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“I need to go” He pulled the cloth napkin from his lap, dropped it on the table, and eyed my barely touched salad “Feel free to stay and finish your lunch I’ll have Patrick put it on my tab”

My pulse skyrocketed as an to close “Vance, wait Can we at least try?”

He ignoredhis glance down on ood Jillian kept you a secret from me”

“She didn’t,” I said “Where do you think I got your number?”

His smile only turned up the corners of his lips, but it made his eyes shine with hty days”

I pressed out a s

If I hadfrom me a lot sooner than that

FOUR

VANCE

It seemed like all of Cape Hill had turned out for Jillian’s memorial service today, and yet somehow there were even more people at theIt’d been three weeks since she’d gone , but people acted like it had been months

Jillian would have liked the service The speeches were touching and heartfelt Memories were shared and tears shed One of her cousins drew out a h from the mourners when she revealed seven-year-old Jillian had snuck down after bedtime to watch TV and landed on Jurassic Park She’d had to sleep with the light on for weeks afterward

It was loud in the clubhouse event space which sometimes served as a ballroouessed they’d coled with each other, talking and laughing and occasionally grabbing an appetizer from the silver trays that waitstaff circulated

Cape Hill’s elite used any opportunity to climb the status ladder, strike deals, or make power , I thought this was the way of the world, but one, one of their ownand they didn’t care The jovial atmosphere left an acrid taste in lass to try to wash it out