When Blaire reached the end of Sabrina’s albums, she went to Selby’s Facebook page, but she had clearly put up privacy settings, unlike that idiot Sabrina. Over the years, Blaire had occasionally gone to Selby’s page to see if there were any pictures of Kate. She clicked on Carter’s image in one of his wife’s photos, and clicked through to his incredibly dull profile. Most of his posts were about his precious Lamborghini. There were pictures of him standing next to it, sitting behind the wheel, polishing it with a white cloth. Blaire scrolled through the pictures and saw a few shots of his kids at lacrosse games or—what else?—sitting in his Lamborghini. There were very few of him with his wife. Was it because Selby was camera-shy, or was the bloom off the rose? She impulsively clicked the Add Friend button. Why not? A little harmless flirting never hurt anyone. That’s what her mother always used to say. Her mother would have loved Facebook. She could picture her now, looking up all her old beaus, as she called them, reconnecting and posting glamorous pictures of herself. How she loved having her picture taken.

One of the last days before her mother left was a Saturday, and her father had been at the dealership. Shaina had made pancakes for breakfast—a treat usually reserved for special occasions. Her eyes had been bright, her long copper hair piled on top of her head, and she’d run around the house excitedly. After breakfast, she’d called Blaire into her bedroom.

“Sweetie, can you keep a secret?”

Blaire had nodded.

“I ran into an old beau of mine last night at the grocery store.”

“What’s a beau?”

Shaina had laughed. “An old boyfriend. Your mama has lots of those. Anyhow, he knows some connected folks in Hollywood. I need you to take some pictures of me to send to him, okay?”

“Okay.”

Shaina had handed her a camera. “Look through here and click.” She’d shown Blaire how to use it.

“Okay, I’m ready.”

Her mother struck a seductive pose, her red lips in a pout. She reclined on the bed, one hand on her hip, the other behind her head. As she changed poses, Blaire kept clicking away.

“Come here, let’s take one together,” Shaina said. Blaire turned the camera around and snapped one.

When they’d finished, she put everything away.

“Now listen, honey. Not a word to Daddy. He doesn’t understand. But Mama is meant for greater things. California is waiting for me. Promise not a word.”

Confused and nervous, Blaire had nodded. “Okay, Mama. But can I go with you?”

Shaina had smiled. “Absolutely. Not at first, of course. I have to get settled. But I’ll come back for you, don’t you worry.”