a sibling, but I’ve never been so lucky. I’ve known Carlton for several years now, but I’ve never seen him more excited than the day he discovered he had a sister. So here’s to the both of you—Carlton and Rachel. Brother and sister!”
“Here, here!” Nick cheered.
Carlton stood up next and declared, “First, I want to make a toast to Rachel. I’m glad you made it here safely, and I look forward to getting to know you and catching up on all the lost years. And to Colette—thank you for making this wonderful evening possible. I’m so glad you kicked my arse in gear and made me do this. Tonight I feel like I’ve gained not just a sister but a brother too. So here’s to Rachel and Nick! Welcome to China! We’re going to have a brilliant summer, aren’t we?”
Nick wondered what Carlton had meant by Colette “kicking his arse in gear,” but he said nothing for the moment. He looked over tenderly at Rachel, whose eyes brimmed with tears. This evening had turned out far better than he ever dared to dream.
* * *
*1 ACS Old Boys, all together now: “In days of yore from western shores, Oldham dauntless hero came…”
*2 See The O.C., season three. If you ask me, the show jumped the shark after its heroine, Marissa Cooper, played by the incomparable Mischa Barton, was (spoiler alert!) misguidedly killed off in a car accident.
5
CHARLIE
WUTHERING TOWERS, HONG KONG
“Mr. Wu? It’s 9:00 a.m. in Italy now,” Charlie’s executive assistant said, poking her head into his office.
“Thanks, Alice.” Charlie reached for his ultra-private phone line and called Astrid’s cell phone. She picked up after three rings.
“Charlie! Oh my God—thanks for calling me back.”
“Am I calling too early?”
“No, I’ve been up for hours. I guess you heard about last night?”
“Yes—I am so sorry—” Charlie began.
“No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said a thing to Isabel.”
“Nonsense—I’m the one who screwed up. I should have communicated better with my wife.”
“So you talked to her? Did you explain that my cousin Alistair was with us the whole time in California?”
Charlie paused for a few seconds. “I did. Don’t worry about it anymore.”
“Are you sure? I couldn’t sleep at all last night—I kept imagining that I had gotten you into trouble and that Isabel thought I was some philandering home wrecker. I was trying to find ways to contact her myself.”
“Everything’s fine. Once I explained how our California road trip was last-minute—that we all just happened to be there at the same time—she was fine.” He wondered how convincing he sounded.
“I hope you told her that the most romantic thing that happened was watching Alistair projectile vomit out the car window after stuffing down too many In-N-Out burgers.”
“I left that part out, but don’t worry—it’s all good,” Charlie said, trying to add a little laugh.
Astrid let out a deep sigh of relief. “I’m so glad. You know, I should have been more circumspect. After all, she was meeting me for the first time, and I am the woman who—” She paused, suddenly unsure of how to put it.
“You’re the woman who dumped her husband,” Charlie said matter-of-factly.
“Yes, that’s right. I hope she knows that we’re much better friends now than we ever could have been before. My God, we were a terrible couple,” Astrid said with a laugh.
“I think she realizes that now,” Charlie said cautiously. He desperately wanted to change the subject. “So how’s Venice? Where are you staying?”
“I’m staying with Domiella Finzi-Contini. Her family has the most spectacular palazzo near Santa Croce—I walked onto my balcony this morning and thought I had stepped into a Caravaggio. Do you remember Domiella from our London days? She was at LSE, but part of that whole crazy set that ran around with Freddie and Xan.”
“Ah yes—messy blond hair, right?”
“It was platinum blond then, but she’s back to her natural chestnut now. Anyway, we were having the most marvelous time together until last night.”
Charlie groaned audibly. “I’m sorry again.”
“No, no, it’s nothing to do with Isabel. There’s another drama brewing back home—I have two stubborn boys who are refusing to behave.”
“They probably miss Mommy.”
“Now, don’t you start on me too! I feel bad enough as it is that Cassian’s getting locked up in a closet.”
“Who locked him in a closet?”
“His father.”
“What?” Charlie said incredulously.
“For four hours yesterday, apparently. And he’s only five.”
“Astrid, I would never lock my child in a closet, no matter what age.”
“Thank you. My feelings exactly. I think I need to cut this trip