“I didn’t know that.”
“It went unreported because he didn’t want it publicized.”
“Was there any money left to pay his fees? He doesn’t come cheap.”
“He didn’t charge them because he said the pension funds couldn’t afford it.” The memory still touched Amandine. Gavin was a good man.
“I hate it when he does stuff like this,” Brooke muttered.
“There wasn’t much left, and most of the workers were in their mid- to late fifties.”
“Did he make them any money?”
“Unless I’m mistaken, he made back almost half the money lost within a year. He said he ‘went conservative’ to preserve their capital.”
“For a heartless jerk, he sure is good at trading. Or maybe he’s good precisely because he’s so heartless.”
“I think he just…compartmentalizes. But there’s no doubt—he’s one of the best.”
“How the hell does he do it? It’s like he turns dollar bills into minks, makes them have this huge orgy, then turns all of them and their babies into hundred dollar bills.”
Despite herself, Amandine gave a snort of laughter. She didn’t know exactly what Gavin did either. The only thing she understood about his work was that it involved making highly leveraged bets in various financial markets. Most of them were over fifty-fold, so that every penny up or down resulted in a fifty-cent gain or loss. Unfortunately, none of his bets were for pennies. He usually bet hundreds of millions of dollars per trade, if not more. Thank god, he was good at his job or a lot of people would’ve been throwing themselves out of windows.
“Anyway, when he does something like the BlueWheels thing,” Amandine said, “I can’t help but love him a little bit more. He didn’t have to lift a finger for them.”
“Guess you’re right,” Brooke admitted with the cheeriness of someone getting a root canal. “Still, that doesn’t mean he’s not an ass when it comes to you. And I take back what I said about how pregnancy changes a guy’s priorities. It probably doesn’t apply to him.” Brooke tapped the side of her glass with a fingernail. It made a small tinging sound. “Have you ever considered the idea that maybe he doesn’t think he owes you an explanation because you’re overly accommodating?”
Sometimes. Amandine sighed.
“Don’t just sigh and let him get away with it. He owes you. You’re his wife. You’re carrying his baby. Even if you weren’t married and pregnant, he’d owe you for the years you spent with him while giving up your dream.”
“My dream?”
“To be a great artist!”
“Come on. It’s not… I haven’t painted much in years. I’m not—”
“That’s my point! Being a proper society wife for Gavin has taken over your life. You don’t even teach at the Art4Kids anymore, and you loved that job.” Brooke shook her head. “But let’s forget art, since we’ll never know what could’ve happened. Instead we can look at something anybody can aim for, like finding a normal man who actually appreciates you. You could’ve married somebody like that and had a family of your own.”
“Gavin is normal.”
“Oh my god, he is so not. He’s rich. Rich people are unreliable, arrogant and impossible to reason with. They think money solves everything. Mark my words. He’s going to throw money at you for standing you up and expect you to be happy about it.”
Amandine shook her head. It was so cynical of Brooke, but Amandine didn’t blame her friend. Brooke’s mother had passed away in a car accident, and the other driver, who had been high at the time, had been an up-and-coming actor who thought writing a hefty check could undo the damage. Ever since then, Brooke had become jaded about people with money. It didn’t help that her father used to deal with the rich and their crazy whims.
“He’s already given me a private jet,” Amandine said. “What else could there be?”
“I don’t know. But I’m sure he’s going to throw that in your face, too.”
Amandine sipped the hot tea. “Gavin’s never that crude. His upbringing isn’t like most people’s.”
“Of course not.” Brooke snorted. “The proof is in the kind of stuff he’s been giving you. A custom-painted Mercedes. A brand new art studio. Now a jet. What’s next, an island?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” But even as she said it, Amandine couldn’t help but wonder… Would an island be next? What in the world would she do with it?
“He always gives you things that don’t matter,” Brooke said. “Things that he can buy easily. Even a jet is chump change to somebody like him. It’s like a normal guy buying you flowers, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to give you what you really need.” She propped her feet on a stack of fashion magazines on the floor. “I mean, it was one thing when you only had yourself to worry about, right? But with a baby? What kind of father and role model is Gavin going to be? What’s your kid going to learn, watching a father who’s unable to love and respect his wife?”