Page 45

I KNOW WHAT BOYS LIKE

VANESSA

O h, dear Lord, when will this end?

She couldn’t help it. Vanessa kept checking the large face of the clock on the wall, even though she was supposed to be relaxing and enjoying her pore-cleansing mud bath at L’Hotel Li’s spa on the top floor.

Zoe had insisted that they have a Girl’s Spa Day while the guys were out at the racetrack, so here she was, doing anything but relaxing while Zoe prattled on and on about every fucking thing she did in her daily routine.

There were two other women in the spa, but they left with baleful looks cast in Zoe’s and her direction.

“So much for peace and quiet,” she heard one murmur to the other.

Zoe seemed oblivious to the women’s complaints as they went, and to the fact that Vanessa had stopped responding to her.

Vanessa let her keep talking. If Zoe didn’t seem to understand the social graces, it wasn’t a shocker.

She’d lost her mother pretty young. Her father wasn’t much of a talker from the few times Vanessa had been around him.

Like Vanessa, Zoe hadn’t had a ton of girlfriends.

The few she did have were more of that “mean girl” set, who thought getting smashed and calling each other sluts was how you did friendships.

They’d been unbearable to be around at Zoe and Bobby’s wedding.

Vanessa couldn’t decide if it was a good thing or a bad thing when Zoe lost touch with them when she moved up to Chappaqua.

Recognizing a little of that loneliness for girlfriends in herself, Vanessa cut her slack.

Maybe too much slack. So instead of telling her to shut up or trying to have a genuine conversation, Vanessa zoned out, reveling in the blissful memories of last night’s show and the excellent loving that came after.

When she brushed her fingertips along her skin, it was that slow, tickling feather or Santino’s hands, reshaping her like clay into a new version of herself.

“Breastfeeding…hair appointments…KitchenAid appliances…marble-topped island. The marble was the perfect temperature…. from-scratch dough… Mandarin, although I’m thinking of switching it up to Hindu to honor the Indian side of my family…

sew saris with gold thread, real gold… water intake alarm…

weighted Kegel routine…keep that thang tight for Bobby… ”

Even zoned out, the snippets she heard of Zoe’s days sounded completely exhausting. Like her life was a perfection treadmill, and she was determined to speed it up even faster. Vanessa tried going inward again but unfortunately traces of her discomfort at Zoe’s stream of consciousness followed her.

“Ugh, my boobs are hard as rocks and I’ve been drinking like a stank fish.

I need to pump and dump when I get back to the room.

Anything for the babies.” Her laughter was airy but had taken on an edge.

“What about you and Da Brat? I hope you’re using protection.

Don’t tell me you’re letting him fuck you bareback? ”

This chick.

Now Vanessa was fully checked back in after that comment.

“You should be careful. He looks like he can go a few times in one night and pound you full of that stuff,” Zoe murmured.

Vanessa was about to inquire why she kept commenting on the sex she and Santino might be having, but she kept a lid on her mouth and her temper. They had till Saturday morning to keep the fragile peace and then they’d maintain a happy distance for a while back in New York.

“Anyway,” Zoe continued in the silence, determined not to get the hint, “it would be a mistake for you to get pregnant for him now, even though the clock is ticking. You’ve got to make partner soon before the chance disappears.

You know they don’t like older women in the workplace.

The discrimination is fucked up, but that’s how it is.

I read this article online where you can get your eggs frozen until you’re ready to use them.

That way you won’t feel forced to get back together with Santino now just so you can have one. ”

The spa was soothing, with soft, clean sheets and towels and a beautiful skylight allowing peaceful light in overhead. But Vanessa’s face was tightening with every fucking word that came out of Zoe’s mouth. Soothing where?

“I’m not attempting to get knocked up, but thanks for the advice,” she mumbled.

Then what the fuck was she doing?

“I’m just saying, Vanessa. We worry about you.” Funny how her worry came out sounding more like smarmy condescension. “We want you to find a good man and settle down, just not with him . You could do so much better —”

“Okay, I’m done,” Vanessa muttered. She struggled to escape the mud bath, nearly tumbling out as the muck sucked at her knees and ankles while Zoe took the cucumbers off her eyes and gawked at her. “I’m going to shower off.”

“Wait for me,” Zoe called, her feet skidding on the bottom of her own tub as she tried to get out. “I thought we’d go for a jog in Mont Royal Park, and find a place for lunch. Girls’ Day, yay!”

