Today the sun was out and about. She was heading back home from her annual Venice branch inspection, like every other year. She suddenly received a call. Ramona grinned and picked up the phone, "Hey, Gor Gor. What's up? You want to know if I think you should bring Rachel back to Singapore,". Patsy made a poolside call to Jacqueline Ling granddaughter of philanthropist Ling Yin Chao in London, knowing full well that Jacqueline would have a direct line to Cassandra Shang Nicholas Young's second cousin , who spent every spring at her family's vast estate in Surrey.
And so this exotic strain of gossip spread rapidly through the levantine networks of the Asian jet set, and within a few hours, almost everyone in this exclusive circle knew that Nicholas Young was bringing a girl home to Singapore.
To take things to the next level? This is just a summer holiday. You've been dating seriously for almost two years now. You're thirty-two, and up till now, you have never brought anyone home. This is major. Everyone is going to assume that you're going toβ".
And, I can guarantee you it's on Rachel's mind. My friends, the island, everything. Can't I go on holiday with my girlfriend without it becoming a diplomatic incident?
Ramona paused for a moment, trying to assess the situation. This was the most serious her brother had ever gotten with anyone. Even if he wasn't ready to admit it to himself, she knew that on a subconscious level, at least, he was taking the next crucial step on the way to the altar. But that step needed to be handled with extreme care. Was Nicky truly prepared for all the land mines he would be setting off? He could be rather oblivious to the intricacies of the world he had been born into.
