“So did I. But breaking in isn’t easy. In the meantime, like most actors when they get here, I started waiting tables. And then I met Evan. You might say I work in guest relations. All his units are rented out as Airbnb. No long-term tenants. But we’re strictly on the down low, because the co-op board in this building, actually in all our buildings, prohibits short-term rentals. I make things run smoothly. It’s not exactly what I planned to be doing with my life right now, but it’s a living. And I get to live here.”

“Okay, so this dude? He owns all these apartments? And he’s rich?”

“I assume so,” Letty said.

“Super rich? Like, Mr. Big rich?”

“I don’t know,” Letty said. “That’s his business. Not mine.”

“As soon as I start making some serious money, I’m going to get me a place exactly like this!” Tanya said, running her hand over the sofa’s cool leather surface. “How much does an apartment like this cost, in this neighborhood?”

When Letty told her, Tanya flopped backward, pretending to faint. “That much? Seriously? You could put a down payment on a house for that back home.”

“You could buy a house for that, back home,” Letty said. “Or at least a double-wide. Which reminds me. Have you talked to Mama lately? Does she even know you’ve moved up here?”

“No.” Tanya unzipped her jeans and let them drop to the floor. She wriggled out of her bra and added it to the pile of discarded clothes. She gathered her long blond hair into a careless knot on top of her head and fastened it with an elastic band and walked toward the bathroom, dressed only in her T-shirt and a pair of panties. Her legs were long and slim and tanned, and Letty noticed her sister had a new tattoo high on her right hip. A tiny shamrock.

A moment later she popped her head around the doorframe. “Hey, Letty Spaghetti? Do you have any decent skin cream? My face is like sandpaper. I swear, I can feel the zits popping up right this minute.”

“Top shelf in the linen closet,” Letty said. “But you didn’t answer my question. When was the last time you talked to Mama?”

“It’s been a while,” Tanya admitted. “How about you?”

“I’ve lost track. Last I heard, she’d moved out to Lake Tahoe for a ‘new job.’” Letty’s fingers flashed air quotes.

“Yeah. New job is mom code for new boyfriend,” Tanya said. She sighed heavily and started to close the door. “Okay if I take a bath?”

A month later, Letty was asleep when she heard the apartment door click open and softly close. She rolled over and picked up her phone. It was ten ’til three.

“Tanya?” she called.