Dear Oliver. So oblivious sometimes. Kathy’s face was already blotchy with anger, and she ignored him. Instead, she jammed her hands on her hips and glared at Juliet. Here we go, Juliet thought. Women tearing other women down. She tilted her head, waiting.

“How dare you move in on my company?” Kathy said, ignoring the fact that the girls were at the table and now gawping at her. “This was mine! I was supposed to be Arwen’s partner! What did you tell her? How did you weasel your way in?”

“She asked me,” Juliet said, her voice calm.

“To work for us. Not to be one of us! Senior partner? That’s ridiculous! I didn’t agree to that!”

Juliet raised her eyebrow (she could again, thank God, since the Botox had worn off). “That will be a problem, then, since Arwen and I can outvote you.”

“You bitch. You’ve always had to be the star,” Kathy said. “You think your shit doesn’t stink, and you—”

“Shut up!” Brianna barked. “How dare you talk to my mother like that! She’s one of the best architects in the country, for one, and for two, this is our house. You should leave now.”

“Yeah,” Sloane added. “Get out. You’re mean. And quite rude.”

Oh, that feeling. That feeling! Pride and warmth and love and surprise. Her girls, defending her from a bully. “Thank you, my darlings.”

“My daughters have a completely valid point, Kathy,” Oliver said. “I’ll walk you out.”

“I’ll do it, honey,” she said, but Kathy was already striding out on her own, hissing like an old radiator. Juliet caught up to her on the driveway as Kathy yanked open the door of her little MINI Cooper.

“Kathy, wait. Why are you upset? We’ve worked so well together all these years.”

Kathy stopped and turned, jamming her fists on her hips. “Jesus, Juliet. I wanted to get away from you. You think you’ve struggled with Arwen being the golden girl for the past two years? Oh, you’re too superior to admit it, but I knew. Well, try that fifteen years.”

Juliet blinked. “We do entirely different things, Kathy.”

“Really? I had no idea. Please, lecture me.”

“I honestly don’t understand the problem.”

“Well, it’s not my job to educate you. Just think about this. I’ve worked with Arwen since she got here. I coached her and whispered in her ear about how good she was and got her half of those interviews so that she’d do exactly what she did. Leave and take me with her. But instead, you just step in at the last second and somehow get your name on the door. It was supposed to be Alexander Walker.”