“Girls’ Day, no,” Vanessa snapped. She wrapped a towel around herself, not caring if it got ruined with the mud. She stopped, panting with her hand out to ward Zoe off. “Look. I haven’t had a minute to myself since I got to Montreal. I need a little downtime. I’m gonna go take a walk or something.”

“I can come. My French is better than yours. I can speak for us,” Zoe said, sudden anxious lines appearing around her eyes.

“I don’t need an interpreter, Zoe. Almost everyone here speaks English. I’ll see you later.”

“Okay. I’ll go jog by myself and then maybe go for a swim at my hotel. Their pool is so much bigger than the one here and it looks cleaner…”

Vanessa escaped while Zoe was still chatting away, to whom she didn’t know and didn’t care. There she was complaining about Virgil’s pool when she wasn’t even a paying guest. Any fucking thing to make what Vanessa had look poor in comparison.

She was just about to step into the shower stall when a voice halter her with, “Hi, Vanessa.” It was Ling, with a towel wrapped around her pale, freshly showered body.

Her black hair was still wet. She looked like a completely different person without makeup.

Not worse, just different and still pretty.

Ling whispered, “Was that Zoe in there?” with a conspiratorial twinkle in her warm brown eyes.

“Yes,” Vanessa whispered back. “I’m trying to get out of here before she can come after me.”

The other woman giggled, putting her hand over her mouth to hold in the sound. “I’m so glad you said that. I didn’t want to be the one. She seems to like complaining.”

“Yes,” Vanessa confirmed with feeling. “Were you with Virgil?” She gestured to their surroundings.

“Oh no. I did come hoping he would be free for lunch, but he’s so busy.

” Ling rolled her eyes and grinned, shifting from foot to foot.

“I decided to have a swim before I go back to work. It’s not too far from here.

I’ll eat at my desk as usual.” She paused, her head to the side while sizing Vanessa up.

“But I can wait for you if you’d like to have a quick coffee down the street. If you don’t have other plans.”

“Coffee would be great.”

“Okay. I’ll be in the lobby when you’re ready.”

Despite the decidedly unrelaxing time she’d had with Zoe, Vanessa had to admit her skin felt amazing after the mud bath and the steamy shower.

Too bad she couldn’t have relaxed and truly enjoyed the entire experience.

If only Zoe had kept her mouth shut. If only she had stood firm and told her she would rather have gone to the spa alone.

She’d meant it when she said she’d like to spend some time alone.

A good introvert functioned best after a battery recharge.

Still, she was curious about Ling. She wanted to know what sort of woman could capture the attention of a fun-loving guy like Virgil and apparently, the obvious interest of an otherwise staid and faithful man like her brother.

A bit later, dressed in her puffy-sleeved goldenrod shirt and slouchy bell-bottom jeans, Vanessa found Ling in the lobby right where she’d said she’d be. Ling was in a button-down no-nonsense blouse and pencil skirt, her face made up again and ready for work.

Ling kissed her cheek, and they took off. The air outside smelled like oncoming rain, but the skies were clear with only a few fat milk-white clouds. As they walked, they remarked on the concert and what Ling’s musical tastes were.

“Metal,” she said simply, making Vanessa’s eyes widen.

“Oh, I love this shop.” She pointed at a cute boutique they were passing called Lula’s.

“I buy a lot of things here. Virgil told me we’re going to the casino tonight.

You don’t have to get really dressed up, but I like wearing something nice when I go.

You should stop in there if you have time today.

Wish I could shop with you but work-work-work. ”

They reached the café she’d mentioned and went in to order their drinks and light snacks.

Vanessa had to have another croissant but with chocolate this time, while Ling requested a bagel.

The Montreal variety, Vanessa discovered, was lighter and sweeter than its New York cousin.

Delicious…but she still wanted the croissant.

Once seated, they each arranged their goods on the table and commenced eating.

“Before I came up here, all I could think about was eating croissants,” Vanessa said, looking at her chocolate-chipped treat. “I have had at least two a day. I can’t get enough of them. So buttery and flaky and rich.”

Ling grinned. “Don’t tell my Parisian friends back home, but I do love Montreal’s more.”

“You’re from Paris originally?”

“Yes. I was born there. I moved here to go to McGill. My parents are from Taipei. That’s how we know Virgil’s family. We all go way back.” She ate more of her bagel, her eyes resting on Vanessa’s face. “What about you and your family? You’re from New York.”