She nodded, but not before I caught her brief surprise. The 101 was the most expensive and sought after real estate in all of Taipei, with a long wait list to buy. Residential rentals were prohibited and inventory was limited. The majority of the building was still used as commercial and retail space. But somehow, Victor had managed it with his charm and connections. The apartments started at seventy-five million for a studio.

“Sixty-eighth? What a fortuitous number,” she murmured, then blew Angela a kiss and gave me a small smile before gliding off.

Hell, Jin probably owned the sixty-eighth floor too, just to monopolize all the good numbers and good fortune.

We both watched her go. The layers of white silk swirled around her, and Daiyu seemed lit by the dress itself. “I think she likes you,” Angela said. There was no hint of jealousy in her voice. “How strange,” she added as an afterthought, and I burst into laughter.

What had I gotten myself into?

CHΔPTER SIX

I ignored the sweat seeping into my eyes as I searched the wall above me, trying to decide which handgrip to grab next. I had set the climbing wall in my apartment to medium difficulty and in a moment of spontaneity had decided not to use the harness, belaybot, and rope. I was free climbing for the first time—something that was illegal to do at my old indoor gym. It was too dangerous and a liability risk. Selecting a red grip that protruded from the engineered rock wall, I got a good hold with my fingers before shifting my right foot onto another grip.

I was nearing the top of the twenty-foot wall and reached for the angled overhang above my head. Although I had only asked for a simple rock wall, Victor, in his usual manner, had hired an expert and outdone himself. The synthetic wall could shape and reshape itself to whatever level of difficulty I chose within minutes, in an endless combination, and it spanned from one wall, across the actual ceiling, where it could slope down in various overhangs, to meet the second rock wall on the opposite side. Victor had purchased a belaybot for each side to work the rope as I climbed in harness. He even had horizontal bars installed to hang from the ceiling so I could use them to exercise or to rest from climbing, if needed.

I had pounded his shoulder then hugged him in my excitement when he had first shown me my new apartment. He had actually looked embarrassed as he grinned at me. “I only buy the best,” he said.