Free The Secret Diamond Sisters by Michelle Madow Page B

he knew something Peyton didn’t. It made her want to hit something.
    Instead she looked at Courtney, betrayed by her sister’s reaction. “You never mentioned wanting to go to private school before,” she said.
    Courtney looked down at the tablecloth. “That’s because it was never an option.”
    Peyton looked at Savannah for support, but her normally talkative sister didn’t say a word. Was she the only one who hated the idea of going to school with overprivileged snobs who would have nothing in common with her?
    “I’m not going to Goodman.” Peyton stood her ground. “I’ll go to the local public school instead.”
    “How about we compromise?” Adrian said. “You’ll start at Goodman in the fall. If after three months it’s as awful as you imagine, we can discuss other options.”
    Peyton thought about it. “One month,” she countered.
    “Two months and you have a deal,” Adrian said, with a hint of a smile.
    “Fine.” Peyton nodded. “Two months.” She was going to hate it no matter what, but at least being there for two months was better than the entire year.
    Nobody said anything for a few seconds, and Peyton felt like she could cut the tension in the air with a steak knife. Finally the waiter walked through the French doors that led to their private dining room, a bottle of champagne in his hand. Thank God. Peyton didn’t think she could stand one more moment of sitting there with no clue what to say. It was ironic, really. She had so much she wanted to know, but no idea how to start asking her questions. Continuing to talk about their family drama in front of Brett and Rebecca would make dinner more awkward than it already was.
    Then Peyton realized what she’d thought. Was she worried that something wouldn’t be appropriate to bring up at dinner? The pompous atmosphere of the hotel must be getting to her. Time to change that. She could tell attention made Rebecca uncomfortable, so she might as well start there.
    “So,” she started, looking at Rebecca. “How did you two meet? I’m sure our father would have told us, but since he hasn’t bothered to be in our lives until now, we haven’t had much time to talk.” She folded her hands over the table, as though she couldn’t wait to hear the answer to her question.
    “Well...” Rebecca lifted her hand to her necklace, looking at Adrian for help.
    “Rebecca and I were high-school sweethearts,” Adrian said, his voice confident and strong. He reached for one of Rebecca’s hands and squeezed it. She smiled gratefully at him, and he continued. “But we didn’t go to the same college—she stayed local, while I went to the University of Pennsylvania—and our lives went in different directions. We were in other relationships when I returned to Las Vegas after graduation to invest in my first hotel. Recently we both became single again, and fate brought us back together.”
    “How interesting.” Peyton lifted her glass as though making a toast, threw her head back and took a large gulp.
    Rebecca reached back to touch her bun, as if a sprayed strand might be out of place. Peyton felt guilty for making Rebecca feel uneasy. She seemed nice, and it did sound like Adrian loved her. It wasn’t her fault that he was a crappy, nonexistent father who was trying to act like he hadn’t overlooked his daughters for their entire lives. The funny thing was, if Adrian and Rebecca were in high school together, that made Rebecca almost ten years older than Peyton’s mother, even though she looked much younger. All that drinking could really age a person.
    “Yes,” Adrian said. “But please don’t mention the engagement to anyone. We plan on announcing it at the grand opening on Saturday night.”
    Peyton looked at the packed dining room. “The hotel looks open to me.”
    “This is the soft opening,” Adrian explained. “Doors opened for both the hotel and residences a month ago, and the time since then has been a test to make sure