Even though I told Emma I was being picked up from the airport by a company driver, the first thing I see when I walk through the arrivals gate is her bright, beaming face. In one hand she’s holding a gigantic bunch of flowers and, in the other, a glittery sign with WELCOME TO NEW YORK, DUSTY ROSE!!! emblazoned across it. It’s actually exactly what I need. It helps tone down the nerves fluttering through my stomach. I haven’t been able to eat much in days. I’m too nervous and too excited. Turns out that moving away from the one city you’ve ever known is, in every way, a big deal. She gives me a huge hug and then I notice another, much more subdued DUSTY ROSE sign, being held by a man in a black suit who’s standing next to Emma. “This is Joe,” Emma tells me. “We’ve bonded over our Dusty Rose signs. Joe said I can ride with you guys to make sure you get settled into your new apartment without a hint of loneliness or overwhelm that goes along with leaving your entire life behind and moving to one of the most bustling metropolises in the world.” “Hi, Joe.” I can’t help but smile at my best friend’s enthusiasm. “You really shouldn’t have,” I tell her. “But I’m glad you did.” “Ms. Rose,” says Joe. “I’m here to help you retrieve your bags. And your limo is parked right outside.” “Limo?” Emma squeals. “Joe, you didn’t tell me that!” “Invested Enterprises likes to welcome their new employees in style,” Joe says. There’s even champagne chilling in the back of the limo, which Emma insists on popping. On the ride in from the airport, New York looks different than in did only a few weeks ago. It’s mine now. My new home. It looks better, somehow. More shiny and exciting and impressive. It’s not long before we’re pulling up outside the doors of my new apartment building, slightly tipsy. “You have a doorman,” Emma whisper-shrieks as a man in a red jacket opens the door for us. “And a concierge!” And then there’s the apartment itself. I open the door with my new key card and Emma walks in with me. She’s still clutching the bottle of champagne in one hand. We’re sort of leaning our shoulders against each other for support and in anticipation. We both gasp when we see the sun- drenched space. The apartment is a one-bedroom, so I’d sort of imagined something like Emma’s, but smaller. The similarities begin and end with the fact the apartment is located on the island of Manhattan. “You get sun,” Emma exclaims, and by now I know that this is a lucky score in New York apartments. “God, there’s so much natural light. Holy shit, look at your view, Dusty.” It’s not a huge space, but the entire wall of windows makes it look much larger. The view over the surrounding buildings is expansive. I can even see a sliver of the river in the distance. The apartment is open plan and very modern. There’s a small kitchen made of granite and blond wood, a compact living area with two comfortable-looking cream couches and a large flat-screen TV mounted on one wall. It’s sparsely furnished but all the furnishings are stylish and high end. Down a hallway, there’s a walk-in closet, a small but luxurious bathroom and a roomy bedroom with a king-sized bed and that same wall of windows and floor-to-ceiling cream velvet curtains. Emma pulls on one, marveling at the lush fabric, and it completely blocks the light. Which might come in handy for sle eping in and for
privacy from the next building’s windows. “Plenty of room here for your bestie to bunk with you on a regular basis,” Emma says. “I can’t believe this is where I get to live.” “The place suits you, Dust.” “Sure it does,” I scoff. “It does,” she insists. “You’ve worked your ass off for this for a long time. You deserve this. Don’t forget that.” “Thanks, Em.” Before I can get too emotional about it all, she pulls me by the hand. “Come on. We’ve got a bottle of champagne to finish.” I’m floating on a bed of clouds, more comfortable than I’ve ever been. There’s a light ocean breeze and a view of the waves. Ace is wrapped around me. His lips are soft but demanding, his body deliciously hard, just like I remember it. But he’s fading, like a ghost. I cling to him, trying to ke ep him here but he’s disappearing, slipping through my fingers like mist. No, Ace, don’t go! I’m not from Dallas! He’s gone and I miss him so much. My heart aches unbearably. Where is he? My eyes blink open. God, it was dream. I’m not at home. Or in my apartment in Austin. Am I in... Hawaii? It’s dark in here. Just a sliver of blue light from the small opening between the drawn curtains. It all comes rushing back to me. I’m in New York. My sheets are twisted around me in my new, extremely-plush bed. I reach for my phone. It’s 6:59 a. m. My alarm is set for 7 so I turn it off before it rings. Emma went home around eight last night, to give me some time to start to unpack and to get ready for my first day at my new job. The only thing I unpacked was my toothbrush, a small make-up bag and the outfit I laid out for my first day. It’s a cute black dress that’s one of my favorites, both professional but also fashionable, somehow in an Austin- meets-New York kind of way. Showered, dressed and as ready as I can possibly be, I recite Emma’s p ep talk in my head as I take the elevator down to the sixth floor, where the Sky Walk is located. I stop to admire the view, looking out through the windows of the glass closed-in bridge, down to the traffic jam below me. I worked very hard for a very long time and I deserve this. I’m good at what I do. I’m not an imposter. They liked my drive and my vision. I belong here. The streets and sidewalks are packed with morning walkers and commuters. Standing here in my cocooned, sun-drenched vantage point, I feel s eparate. I feel lucky. I think of my surfing lesson. The wave I caught and the things Lucas said to me that day. Now you can watch your life explode with good energy. It did explode. It’s exploding right now. Your life is never the same again after you catch a wave. It changes everything: your Karma, the way you manifest the rest of your future, your entire path. This has been the day everything started to change for you. You’ll see. Weirdly, Lucas was right. First Ace and now this. Even though it feels sort of fri volous in this sophisticated setting, I do it anyway: I send a silent message to Lucas, wherever he is. Probably giving a surfing lesson in that same spot. Thank you. And by the time I reach the Invested Enterprises offices, dressed in my little black power dress, my black heels, my hair in a high ponytail, a simple gold chain around my neck and matching gold hoop earrings, I feel almost ready to face my day.
