I floated down from the high with my legs still shaky, cleaned up in the bathroom, then collapsed face-down on the bed like a starfish and let sleep take me under. When I finally woke, the sky outside my window had already turned dark. A car door slammed somewhere below, followed almost immediately by my mother’s loud, bright laugh echoing through the house.

“Lila! Mom’s home!”

She didn’t knock. She simply pushed my door open with Damien right behind her, both of them dressed for something formal—Mom in diamonds, Damien in a sharp black suit that made him look even more severe than usual. “We have a charity gala tonight,”...