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Chapter One

Sophie

You know those people who Lady Luck always seeets a pro up to work? Who wins that awesome raffle prize? The person who finds a hundred-dollar bill on the ground? Yeah, that’s not me And it’s probably not most of us Lady Luck is a selective bitch

But today? Lady Luck has finally turned her gaze upon ratitude Because today, I’ve been upgraded to first class for , and who knohy they picked iddy, I practically dance to my seat

And, oh, what a beautiful seat it is, all plush crea it’s fake wood for safety reasons Not that it matters It’s a little self-contained pod, co and shoes, a bar, an actual reading lamp, and a widescreen TV

I sink into the seat with a sigh It’s aseat, sectioned off frolass panel I can loith the touch of a button Or the two seats can becolossy panel that sections off the aisle It reminds me of an old-fashioned luxury train compartment

I’ive in to teoodies they’ve leftof skin care products Next I play around withclick The screen freezes an inch above the divider and refuses to rise again

Cringing, I snatch, and everything looks delicious Oh o back to the cattle-roundup, meat-or-chicken-in-a-tin hell that is economy class after this?

I’lass of white hen I hear the man’s voice It’s deep, crisply British, and very annoyed

“What is that wo in my seat?”

My neck tenses, but I don’t look up I’ froers in here aside from me

And he is wrong, wrong, wrong I’ain, and then finally sat down I know I’ot aith it Hey, I was as surprised as anyone when I went to the ticket counter, only to be infor back to coach now

My fingers grip the h it I’ht attendant’s response is too low to hear, but his isn’t

“I expressly purchased two seats on this flight Two For the simple purpose that I would not be seated next to anyone else”