Page 46 of Mistaken Prejudice

“Chief?” Daniel tried to follow.

“He’s the guy I’m living with now. My family. He volunteered in juvie as a consultant, and we formed a connection. He took me in as soon as I was released and did the same with my brothers.” Pride and joy overwhelmed me at the thought of them.

“You have brothers?” Elliot asked after he blew his nose with the napkin Miles gave him.

“Yes. We may not be related by blood, but we’re all connected.”

“I met them all. They are very nice and funny,” Miles jumped in. “They also go to Bay High.”

Elliot’s glossy eyes shone with something else, and his lips curved into a smile, “Oh, comme c’est merveilleux!” He pressed his palms together. “How wonderful. We must meet them.”

Miles chuckled, and I could see he was much more relaxed now. So was I.

“Yes, you’ll love them, Papa. Especially Jessie. He has cool hair and—”

“I’m sorry to ask this, but where is your mother today?” Daniel’s eyes bored into me, and I had to look away. My eyes focused on the leaves of the lemon tree swaying in the wind as my mother’s brown eyes and dark hair filled my memory.

“She overdosed during my time in juvie and passed away.” Sadness and shame coated me, and I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat. It was Miles’s soft hand that came to wrap around my own that made me feel at ease. I glanced at him to find his kind, sweet eyes on me. All I wanted to do at this moment was pull him closer, so I could inhale and taste him. The urge to have him was intoxicating, and I was very close to doing it if it weren’t for Daniel’s voice.

“So, what are your plans for the future?” He was as straightforward as expected, and while such a big question may have shaken others, I had it all planned out.

I straightened up in my seat and looked him square in the eyes. “I’m trying to get a scholarship so I can earn my undergraduate degree, and then I hope to apply to a law school.”

He raised his eyebrow at me, and I let out a soft chuckle.

“I promise I’m not trying to suck up to you. It’s what I’ve wanted to do ever since I came face-to-face with the system. The unequal parts of it.” I clarified that part. “I hope to help kids and teens who find themselves in the same situation I was in.”

Daniel leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. “This is a worthy cause, and I am deeply impressed by you.” He glanced at Miles. “I can see what you see in him.”

“I told you!” Miles jumped from his seat, rounded the table, and hugged Daniel. “He’s amazing, isn’t he?”

Daniel poker’s face finally broke as he kissed Miles’s cheek. His love for his child was obvious to see.

Elliot took his wine glass in his hand as he looked between Miles and me. “Mon lapin, why won’t Andrei join us for Paris?” Miles’s eyes opened wide as his whole face lit up.

“For real?” He gasped.

“That’s a nice idea, my love,” Daniel said before he took a sip from his drink.

“Paris?” I was confused.

Elliot came to sit beside me with his wine glass in his hand. “You know I am a model, n’est-ce pas?”

I nodded.

“There is a big fashion show of the brand I am working with,” Elliot explained with a soft smile. “It is held in Paris and I am going for the whole week, there are many preparations and things to do. De toute façon, I will save you the boring details.” He waved his hands in the air. “Because of my job I travel a lot. To Milan, London, and of course Paris. Miles always joins me whenever he can. It is such a merveilleuse experience.”

Miles nodded in excitement as he leaned against Elliot’s chair.

“This time, he’ll only come for the weekend, so why won’t you come with him, okay? It will be so much fun. There is no city in the world like Paris.”

Paris? As in France? I’d never been outside of California, let alone the United States. Of course I wanted to go there, but—

“I wish, but I can’t afford it.” All three of them looked at me as if I’d just landed from the moon, and it took a moment before Elliot spoke again.

“Don’t speak nonsense. We will pay for the tickets, and you’ll stay in one of our apartments in the city.”

“Oh, yes. The one next to the Champs de Mars,” Miles spoke in excitement as he and Elliot dived into a conversation about some sort of renovations happening in the flat. The last thing I wanted to do was deny them, but there was no chance I’d allow them to pay for me.