Is He Or Isn't He? Read Free

she never tired of hearing how they fell in love when they were both students at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Anthony’s parents were Lorenzo and Francesca DeMarco, fashion designers who were known around the world. The L & F logo—which first appeared when they were students and Lorenzo had carved a heart on a tree with an L & F inside of it—appeared on everything from jeans, shirts, dresses, underwear, shoes, and perfume bottles to sheets and housewares. If there was a spot on an object where the L & F logo could be stamped, it was!
    Because they were constantly opening up boutiques across the country and overseeing the production of their merchandise in Europe, Anthony’s parents were rarely in New York. They made an appearance at least once a month and Paolo was usually responsible for taking care of Anthony, although one of their many aunts usually stopped by to make sure the refrigerator was well stocked with food and the penthouse was still in one piece.
    Paige’s home life was no different. Her mother was the soap actress Camille Crane. She starred on the daytime soap opera The Yields of Passion , where she played the much-married and much-divorced Priscilla Foxworth—not much of a stretch from Camille’s own life. Fans of the show loved Camille and the wicked character she played.
    Paige wished she had a closer relationship with her mother, who lived year-round in Los Angeles, where The Yields of Passion was taped, but the only person Camilleseemed to care about was herself. Even though her mother had let her down in the past, Paige had hoped that this year things would be different. She had so been looking forward to spending the summer with Camille. She figured that she and her mother could spend a lot of time together. She would hang out on the set of the soap, they’d go shopping and maybe even take a car ride down the coast for a long weekend, stopping in cute little towns along the way. Camille would ask what was new in her life and she’d tell her.
    None of that had happened.
    With the exception of a once-a-week phone call with Camille, Paige hardly had any contact with her mother during the school year; it was no different in July and August. First, Camille forgot to pick her up at the airport. Then, when she arrived at Camille’s house, she wasn’t there. When her mother finally put in an appearance after three days—she’d been rejuvenating herself at a health spa—she apologized for her forgetfulness and then flew off to the Bahamas, where The Yields of Passion was filming some episodes on location (Priscilla had been kidnapped by a voodoo priest who was obsessed with her and was preparing to sacrifice her on his altar of love unless she married him). When Camille finally returned from the Bahamas after three weeks, she still didn’t have time for Paige. She was either busy taping her show or running off to some party with her latest boy toy. Paige had kept herself busy with shopping and movies, but she didn’t have any friends in California and by the end of July, she was bored out of her mind. When August finally rolled around, Paige couldn’t stand it anymore. She left her mother a note and hopped a plane back to New York.
    She hadn’t heard a word from her mother since leaving.
    Paolo put the bottle of Gatorade back in the refrigerator. “I’m going to be in my room doing some reading. Classes have already started for me and my professors have really doled out the work. Try to keep the noise level down, okay?”
    â€œOkay, okay,” Anthony promised, pouring a daiquiri for Paige and adding a swirly straw. “Now beat it. Your antiparty buzz is destroying the mood.”
    â€œBye, Paolo,” Paige called, taking a sip of her daiquiri as Paolo left the kitchen. “Mmmm. Good.”
    Anthony poured himself a daiquiri. “Now that you’ve heard all about my depressing summer, it’s my turn to