Page 24 of Craving Paradise
As soon as Ines opens the door to the white palace, your eyes are immediately drawn straight through the middle of the home to the sapphire blue of the ocean horizon. Ignoring everything else in the house, which I’m sure is spectacular, I rush to the glass doors at the back of her home and stare at the incredible view. The sky melds into the ocean as if they were one.
“You like it?” Ines asks, stepping up beside me, turning the glass door handle and letting the outside in.
We step out onto the stone deck, which steps down to the insane pool area. The pool is enormous and takes up most of the backyard. There’s a spa beside it as well as a firepit.
“I’m so fricken proud of you, babe,” I tell her, turning and wrapping my arms around her. “You’ve worked so hard to get here. You’re living your fucking dream.”
“Thank you,” she says with a sigh. “You know what it’s like in this family. They’re all high achievers in their fields.”
I know exactly what she means. It’s hard to compete with Juliette and Reed. Even Lennox has moved up the Hollywood rankings.
“You will always do better than me,” I say, giving her a nudge.
“Hey, don’t talk like that. I bet you’re the best at your job, even though I don’t know what that is.”
Not sure ‘gives the best blow jobs’ is going to look on my resume.
“You know I’ve said you can come work with me any time you want. I would love to have you by my side. We’d make a good team.”
“It would be fun. We’d probably kill each other after a week, though.” I chuckle. “You know I promised Elle I’d stay until she got enough money to start her business. You understand everything she’s been through over the years.”
My sister nods. “I worry you’re giving up on your dream to help your friend reach hers. What will you do when she reaches it?”
I know my sister is looking out for me. I’d say the same thing to her if the roles were reversed. “That’s the thing. I don’t know what I want to do with my life. Everyone else in the family has always had such powerful ideas on what they would do, the direction they wanted to go, but I guess that missed me.”
“Look, I get it. Our family is driven, but there must be something you want to do. When you look into the future, what do you see?”
“Blankness,” I answer honestly.
“Really?” Ines asks as her brows pull together in concern.
I nod.
“It will happen. Maybe there are too many distractions at the moment. You can’t see the forest for the trees kind of thing,” she suggests, giving me her sisterly advice.
I know I can count on Ines to have my back.
We both stand there in silence as we stare out over the sapphire blue ocean.
“I’ll deny it if you say it to anyone. A simpler life is what I want,” I confess to her as I stare out into the blue abyss.
Ines gasps at my confession before giggling. “You’ve partied enough for four lifetimes, so I get it.”
“I have, and as much as I love going out and partying, I don’t know what it’s like to chill. And as I don’t have to worry about money, I don’t have to kill myself working either. Oh, look at me, poor little rich girl,” I say, mocking myself.
“Money makes living easier, but it doesn’t always make dreams come true,” my sister comments as she wraps an arm around my shoulders.
“Maybe I’ll shock everyone and buy a farm in the Cotswolds, turn vegan while creating artisan sweaters from my flock of alpacas,” I tease.
We both look at each other and burst out laughing.
“Well, I could.”
“As long as you were happy, that’s all I care about.”
“It’s shots time, babes,” Joe yells, breaking up the tender sister-to-sister moment as he shoves tequila shots in our hands. “This is a motherfucking party, not a retirement home. Let’s party, bitches,” he barks, knocking back his shot and urging us to do the same.
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