and everyone is innately aware of who is a good person and who is a bad person. My parents consider good people to be modest and polite and respectful... virtuous, I guess. I think of Jaime and how much my mother disapproved of him over the years. Jaime might have been Cam's best friend, but he was definitely not a good person .
"Good people," I say. I think of Evan and how she's an actress at heart. She's like me, putting on a role for the people around her so she's to be accepted. "You know Evan, right? I mean, you haven't met her, but I talk about her—”
"All the time," my mother finishes with a grin. "You talk about her all the time. I'd love to meet her!"
Well, if this is what it takes to be able to shoot erotica without my parents getting in the way. "Of course you can. Maybe we can all go out to lunch one day."
Mom waves her hand in front of her face dismissively. "Oh don't be silly. They'll all stay here, of course."
My jaw threatens to fall open, and all I want to do is mutter a string of expletives, but Mom hasn't ever heard me even use the word "fuck" before. "I don't know if that would be such a good idea. I mean, I don't know exactly who's coming yet. It'll probably be like, ten people."
"Ten good people."
"Still, Mom, I—”
"Be gracious to your friends!" Mom cries. "We have the space, don't we? And these rooms are nicer than any hotel. Plus, I'd love to meet all of the people you spend your time with." Mom waves her hand toward Gladys, who's wiping down the patio furniture at the other end of the pool. "Gladys! Grab my husband, will you?"
Gladys disappears into the house and returns with Dad and Cam, who are both in their swim trunks. As Cam dives into the pool, Mom quickly explains to Dad the situation with my friends , and how she wants them all to stay here.
"It's really okay," I say quickly, silently praying that Dad will see some absurdity in housing all of my friends for two weeks.
"Nonsense." Dad reaches toward me and grabs the straw sun hat off my head, placing it on his own.
"You look ridiculous, Dad.”
"I'm a ridiculous man." He grins before returning to the conversation. "Of course we can host your friends for two weeks. Throw a couple of pool parties, make you kids some cocktails." He winks at me like he's doing me a favor, like I'm fifteen and not twenty-two and a cocktail is some naughty, delectable treat. "Don't look so distraught, Brit. Your friends will love us."
"Friends?" Cam says from the pool. Water drips down his face. "What friends?"
"We're going to host Britain's friends for a couple of weeks," Mom says cheerfully.
I swallow the painful lump in my throat, and Cam raises an eyebrow. "Are these friends incredibly attractive?"
I'm sure Mom and Dad are thinking that Cam is just being Cam, asking if the friends that will be over at the house are hot — maybe nice to look at when they’re in bikinis — but I know what he's really asking. Cam knows my secret. He's asking if these friends are models.
Mom tssks. "Don't be a pig, Cameron."
"Incredibly attractive," I say, keeping my eyes glued to my older brother.
"Oh, dear," he says slowly. I kind of want to punch the smirk off his face.
When I finally manage to creep away from the pool, I run up to my room and call Evan, telling her everything.
"Wow," she finally says. "So your parents are insisting to house a bunch of porn stars without even knowing it, huh?"
"This is a nightmare, Evan. A fucking nightmare." I groan and slide down the wall. "My parents are modest, conservative, and pretty much from the 1950s. If they found out what I did for a living, I'd lose... I'd lose..."
"What?" she asks. "What exactly would you lose?"
"My inheritance. Their respect."
"Think of it this way," Evan says. "Take it from a girl who spent a solid chunk of her college years trying to hide who she was. Your first mistake was not changing your name for the magazine. I've Googled you. You pop up all over the Internet. Your dad is in
Laurie Kellogg, L. L. Kellogg