Getting by (A Knight's Tale) Read Online Free PDF

out of the vault. They looked happy together; like the perfect couple. One day, when everything ended, we got a peek behind the curtain at the lies, deceits and false happiness they shared.
    Dad didn’t have a mistress; no he always did things bigger. One would be subtle. He slept around San Francisco with clients, employees and women galore. Was Mom aware? If so, she took that piece of information to her grave. The perfect household, choreographed by Nick and Anna Anderson, came down right after their deaths. Another reason to close myself off from the world and live inside the universe I created.
    From afar I spotted the Japanese style hotel where I’d be staying and where the wedding would take place. It had thatched roofs with reds and creams, and black railings and walls with the same colors. Gaby stopped around the hotel curve where guests loaded and unloaded their vehicles or cabs. The bellboy standing next to the revolving doors approached with a chrome luggage cart when we opened the trunk. I handed him my bags and he rolled them toward the concierge desk.
    “The barbeque tomorrow, no excuses.” Gaby’s firm tone didn’t give me room to negotiate. Which I wasn’t planning to, but a soft melodic reminder would’ve been nice. “Mom won’t be happy with you, Em.”
    “One night, Gaby, it’s all I need,” I pleaded like a child. Tina Clement had offered me a room inside her home, but I politely declined in one of my emails to her. Instead, I booked a room like the other guests, a refugee after being around so many people that knew my parents and the tragedy. Deep breaths, Emma, keep the memories behind the wall. “The flight, Gaby, it made me fuzzy. By tomorrow I’m all yours, Gabs.”
    We hugged one more time before I headed inside the hotel, where Melinda, the front desk clerk awaited for me to check-in. “May I have your identification and a major credit card, Miss Anderson?” In a matter of minutes she swiped my credit card, gave me two key cards for my room and instructions on how to get to the elevator. Room five fourteen was of course on the fifth floor. I had to take a left out of the elevator and then it would be to my right. Telling me to follow the bellboy had been a better, but I guessed her job was to give all the details to the guests. The old couple that waited to check-in behind me returned my smile and walked forward when I left the concierge area following my luggage.
    The decorations inside weren’t as aesthetic as the usual Japanese décor I had seen. A modernist and simplistic busy style filled the lobby. Each corner had big statues, Asian style furniture and a pond which harbored a Koi fish, lily pads and other greenery I wasn’t familiar with. The entire place reminded me of the latest account I landed in Japan—a cosmetics company. My trips wouldn’t only be to the European continent and America, now I’d be expanding my working horizons to Asia. A tiny smile crept onto my lips, but I forced it back because my previous trips to Japan, China, India and other countries from the oriental hemisphere were for pleasure and I didn’t visit alone. Three months ago I ruined the little piece of ordinary life I had. I, no one else, ended it. Another set of memories and feelings I chose not to grieve upon. Reality sucks, get a grip and pull yourself together. Under the rug, remember?
    My best therapy, work, took over my mind and I began to play in my head with slogans, images, numbers and everything to forget my past. I was good at my job. I hated to sound conceited, but one thing my parents told me was to work toward perfection in order to achieve excellence. My boss and clients liked to think I did, and they adored me for it. The latter group confused my professional skills with my personal ones and thought I was a friendly, smart woman. My bosses knew better, for they were a different story. My fake friendly smile captured everyone in a room and my work impressed them. “Would you be