Law professor Alison Burke thought she was an only child until her mother died. Suddenly, flowers and white roses show up with a sash that reads Mother, and the funeral director tells her all the funeral expenses have been paid for. The cards on the flowers are signed simply, Rachel.
Who is Rachel, and why didn’t she call before Mother passed away?
Having discovered she has a half-sister, Rachel shows up to explain why she and her mother could never contact each other. Though skeptical at first, Alison discovers she and Rachel have a lot in common. The two sisters quickly bond and go out of their way to make up for lost time. Rachel is a billionaire who thinks nothing of spending money, and she introduces Alison to the life of the very rich. Though Alison enjoys the treats, she has always worked for what she achieved and clings to her independence.
Then Alison meets Lillian Torres at a party and falls for the beautiful Venezuelan woman. Rachel is delighted Alison has found love and embraces Lillian into their lives.
When fate intervenes, will Alison and Lillian be able to give up their careers to help realize Rachel's dream of creating a home for handicapped children?
“Would you like to dance?” I heard behind me. I felt a light hand on my shoulder. I turned and looked into the face of the most amazing Hispanic woman I’d ever seen. I smiled. She had on tight black trousers and a short green silk jacket over a minuscule black blouse, which showed a lot of cleavage and midriff. The jade earrings and necklace highlighted her mocha coloring. Her long curly hair was pulled back at the nape of her neck and she was an inch or two taller than I was. She was beautiful.
She took my hand and we went onto the dance floor. Actually, I surmised this was probably the dining room but all the furniture had been removed to give people room. It didn’t have carpeting.
The music was loud. You couldn’t have heard anyone if you wanted to. We danced for quite a while. When the music changed, she again took my hand.
“Aren’t you thirsty?” she asked but didn’t wait for an answer. She pulled me toward the kitchen where there was a younger woman pouring drinks. She was dressed in some kind of uniform and had a towel tucked into her belt. Her shirt was open to her waist.
“What can I get you?” she asked.
“Rum and Coke.”
“Scotch with water,” I answered.
“I didn’t get your name.” The pretty Hispanic smiled at me.
“Alison,” I answered, “Alison Burke.”
“Lillian Torres,” she said as she hugged me. “I understand you’re Rachel Fox’s sister. Everyone is talking about it.” She took the drinks from the bartender and handed me mine.
“I have to admit it. Yes, I am her half-sister,” I smiled into the deepest, darkest eyes I could ever remember seeing. I immediately took a sip of my drink to get my nerves together.
“I haven’t seen you around here before,” Lillian told me.
I shook my head. “I’m from Montreal.”
“So that’s where she’s been hiding you!” Lillian laughed.
I laughed, too.
“What do you do in Montreal?”
“I teach law at McGill.”
“Wow! I teach Landscape Architecture at UBC.” Then she looked around the room. “There are quite a few lawyers here tonight. Want me to introduce you?”
I shook my head. “Tonight is a night for fun,” I grinned at her, “not business.”
“I knew I liked you for some reason. Do you go by the same rules Rachel goes by?”
“Rachel has rules?” I laughed.
“Well, no. Not that I know of.”
I chuckled as I shook my head. “I’m a little less flashy then she is.”
“Everyone is.”
We walked back into the living room where Rachel was sitting.
She introduced us to the pretty Asian woman, whose name was Amy. She was a paralegal. Amy and Lillian seemed to know each other, but I didn’t ask how.
“Having a good time?” Rachel asked me.
“Sure am.” I smiled as I squeezed Lillian’s hand.
She looked up into Lillian’s eyes. “Be careful,” she said, ominously. “This is my baby sister and I’m very protective.”
Lillian put her arm around my shoulders. “I wouldn’t hurt her for the entire world,” she grinned. “Even if she wasn’t related to the great Rachel Fox.”
Suddenly a loud whistle sounded and the music stopped.
“Are you paired up?” Nadine announced in a loud voice. “If you’re not, you’d better hurry. It’s thirty seconds to midnight.”
There was loud talk around the room and lots of movement. Then we heard, “Ten!”
“Nine!”
Others joined in until we got to zero.
“Happy New Year!” everyone shouted.
Lillian took me into her arms and kissed me. I kissed her back. I didn’t think of anything else. It was an incredible kiss. I sank right into it.
Then I felt a hand on my shoulder. I pulled back from Lillian to look into my sister’s face. She raised an eyebrow and I gave a quick nod.
“One more drink,” Rachel announced. “Then I think it’s time to go home.”
I turned back to Lillian. “Would you come home with me?” I asked.
“Gladly,” she smiled as she took me into her arms again. “I thought I was the one who was going to have to ask.”