I stare up at the shiny embossed letters above the large office doors. INVESTED ENTERPRISES You can do this. I square my shoulders and show my ID to the security guard, who waves me through. The offices are sleek and modern, nothing like the crowded, stuck-in- the-50 s offices that I was based in, back in Austin. There are leather chairs, neon sign accents and a dark-wood rec eption desk, with a full-wall print of the Empire State Building behind it. The office is stylish and very New York, with a young, hip edge. It’s not surprising that there would be a youthful energy to the place. Invested Enterprises is owned by three twenty-something brothers who are known not only for their business savvy but also for their good looks, as Emma loves to point out. She said they’re often listed on social media sites as the “most eligible bachelors in New York.” I’ve never seen a picture of the brother who started the business, whose name is Cash Maddox. Rumors are he’s a workaholic. The youngest of the three, Colton, often shows up on online. He serial dates New York heiresses, socialites and models. I follow a few of them on Instagram. I’ve seen the occasional picture of him at some party or event. And I’ve met Noah, at my interview, the CFO and the oldest of the three. I read somewhere there’s a fourth brother who runs the family business, the oldest, whose name is Alexander. He’s in charge of the empire they inherited from their father. “Dusty.” Penelope is walking down a hallway toward the front desk, a huge smile on her face. “Welcome to New York!” “Hi, Penelope. Thank you so much.” She gives me a brief hug. “How was your trip?” “Very smooth.” “And the apartment?” “Absolutely amazing.” “I live on the fifteenth floor,” she tells me. “We could meet on the rooftop for a drink after work sometime.” Penelope’s probably only a few years older than I am and as I look around the office I notice most of the staff are probably in their mid to late twenties. “I’d love that.” She shows me around the spacious office, which has the feel of a giant, airy, up-market Soho loft. “Here’s the main office space. Everything’s been designed to ensure that there’s a flow, but there are plenty of quiet workspaces too.” The desks are grouped together into zones and there are plants and casual seating zones liberally dotted around. The break areas have glass- fronted fridges stocked with drinks and there are baskets on countertops overflowing with healthy-option snacks. There’s a noticeboard on one wall with a schedule of “Need A Break?” sessions, listing massages, meditation, yoga, Pilates and Reiki. “I know you had a brief tour during your interview, but I want to make sure you know exactly where everything is, now that you’re here full time,” Penelope says. “On the next floor up we have the gym, the spa and the restaurant. The gym is open 24/7, the spa from 9 to 5, and the fully-catered kitchen from 7 a. m. to 10 p. m. The top floor is where the executive offices are located and the roof has the heated pool, the jacuzzi and the bar, which also has an after-hours restaurant. I’ll show you all those after you meet with Evan and get settled. Here’s your desk right here.”
My desk is in the middle of a row of three, facing a mirror image of the same layout. It’s empty exc ept for a large Mac desktop computer, a Mac Book and an Invested Enterprises mug full of pens. “You’ve met Evan, your team leader. He sits over here,” she gestures to the desk directly opposite mine. “And these desks are the other people on your team. Lacey and Patel.” Lacey and Patel are the only ones at their desks. Lacey is next to me and Patel is opposite her, next to Evan. Patel nods my way, barely glancing up from his screen. “I’ll leave you to settle in,” says Penelope, handing me a post-it. “Here are your login details. I’ll be back in ten to take you up to meet the CEO. He likes to meet all new employees face-to-face as soon as they arrive. We’ll do the rest of the introductions after that.” “Sounds good,” I smile, trying to relax. “Thanks.” As soon as Penelope’s gone, Lacey beams and swivels on her chair so she’s facing me. “I’ll fill you in on everything you really need to know about Invested Enterprises,” she winks conspiratorially. It’s not hard to read that she’s the office gossip. She blinks long silk eyelashes at me. “So, have you heard about the insider trading fiasco?”