they’d show
Michael walked over, turning to keep his eyes on her as she passed “You’re wearing that to the lock-in?”
“To the ball”
“We’ve had this conversation,” he argued as she kept walking “Twenty-one and over, Athos”