Cruel Fortune (Cruel 2)

“I had no idea you were going to be here. I’d heard that you left the city,” Jane went on.

“I…I did,” I said.

“Well, you look fabulous. I was speaking to Elizabeth Cunningham only last week about the state of the market and how we need more originality. I was thinking specifically of you because I remember you wore her, correct? And this hair. Well, no one forgets this hair.”

Gillian gaped at me. “You wore Elizabeth Cunningham?”

“No,” I said hastily. “That must have been someone else you’re thinking of, Jane.”

“Certainly not. I never forget a face. We met in Paris two summers ago at a Harmony Cunningham party after all.” She turned to Gillian to explain, “I was working at the French Fashion Institute at the time while I was interning at Vogue Paris, and Natalie was staying at a flat nearby. She’s a gem, this one. You are lucky to have her here.”

“That is not exactly what happened—”

“She’s the author I was telling you about,” Gillian managed to get out.

“Oh, you’re the mysterious Olivia Davies,” Jane said to me as if all the pieces had just fit together. “Well, that makes perfect sense then, doesn’t it?”

“Does it?” I muttered.

“Well, I can’t stay long, but I’d love to catch up, Natalie. We never got enough time together when you were last in the city. I thought you were so charming and really going places. And look, I was right. Let’s exchange numbers, darling. Then, I won’t be without your company any longer.” Jane thrust her phone into my hand, and I dutifully put my number into her phone. She took it back and then handed it to Gillian. “Photo op.”

Gillian took the phone in surprise and obediently snapped a picture of the two of us together.

Jane showed me the image. “So glam. I’m going to text it to you now.”

My phone dinged, and there was Jane Devney’s number on the phone with our picture. And she was right. We practically looked like models.

“Jane, if you post this, will you please not reveal my pen name?” I looked at her with wide eyes, willing her to understand.

She tapped her finger to her lips twice. “I got you, darling.”

“Thank you,” I said in relief.

“But let’s hang out. Seriously.”

“Definitely.” I’d do anything for her if she didn’t let anyone on the Upper East Side know that I was Olivia Davies. I wondered then if she saw that desperation in my expression.

Jane turned from me to Gillian. “Thank you so much for inviting me to this,” Jane said with a kiss to her cheek. “It’s been grand. I’ll make sure to mention it to Marcie at the Times and my friend Hanna at USA Today. I think we could do a write-up about it.”

“Thank you, Jane,” Gillian gushed.

Jane twirled her fingers at us both and then disappeared.

Gillian turned to me with wide eyes. “Why do I have a sudden feeling there’s a lot that I don’t know about you?”

Natalie

6

I barely was able to steer the conversation with Gillian away from what had just happened with Jane.

I didn’t know why I’d thought it would be possible to keep everything a secret. I should have never agreed to come to New York. No matter how big the city was, my world was too small. It wasn’t possible for me to flit in and out and have no one recognize me. The people I knew here were the ones who could make or break a career. They were the Lewises and Janes of the world. Of course I would run into them when my publisher was trying to make my career.

I sighed and carried one of the containers of icing out onto the balcony. Amy’s mother had always kept a pint of icing around in times of trouble, and we had frequently found her seated on the couch in the living room, eating straight out of the container. I’d put it in the book, and here I was, living it again.

I’d forgotten to snag my jacket, and I was immediately frigid as I hit the open air. But I didn’t care. I needed a minute to sulk.

“Why so glum?” a voice asked from further down the balcony.

I glanced over and saw Lewis walk out of the shadows. He looked unbelievably handsome. It was amazing how much I’d forgotten from last year. Like the way his shoulders filled out his suit or the tilt of his full lips when he smiled or the hollow of his cheeks that revealed sharp cheekbones.

I turned my attention back to my container of icing. I didn’t need to think about him like that. “Just had a weird interaction.”

“What happened?”

“Jane Devney was here.”

“Court’s girlfriend?”

“They’re still together?” I asked in surprise.

He shrugged and leaned against the stone railing. “Depends on who you ask. But it seems so from the outside.”