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After a stunned second, Jasmine reacted and engaged in surprisingly normal small talk while Ari watched with wide eyes. When they’d talked more in ten minutes than they had all three years of law school combined, Sloane turned to Ari.

“I was expecting pointy ears,” Sloane said, flashing a momentary smirk. “Do you want to dance? There’s one of those plexiglass covers over the pool. A little Sweet 16 circa 2005 for me, but I’m in the mood.”

“She loves dancing,” Jasmine said, shoving her hard from behind.

Sloane slipped her cool, elegant hand in hers and turned toward the tent’s exit. As she followed, Ari glanced back at Jasmine. She wasn’t sure whether to thank her or curse her.

Maybe a little of both.

Jasmine responded to her with two thumbs up before mouthing, just talk to her like a human person.

It was good advice Ari didn’t know she could take.

DANCING WITH ARWYN had been more fun than Sloane expected, and if not for her painfully tight leather pants, they might have gone on all night. Once she spotted a telescope on a secluded upper terrace, she couldn’t stop thinking about it.

“Come on,” Sloane said against Arwyn’s sweaty face. “I want to see something.”

Without hesitation, Arwyn followed her o the dance floor and into the house, which was packed with people.

Sloane couldn’t imagine this many strangers in her house,

although the look on her mother’s face alone might be worth it.

“Where are we going?” Arwyn asked when they left the chaos of the main floor and summited the flight of stairs.

Instead of responding, Sloane made a left down the hallway she guessed would lead to the right place. Following the sound of conversation, they found a quaint sitting room connecting to a balcony. A few people who graduated law school before she was born were none too pleased to have them cut through them to get outside. Sloane considered her excuse me enough and wished Arwyn hadn’t apologized.

“This is so beautiful,” Arwyn said as soon as they stepped outside. With the party below them and the clear, starry night above, it was perfect.

Sloane rested against the metal railing. “Absolutely gorgeous,” she said, her eyes fixed on Arwyn. Under the weight of her compliment Arwyn smiled, though it was obvious she’d really tried to resist it.

“Do you know how to use one of these?” Arwyn asked, motioning toward the large, white telescope pointed toward the sky.

“Do I look like I was a member of the astronomy club?”

“Isn’t that the reason you brought me up here?” she asked, striding toward the telescope before moving her sunglasses up to her forehead and bending down to look through the eyepiece.

“You never stop making assumptions, do you? Even after all this,” Sloane said before walking to the end of the balcony out of the immediate view of the party inside. She hoped Arwyn would follow but didn’t look back to confirm.

Instead, she enjoyed the cool breeze rushing over her sweaty scalp and tried to be in the moment without hope or expectation.

“What’s up with you?” Arwyn asked when she joined her at the far end of the balcony.

Before responding, Sloane slipped the sunglasses o Arwyn’s face. If she was going to do this, she didn’t want to be looking at the Hispanic Audrey Hepburn, no matter how good she looked in the costume.

In the silvery moonlight above and glow of lights below, Arwyn was stunning. The dark eye makeup was just enough to bring out the various shades of brown in her eyes she’d never noticed before. Rich ocher, dark umber, and the tiniest flecks of an almost copper tone.

“Are you okay? Did you have too many red carpets?”

Arwyn’s joke was dressed up in concern, but her eyes betrayed anxiety.

Sloane smirked, finding her way back to the moment.

“That’s cute that you think I can drink anything in these pants.”

Arwyn looked down at her vacuum-sealed outfit. “They say beauty is pain.”

“I’m sure there’s a better way to do this, but I’m just going to come out with it.” Sloane started, more aggressively than she intended. “I’m not cool with this shit we’re doing.”