“So you will improve my image? You are going to help change Hong Kong’s perception of me?”

“Mrs. Tai, I am going to change your life.”

*1 In a city where people are almost as obsessed with food as they are with status, perhaps the best-kept secret of the dining scene is that the finest cuisine arguably isn’t found at the Michelin-starred restaurants in five-star hotels but rather at private dining clubs. These members-only establishments are sanctuaries of luxury hidden away on upper floors of office buildings, where the famous and well-heeled gather to enjoy their meals far from the prying eyes of paparazzi. These clubs often have years-long waiting lists for membership, and only the best concierges at the top hotels can be bribed into getting you a special “guest membership,” provided you are fabulous enough.

*2 Cantonese for “What the fuck?”

*3 Filipino slang for “sweetheart.”

*4 The Cantonese phrase literally means “drink tea,” but in Hong Kong it usually connotes a lunchtime meal of tea and dim sum.

*5 Refers to the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, who is supposedly the head of the government.

*6 This is a common Cantonese derogatory term usually applied to Caucasian foreigners, which literally translates as “foreign devil.” These days, many Hong Kongers frequently use the term to refer to foreigners in general and don’t consider it derogatory.

10

ARCADIA

MONTECITO, CALIFORNIA, MARCH 9, 2013

Rachel led her friends down the long hallway and opened a door. “Here it is,” she said in a hushed tone, gesturing for Goh Peik Lin and Sylvia Wong-Swartz to look in.

Peik Lin squealed as she caught her first glimpse of Rachel’s wedding gown hanging on a vintage mannequin in the middle of the dressing room. “Ooooh! It’s gorgeous! Absolutely gorrrgeous!”

Sylvia walked around it, inspecting the dress from every angle. “It’s nothing like what I was expecting, but it’s beautiful. So you. I still can’t believe Nick took you to Paris to shop for your dress and you ended up finding this at the Temperley sample sale in SoHo!”

“I just didn’t fall in love with anything in Paris. Every dress I saw this season was so over-the-top, and I really didn’t want to deal with the fuss of a couture gown—you know, having to fly back and forth to Paris for all those fittings,” Rachel said a little bashfully.

“Oh you poor thing, what torture, having to go to Paris for your fittings!” Sylvia teased.

Peik Lin patted Sylvia on the arm. “Aiyah, I’ve known Rachel since she was eighteen. She’s much too practical—we’ll never change her. At least this dress looks like it could be haute couture.”

“Wait till you see it on. It’s all about the way it drapes,” Rachel said excitedly.

Sylvia narrowed her eyes. “Hmm…that’s not a typical Rachel Chu statement. We just might make a fashionista out of you yet!”

Rachel’s cousin Samantha, looking rather authoritative with a headset on, entered the room all flustered. “There you are! I’ve been searching everywhere for you. Everyone’s arrived, and we’re all waiting to start the rehearsal.”