Page 41 of Angels Are Falling

I shook my head. I needed to snap out of these negative thoughts. Kai had been upfront about his intentions and had already spelled it out for me—I needed to give them space while they sorted out their differences. He knew it would be a difficult transition and had given me a meaningful project to keep my mind off things. Perhaps he considered us family and wanted to see me happy, too. I should be grateful rather than consider it a consolation prize.

Kai: Send me your location. A friend of mine wants to meet you about a collaboration.

The conversation had gone from zero to three-sixty in five minutes. I had just found out I was the president of a magazine. Now, I was expected to have a business meeting.

Stefan: Now? But we’re at a club.

Kai: All the best deals are made over alcohol.

Stefan: But I don’t know anything about the company’s operations.

Kai: The only way to learn is by diving in.

That was an insane suggestion. Kai was throwing me into the deep end without a life jacket.

Stefan: I thought some training would be involved before I took over.

Three little dots popped up to indicate he was typing. It took him a while to send the reply.

Kai: Don’t tell me I just trusted my multimillion-dollar company to someone who lets opportunities slip through their fingers.

He sounded annoyed.

Stefan: That’s not what I meant. I just don’t want to fuck up on day 1.

Kai: It’s a preliminary meeting to pitch an idea. You don’t need to know the ins and outs of the company, but if you want to learn, there’s an exec program. I’ll have my assistant set it up.

Stefan: Ok.

Kai: Location?

Stefan: We’re at Raven’s Nest. They can give the hostess my name, and someone will bring them to our table.

“Enough of this,” Will said, waving away my phone. “We need to celebrate our boy’s new job.” He pulled out a small, clear bag from his front pocket.

I knew what it was. I had tried that stuff in college, but it had been years since then.

Will started cutting up the coke on the table in plain sight. The bouncer managing the red rope pretended not to notice. The law ceased to exist on this side of the rope.

Will took a bump. Matt took one, too. Even Marcus participated and passed me the rolled-up dollar bill.

Matt arched an eyebrow when I didn’t reach for it. “You just became the motherfucking president of our magazine. My boss, might I add.” Try as he might, he couldn’t hide the envy in his eyes, nor the jealousy in his voice. “If you say no, then all of us just did coke in front of our boss with zero leverage. Don’t leave us hanging. We’re celebrating.”

He was right. I had every reason to celebrate. Just as he had promised, Kai had fulfilled my lifelong wishes. Since I was fifteen, I had dreamt of ruling this town and becoming a famous photographer with my own travel magazine. That and marrying Ruby Sarafina.

Ruby Sarafina was the founder of the band, The Cobras. She was a revolutionary artist who ran away from home at sixteen and defied stereotypes to break into the male-dominated rock genre. My teen life used to orbit around the rock star. I recorded her shows and attended her concerts because we were kindred spirits. She knew her destiny was bigger than the limits placed by her middle-class family.

I had always hoped my story would turn out like hers. The whole rags-to-riches street rat that becomes a prince. Although she was only a year older, she was my idol. Not just me, millions of men loved her, but fifteen-year-old me was convinced we were meant to be.

That was until I met Amelie.

What was Amelie up to right now? I had gone from a nobody to the president of a multi-million-dollar company in less than an hour, and I wanted to tell her about the roller-coaster journey. She should be here, celebrating this win, except I had only achieved this dream because she wasn’t by my side.

The irony.

I grabbed the rolled-up bill from Marcus and leaned over the table. There was no harm in a celebratory bump.

The first hit was smooth, and I waited for the effects to kick in. It was the second hit that had my heart racing. Suddenly, I was on top of the world. I could do anything except sit still. I started dancing, trying to make sense of the beat. I was climbing high, feeling restless, and making rounds around the club. Blurs of faces passed me, and my chest started beating so fast I didn’t think it’d stop.