My eyes find Brandi again. Her braids cascade past her waist and her pink dress looks striking against her warm brown skin. She has the smallest tits I think I’ve ever seen in my life, and I am being one hundred percent sincere when I say I just don’t fucking get it, but somehow her scarcity doesn’t make her any less attractive. It only makes her ass seem even bigger. She’s sexy in that way guys like: small, cute, easy to pick up. I hate her. I hate the way Nate looks at her, that wistful, almost childish glint in his eyes.

My father is staring at her, trying not to be obvious, but he still is, probably imagining pummeling her right now, and she has no idea. She’s so clueless it almost makes me laugh. I should go over and save her. I really should, but I haven’t reached that level of maturity yet.

“You think she’d actually fuck him, though?” I ask Mei.

She doesn’t seem like the type, but then I don’t know her. I could be wrong. Maybe she’s not so innocent either. I wouldn’t be shocked if she’s doing all this just to get close to my father. I’ve seen other women do worse. Grown women. Mothers.

Mei makes a face like I’m juvenile for even asking the question. “Do you see her? She might be sucking up to him now, but trust me, she’ll be on her knees sucking the oxygen out of him once they get to Italy.”

My phone buzzes in my hand and an email pops up. I go to the link, thumb through the slideshow and growl. “Fuck. That editor at WWD snubbed me.”

“The one who still breastfeeds her five-year-old? Didn’t you send her a Lady Dior for Christmas?”

“Yeah, the special edition one with the Swarovski crystals. She totally reneged. I’m emailing her boss right now.”

“And drop your publicist ASAP,” Mei says. “I don’t care if she reps the Hadid sisters and that German princess bitch with the forty-inch legs.”

I’m too busy typing to respond.

“First your dad is in remission, and now this,” Mei says a moment later, typing something on her phone. “Can’t believe he beat cancer. Who does that?”

“My mom was a literal angel who rescued pigeons and opossums. She gets stage two cancer and is gone within a year. Dad recklessly fucks some random bitch while she’s doing chemo, gets stage four cancer and then poof, it’s gone. I don’t get it.”

Mei lifts a shoulder in an irreverent shrug. “So slit his throat.”

I stare at her. Her mouth is set in a firm line, but there’s laughter in her eyes.