C1, PT. 1 (Patreon)

Jasmine, 10 Years Old

Jasmine turned her head to the side and bit her lip to stop herself from laughing aloud as her friends bickered.

“Her dress is horrid,” Kira said in appalled tones. “It looks like she tried to sew it herself.”

“Kira!” Penelope gave her an admonishing nudge. “Please lower your voice!”

Kira turned on her friend with wide eyes. “But you agree, don’t you?”

Penelope’s eyes darted around before she whispered, “Well, of course, but you shouldn’t say such things out loud!”

Kira’s relief was obvious. “As long as we agree. I wasn’t sure we could continue to be friends if you thought that was fashionable.”

Penelope bumped her with her hip. “Oh, stop.”

Jasmine grinned as Kira continued her brutal critique of the outfits gracing the ballroom, and ignored Penelope’s attempts to hush her. Jasmine normally dreaded her father’s parties, terrified she would say or do something that would offend an esteemed guest. But with her friends at her side—Kira Usmanov and Penelope Davies, both were well-versed in high society, her stress had been replaced with delight. It was always a treat when her friends attended an event, which didn’t happen often since they were scattered across the globe.

They had color coordinated their dresses for the occasion and, for the first time ever, she was allowed to wear heels. Kira’s were two inches. She strutted in them like a pro, while Jasmine and Penelope had been forced by their families to wear something more conservative and practical. Jasmine was secretly relieved, knowing she would fall flat on her face if she had tried to wear anything as daring as her friend.

“Has Ariana considered following her mother’s footsteps into modeling?” Kira asked.

Jasmine followed Kira’s line of sight and spotted her sister surrounded by five men, who were clearly enchanted by her beauty. “No, she hasn’t.”

Not that Ariana would have confided in her about such a desire anyway. She and her sisters weren’t close. Aside from their large age gap, she only saw them when she came to the city during holidays, summer break, or one of her father’s parties.

 “She moves just like her mother,” Kira murmured.

Jasmine glanced at her with a frown. “How do you know?”

Kira tossed her hair. “You know how much I love fashion. I go to every runway show I can, and I love digging into the archives. Ariana’s mother took the fashion world by storm. Models today are still trying to copy her walk. It comes naturally to Ariana. She would do well in the fashion or entertainment industry.”

“I doubt that’s something my dad would allow,” Jasmine muttered.

Kira cocked her head to the side as Colette appeared, touching Ariana’s arm and extracting her from her admirers. “Colette as well. They both have the height, looks, and signature walks…”

Penelope pressed into Jasmine’s side and said wistfully, “Do you think we’ll look that gorgeous when we grow up?”

“Of course we will,” Kira said haughtily. “Our fathers will have to turn down dozens of marriage proposals.”

“I don’t need that many,” Penelope sighed. “Just one from the right guy will do.”

Jasmine and Kira eyed her and then grinned at each other.

“And would this ‘right guy’ be Frederick?” Jasmine teased.

Penelope blushed. “He’s so much older than us…”

“Three years is nothing,” Kira said with a wave of her hand. “I want Igor, and he’s seven years older. I’m not going to let that stand in my way.”

Penelope stared at her with awe. “You and Daiyu have no fear.”

Kira’s lip curled. “Daiyu will go after anything male. I happen to have more selective taste than her.” Kira nudged Jasmine. “What about you? Do you know who your husband is going to be?”

“No.” When they both stared at her, she said, “I think my dad will arrange it.”

“But you get a say, don’t you?” Penelope asked.

She doubted it, but because they looked so concerned, she lied, “Sure.”

“You should at least like the guy. Who’s your crush?” Kira asked.

“I don’t have one.”

Kira looked aghast.

Penelope went on tiptoes to search the ballroom. “What about Matthew? He’s cute.”

“He is,” Jasmine agreed, but her lack of enthusiasm made Penelope frown.

“What about Lincoln or Preston?”

When her friends eyed her expectantly, her hands began to nervously tumble in front of her. “They’re all nice, but… aren’t I supposed to feel something? A spark or…?”

For a moment, she thought they were going to laugh, and then Kira nodded sagely.

“You’re supposed to get the tingles.”

“And act like an idiot,” Penelope added. “And your tummy’s supposed to have butterflies.”

“I haven’t felt that yet,” Jasmine said and wondered if there was something wrong with her.

Kira considered her thoughtfully. “Maybe you should be with a Russian.” Her face lit up. “Then you could live in Moscow with me. I’ll look into Igor’s cousins.”

“No, I’ll find someone for you in London!” Penelope said hastily.

Jasmine was relieved when a man called out to Kira and approached their group on the edge of the ballroom. Kira spoke in rapid Russian. Jasmine understood bits and pieces of what they were saying, since Kira switched between her native tongue and English often when they spoke on the phone. Kira introduced her and Penelope to Pyotr Morozov. Penelope did a neat curtsy, while Jasmine nodded and smiled politely, recognizing Pyotr as one of the white whales her father had been looking forward to meeting this evening.

“I’m surprised he came up to you,” Jasmine said in a low undertone once Pyotr took his leave, noting he hadn’t taken more than a few steps before he was stopped by two men who had been waiting for him to finish his chat with Kira.

“Why wouldn’t he? He and my father are very close,” Kira said with a pretty shrug.

Jasmine’s brows drew together. Her father’s friends barely acknowledged her, much less would bother to seek her out when there were so many high-profile people in the room.

Several minutes passed before Kira announced, “I’m bored. Let’s get out of here.”

Jasmine blinked. “To go where?”

Kira linked her arm through hers. “Why don’t you give us a tour?”

“Tour?” Jasmine echoed uneasily.

“Your father rarely hosts parties in his private domain. Who wouldn’t want a tour by someone who knows Hennessy Tower inside out?”

Jasmine dug her heels in as Kira tried to usher her toward the open double doors. “I can’t leave the ballroom!”

“Why not?” Kira demanded.

“Because,” she floundered, flapping one of her hands back and forth before she caught herself and dropped it to her side. “My sisters may need me for something.”

 Her cheeks bloomed with color when Kira raised her eyebrows. Her friends had been present at the start of the party when Ariana reminded her to observe the festivities and not get in the way.

“It’s one of my father’s rules to be present at all times,” Jasmine mumbled.

“They won’t know if we sneak away for a couple of minutes,” Kira reasoned.

“Don’t let her peer pressure you, Jas,” Penelope interjected. “I wouldn’t put one toe out of line if Maximus was my father. He’s terrifying.” Penelope cocked her head to the side as she considered and added, “Honestly, your sisters aren’t much better.”

**This is a raw draft of Bitter Sins. Please do not share or distribute.

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