Free Inner Circle by Evelyn Lozada

wealthy but a successful and rare commodity in sports and entertainment. Like a sponge, Eve absorbed everything Andrew offered and taught her. She shadowed his every move for years, imitating his actions to a T. Ifhe was the first one in and the last one to leave, so was she, prompting her to know exactly what he liked and how he liked it, a quality that made her invaluable quickly.
    Andrew circled his finger in the air as an indication that he was wrapping up his call. Eve smiled politely, hoping that the beads of sweat that began to heat the back of her neck didn’t make their way to her brow. As she waited she thought about how much she actually missed Miami. Los Angeles had proven to be good to Eve, yet, there was nothing like being home. Although L.A. was where she and Chase lived, even after five years, she personally hadn’t been able to become firmly rooted there enough to call it home. After all, Miami had been the place of many firsts for Eve. It was where she first learned to walk, attended her first day of school, and even lost her first tooth. It was also when she first fell in love, first had sex, and had her first heartbreak.
    Nadia had immigrated from Puerto Rico and settled in Miami when she was only seventeen. Prior to giving birth to Eve three years later, Nadia had made the trip home to Puerto Rico at least twice a year. Although the details surrounding what had happened to cause her to stop visiting her family had always been shaky where Eve was concerned, Nadia vowed that once Eve was born, she would never return to Puerto Rico again.
    At twenty-nine, Eve had never met any of her mother’s family. Although she knew about her mother’s seven siblings and grandmother and grandfather, outside of pictures, a few calls, and a couple of Christmas and birthday cards, Eve had never spent time with any of them. She would often beg her mother to allow her to go to Puerto Rico during the summers, but her mother would always reject her requests, stating that everything she needed was in Miami. When Eve was a teenager, she’d saved her money with hopes to surprise her mother by arranging to have her sister Sylvia come for a visit. However, when Nadia got wind of what Eve had planned, she beat her with a dustpan from the room she was cleaning until Eve promised tonever interfere with her personal life again. Eve learned firsthand just how serious secrets were in her family and if her mother said not to do something, then by all means, she shouldn’t do it.
    Eve shook her head as she examined the small scar on her left wrist. The metal from the dustpan cut into her skin, leaving a permanent mark reminding her of her mother’s wrath. When asked about it, Eve would often lie and say it was a birthmark, reminding her of not only where she came from but also of where she was forbidden to ever go. For the life of her, Eve didn’t understand what the big deal was with connecting with her family in Puerto Rico, yet whatever it was, Nadia was hell-bent on insisting that Eve never found out.
    “Well, well, now, Eve, it’s sure good to see you, darlin’. How have you been?” Andrew greeted as he made his way from behind his desk in an effort to give his prized protégé a hug.
    Eve leaned in appropriately and returned a hug to Andrew. “I’ve been good,” she beamed brightly, trying hard to mask her need of an immediate departure.
    “Sorry about that call, darlin’, but with us finally opening up offices in London, and, of course, my home state of Texas, I’ve gotta get in as many calls a day to ensure everything is what it should be.”
    “I always wondered how a Texas oilman like you ended up in Miami.”
    “For the Hurricanes, obviously,” Andrew laughed. “I come from five generations of University of Miami football playing graduates. As loyal as we are to our dear state, everyone who is anyone knows that some of the finest athletes in the world come from the hurricane capital. And I’m no