His “house” is an honest-to-God mansion. It’s designed in a Roman architectural fashion, with a large porch and grand arches and stone columns. I wouldn’t be surprised to find the Obamas taking a casual stroll down the lawn.

Mia runs off almost immediately, after jumping up to kiss Ace’s cheek and promising to catch up with us before she disappears into the house.

Ace is slower, listening to the last notes of the song playing on the stereo, before shutting down the car and following me out. “Mia can be a lot.”

“She seems sweet,” I say, slowly walking down the stone path until I reach the porch. “I didn’t know you had stepsiblings.”

“Just the one,” he says, before nodding toward the front door. “Ladies first.”

“What a gentleman.” I step inside and I can’t contain the way my jaw drops. The inside of the house is just as beautiful as the outside, with exquisite paintings in the foyer and lavish furniture extending into the hallway. There’s a diamond chandelier in the entryway, and I pause to stare at it in disbelief.

“How much money do you have?” I ask, because I apparently don’t have a shred of decency or any sense of tact. Ace doesn’t seem to mind. He’s watching me in amusement.

“Enough,” he says. “I can’t touch most of it, since it’s in a trust fund, but my dad gives me and my siblings a monthly allowance.”

I know Cora also gets an allowance, but I think my parents would sooner kick me out of the house than hand me a lump sum every month. Instead, I have to rely on birthday and Eidi money to last me through the year.

I want to ask Ace more, because all of this is a lot, but he starts walking down the hall. I immediately follow. The house is so big, I’m afraid I might get lost otherwise.

As we walk, my jaw nearly unhinges. Who has paintings on their walls? There’s even an uncanny amount of vases. I’ve seen the Bollywood film Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham enough times to steer clear of those. If I broke one, I’d probably die on the spot.

Ace leads me up a spiraling marble staircase, and we’re walking down the hallway when I hear a loud bark behind me and freeze. I turn slowly and see a large golden retriever bounding toward us.

“Down, boy!” Ace says, but the dog comes at us full speed anyway.

I squeak in terror and hide behind Ace, clutching his leather jacket.

Dogs are adorable. Objectively, I know this. However, my parents heavily warned me off them because they’re basically haram, so I’m at an impasse. I wish my body didn’t lock up the second that I see one, especially because they look so cuddly and fun to be around.