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Titania couldn’t tell.
    “And then there’s Titania’s charm,” Bea said in a deadpan voice. “He won’t be able to resist.”
    She glared at her sister.
    “Why don’t I show you to your room?” Jacqueline slipped her feet into her shoes and stood. “You can get settled in and comfortable.”
    She got up reluctantly, not wanting to spend time with her mother. They hadn’t spoken in years. Gigi had tried to make them come together in the past few weeks, but Titania had managed to avoid her.
    If only she hadn’t been kicked out of her apartment.
    And, really, she could find a room on her own. Sighing, she clutched her camera to her chest and followed Jacqueline.
    They walked in silence. Titania was just starting to relax when her mother glanced over her shoulder and said, “You did right coming to us. You always have a place here.”
    She never had when she was a child—she didn’t see how that could have changed. But she pressed her lips shut to keep from answering. She knew better than to antagonize her host.
    “And when you’re ready to talk about what’s really going on, I’m here for you,” her mother said as she continued up the stairs.
    She frowned, hurrying after Jacqueline. “What do you mean, what’s really going on?”
    “You aren’t telling the entire story.” Jacqueline smiled. “It’s all right, Titania. You were always a private person.”
    “I’m telling the entire story.” Mostly.
    Jacqueline raised her brow. “I’m your mother. I know better.”
    “I don’t understand why you’re taking that role now, after all this time,” she murmured.
    The moment she said it, she regretted it, even if it was the truth.
    Jacqueline’s face pinched with hurt and regret. “I haven’t been the best mother, have I? But I’m working on making amends.” She opened a door and looked at Titania as though she were waiting for something—wanting something from her.
    But she had no idea what that was or, frankly, if she wanted to give it. “What if it’s too late?” she asked almost against her will.
    “It’s only too late when you’re in the grave, isn’t it?” Regally, she walked away, leaving her at the door.
    Titania stared after her mother. Had she just been cursed or warned? Either way, it didn’t bode well.

Chapter Three
    His life was over.
    Ian lifted the bottle to his lips and took a swig. Even in his worst nightmares, he hadn’t thought he’d be done at thirty.
    Blindsided—both by the kid who’d run into him and God, because Ian was sure He was sitting on His cloud, laughing at him.
    Bloody hell his knee hurt.
    He drank more, willing the alcohol to numb the ache. His da’s whiskey was better than any of the painkillers the doctor had given him.
    The front door beeped and then he heard someone fumbling with the doorknob.
    Strange, he thought as he took another swallow. No one knew where he lived except his manager. His ex-manager, Ian supposed, because Guy had disappeared right after he snuck Ian out of the hospital and moved him in here. No career, no manager needed.
    The door slammed shut and there was a curse as whoever was breaking in ran into something.
    Ian hoped it wasn’t another girl wanting to help him recuperate. Damn women and their Florence Nightingale complexes. It was why he moved—to be incognito. The nurses at the hospital had been bad enough.
    “Dude, you in here?”
    He recognized that voice. Shielding his eyes, he sat up as the lights went on. “Turn the bloody lights off, Rowdy.”
    His supposed friend dropped a bag next to the couch and stood frowning at him, hands on his hips. “Why does your voice sound like that? Are you sick?”
    He hadn’t talked to anyone in—well, since he had that last doctor’s appointment. “Bugger off.”
    “Sorry, dude.” Grinning, Rowdy held his hands out. “I’ve come to stay.”
    He’d met Rowdy years before. They were both in South Africa. Ian for football and Rowdy for rugby. They’d met over a pint