Bernardo saw none of her distress, since her attempts to cover it with polite smiles were a success. In Niki’s mind, the evening had to be a success or Bernardo might never bring her along again. Having listened to the gushing women bemoaning the fact that her husband had kept her a secret all these months, she was even more concerned with why. Why when he seemed so pleased with her, so in love, so fast to sweep her away from her father’s island?
The cocktails kept coming, so did the hors d’oeuvres. Everything was delicious, including the potent tropical drinks that slid down her throat as easily as cooling lemonade. Soon as Niki started to feel the buzz, however, she stopped drinking. She was wise enough to know that handling this crowd sober would be a lot better than handling it drunk.
