Chapter 2

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Rose

“SO, TELL ME ABOUT this guy you’re so taken with.” I sneered at Emma as we waited for our food.

“I’m not taken with him...he’s just nice.”

“Okay, he’s nice, but with all those student loans he has to pay back...is he going to be living in his mom’s basement forever?”

She rolled her eyes and took a sip of her ice tea. “No. As a matter of fact, he doesn’t live with his mother. He has his own place.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Oh, he has a house?”

“No…an apartment that he rents out with two other guys.”

“Ugh, that may be worse than his mother’s basement.”

“Honestly, Rose, you sound like such a snob sometimes.”

“I am a snob, and you used to be too. Remember, we had a pact we were only going to be with guys who were worthy of us?”

“Well, most people would say a cardiologist is worthy.”

“Umm…isn’t he still in his residency?”

“Yeah, but what’s that got to do with anything?”

I let out a deep sigh. My best friend was falling victim to settling over the first handsome face she came across.

“And for your information, rent in San Francisco is the highest in the country, so if he has to have roommates then so be it!”

I held up my hands in defense. “Okay, sorry…I’m just trying to save you from a mundane life of laundry, bratty kids, carpools, and everything else that comes along with ordinary.”

“Maybe I want ordinary. I like working, and—”

I choked on the sip of Perrier I had just taken. “Why?”

“Why, what?”

“Everyone knows about your inheritance you’ve got coming to you. Why on earth would you choose to work?”

“Because I want to. I didn’t put all that time into college just to sit around and sponge off my parents. Besides, nursing is very rewarding.”

Who was this girl and what did she do with my best friend? “Yeah, I guess cleaning up bedpans is really fulfilling,” I muttered under my breath.

“Rose, it’s time for us to grow up. We can’t live off our daddies’ money forever.”

“Says who?” I raised an eyebrow and grinned, hoping the bump Emma surely must have gotten on her head would go down and she’d start thinking clearly once again.

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“Rose, get in here!” my father shouted from his office.

It was only a little after four when I glanced at my watch, much too early for him to be home.

“Oh, hey, Daddy, what are you doing home so early?”

He was expressionless, sitting at attention behind his desk with his hands balled up into fists. He rarely ever got angry with me, but when he did, I knew it, and something told me by his posture and the expression on his face that this was one of those rare times.

“Rose, your credit card bill this month.” He picked up a piece of paper that I could only assume was the evidence of the damage I’d done this past month.

“Yeah...”

“It’s a bit excessive.”

“And...” I still wasn’t grasping what he was trying to say.

“Rose, it’s time you got a job and start paying some of your way.”

“And I told you, I’m looking.”

“Well, you don’t have to look any further.”

I creased my eyebrows in confusion.

“You’re going to stay with your aunt Kate in New York.”

My eyes widened, and I couldn’t hold back my smile. Living in New York City was my dream. “Oh my God, that is so awes—”

He held up his hand, halting my onset of glee. “You will be staying with Aunt Kate while you work for H & T Publications.”

“I’m sorry, where?” I asked, my euphoria fading fast.

“It’s a magazine an old friend of mine runs. It’s a growing company and he’s expanding to online readers as well. It’s a great opportunity for you to put that MBA degree you worked so hard on to good use.” He glared at me, and if I didn’t know better, I could have sworn there was a hint of sarcasm to his tone.

I pursed my lips and cleared my throat. “Daddy, I’m sure I can find a job all on my own once I get to New York City.”

“And maybe you can, but until you do, you have one all lined up for you.” He stood up and put on his jacket.

“That’s not fair. I wanted to open my own business—a clothing boutique, not work for someone else. What if I don’t like this company?”

“Then that will be all the more incentive for you to find something new. I’m giving you three months.”

“Three months for what?” I shouted, following him out into the foyer.

“Three months until you start paying your own way.”

“What!” I screeched. “That’s so unreasonable! How in the world do you expect me to afford to live in New York City on my own?”

“Your aunt won’t be charging rent. So that just covers minor things like your credit card bill, your cell phone bill, nothing a working girl shouldn’t be able to handle.”

“You can’t be serious!” I shouted as we reached the front door.

“Oh, but I am.”

“What if I don’t want to go?”

“Then you can stay here, but the same terms apply. Only you’ll be responsible for finding your own job. So, take your pick—New York, the place you really want to be with a job all lined up for you, or here with no job prospects and a deadline to meet. Now, I have to go or I’m going to be late for my meeting.” He leaned down and skimmed my cheek with his lips before making his exit.

I was speechless. This was a bad dream I was certain I’d awaken from very soon. Surely, he was going to come walking back through the door and tell me this was all a big joke just to get a rise from me. But as the minutes passed with no sign of my father’s return, I knew he was being serious. He had just given me an ultimatum, something I wasn’t used to. Normally, I held all the cards with my parents, not vice versa. Now, here I was being forced to work for a living. How could he be so unreasonable? I was his angel, his love bug, his princess—and princesses didn’t have to work. They were taken care of and given everything they wanted. He was taking me from a life of royalty and thrusting me into court with the commoners.

I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath, trying to conjure up a way to shift the ball back into my court. Lucky for me, I knew how to play the game of getting what I wanted all too well. My father had no idea who he was up against. He may have been older, but his dear daughter was much wiser—at least when being faced with the dreaded possibility of being ordinary was concerned. I’d go to New York and stay with Aunt Kate, just like he’d suggested. I’d even go to work at that dreaded company he’d set up for me. But I was certain once they got a load of my work ethic they wouldn’t want me sticking around for too long.

“Two could play at this game, Daddy,” I whispered.

I tapped my fingertip to the side of my cheek, deep in thought. I needed to start packing, maybe even ship some clothes to Aunt Kate’s ahead of time so I didn’t have to lug it all on the plane. I smiled just thinking about it. New York—my favorite place in the world. Broadway shows, high-class parties I’d be attending with Aunt Kate with lots of rich eligible bachelors, and freedom to do whatever I wanted. Things were definitely starting to shift back in my favor. Adios, West Coast, and hello to new possibilities. Daddy may have been a shrewd businessman, but he knew nothing about the business of me, and for the first time ever…he was going to lose at his own deal.