Page 40 of Perfect Composition

“Exactly, which is why I’m in charge of responding to all of those inquiries. We have a formal letter that goes out which Carys drafted for just such a circumstance.” He toasts his wife, who assumes a modest look.

“I knew there was a reason I paid you a ton of money, Carrie.” I lift my drink to her in a salute as well.

“No, you pay me a ton of money for innumerable reasons, Becks. For this, you pay David. Go on, honey. Tell him,” she urges.

David takes a sip of his drink before he notes, “We received an inquiry in the last few days from a different email address on every single one of our recommendations.”

“What’s so…”

“Except yours.”

My body freezes in the process of lifting my drink to my lips. “Really? Isn’t that interesting. Does it have anything to do with my place being trashed?”

Carys shakes her head, making my hackles rise. I demand, “How do you know?”

“Because I contacted our friendly investigator myself when David brought it to my attention.” Her face takes on a fierce countenance. “I don’t like coincidences.” Carys puts her drink down with a snap. “Now, I can think of only one reason why someone would want to validate the law firm where Beckett Miller is listed as a client—one who gives us a glowing review. Especially when we’ve taken on no new business in the last two months.”

My heart begins thundering in my chest. “No new business, eh?”

“None.” She tips her head back to bestow a beaming smile up at her husband. “Make his day a whole lot better, my love.”

“If I must.” David sweeps a hand over his wife’s hair before sharing, “The investigator traced all the emails back to the same IP—one in Texas.”

My hand is shaking so hard I have to put the glass I’m holding down. My eyes dart back and forth between the two of them. “You’re kidding.”

“There is no way I’d even come close to joking about this, Becks. It appears there are people who are very protective of that girl,” Carys informs me.

“I can’t believe it. I just can’t wrap my mind around it. After so long without hearing anything, to be given this enormous lifeline.” I surge to my feet and hold out my hand. “Thank you, David.”

He cautions me, “This doesn’t confirm anything. Don’t go putting the cart before the horse.”

I nod, but inside I’m already making mental adjustments to my life.

My heart.

Kensington has to be my daughter. She just has to be. Now if I can just figure out why Paige never told me.

PAIGE

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

If you haven’t checked out Saks’ new line this year, do so. DJ Kensington was spotted shopping there. Her edgy style screams Stella McCartney with a twist of McQueen layered with Free People. It’s young, vibrant, and in-your-face—just like she is.

— Eva Henn, Fashion Blogger

I take an inordinate amount of time dressing. How ironic Austyn and I found a dress at Saks with what our shopping assistant called “the Kensington stand collar.”

This Kensington sure as hell is here in New York to take a stand, all right.

I smooth my opaque thigh-highs one last time before slipping on a pair of simple leather pumps with a distinctive red sole. I finish the look with a pair of diamond studs and my gold signet ring. After I slide the heavy ring on my right hand, I give myself a head-to-toe perusal. “You’ll do, Paige.”

“You’ll more than do, Mama.” Austyn’s standing in the doorway of my bedroom. The only thing that remotely resembles my outfit are the red soles of her Christian Louboutins—an early Christmas gift—and her matching gold signet ring. Though for her, the skinny hombre leggings beneath the uber-short, sheer shift dress work. And it shows its own kind of power when combined with the lift and twists of color in her hair.

“So will you, my darling.” I move over to my briefcase and slide all of the paperwork I carried with me from Texas into it. Picking it up, I step up to her and ask one final time, “Are you sure you want to do this?” I don’t want Austyn to look back and regret.

There have been far too many of those.

Her hand comes up and grips my wrist. “Mama, no matter what, I’ll have my music. Even if the lot of them get together to blackball me, nothing and no one can take that away from me.”