Crazy Rich Asians

“I just came for a summer vacation. Everyone here assumes that Nick and I are a done deal, that we’re going to run off and tie the knot tomorrow or something. Nobody knows that marriage is something we’ve never even discussed.”

“Really, you haven’t?” Sophie asked in surprise. “But don’t you ever think about it? Don’t you want to marry Nick?”

“To be completely honest, Nick is the first guy I’ve dated who I could imagine being married to. But I was never raised to believe that marriage was supposed to be my life’s goal. My mother wanted me to get the best education first. She never wanted me to end up having to wash dishes in a restaurant.”

“That’s not the case over here. No matter how advanced we’ve become, there’s still tremendous pressure for girls to get married. Here, it doesn’t matter how successful a woman is professionally. She isn’t considered complete until she is married and has children. Why do you think Araminta is so eager to get married?”

“Do you think Araminta shouldn’t be getting married, then?”

“Well, that’s a difficult question for me to answer. I mean, she is about to become my sister-in-law.”

Rachel looked at Sophie in surprise. “Wait a minute … Colin is your brother?”

“Yes.” Sophie giggled. “I thought you knew that all along.”

Rachel stared at her with renewed wonder. “I had no idea. I thought you were Astrid’s cousin. So … the Khoos are related to the Leongs?”

“Yes, of course. My mother was born a Leong. She was Harry Leong’s sister.”

Rachel noticed that Sophie used the past tense in talking about her mother. “Is your mother no longer around?”

“She passed away when we were kids. She had a heart attack.”

“Oh,” Rachel said, realizing why she felt a connection with the girl she had met only hours earlier. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I understand now why you’re so different from the other girls.”

Sophie smiled. “Growing up with only one parent—especially in a place where everyone goes to such great lengths to present a picture-perfect family—really sets you apart. I was always the girl whose mother died too young. But you know, it had its advantages. It allowed me to get away from the frying pan. After my mum died, I was sent to school in Australia, and I stayed there all through uni. I suppose that’s what makes me a little different.”

“A lot different,” Rachel corrected. She thought of another thing that made her like Sophie. Her candor and complete lack of pretension reminded her so much of Nick. Rachel peered up at the moon, and this time, the rabbit boy didn’t look so alone anymore.

14

Astrid and Michael

SINGAPORE

The minute Harry Leong’s Armani-suited security men entered her hospital room and did their usual sweep, Astrid knew that she had been found out. Minutes later, her parents rushed into the room in a huff. “Astrid, are you okay? How’s Cassian? Where is he?” her mother asked anxiously.

“I’m fine, I’m fine. Michael is with Cassian in the children’s ward, signing his release forms.”

Astrid’s father eyed the elderly Chinese woman a few feet away vigorously rubbing Tiger Balm onto her ankle. “Why did they bring you to a public hospital, and why on earth are you not in your own room? I’m going to tell them to move you immediately,” Harry whispered irritatedly.

“It’s okay, Daddy. I had a slight concussion, so they just put me in this ward for monitoring. Like I said, we’re about to get released. How did you know I was here?” Astrid demanded, not bothering to hide her annoyance.

“Aiyoh, you’ve been in the hospital for two days without telling us, and all you care about is how we found out!” Felicity sighed.

“Don’t get so kan cheong, Mum. Nothing happened.”

“Nothing happened? Cassandra called up at seven this morning from England. She scared us half to death, making it sound like you were Princess Diana in that tunnel in Paris!” Felicity lamented.

“Just be glad she didn’t call the Straits Times,” Harry added.

Astrid rolled her eyes. Radio One Asia had struck again. How in the world did Cassandra know about her accident? She had specifically told the ambulance driver to take her to General Hospital—not one of the private hospitals like Mount Elizabeth or Gleneagles—so that she might avoid being recognized. Of course, that hadn’t worked.

“This is it. You are no longer allowed to drive. You are going to get rid of that lousy Japanese car of yours and I am going to assign Youssef to you from now on. He can use one of the Vanden Plas,” Harry declared.

“Stop treating me like a six-year-old, Daddy! It was such a minor accident. My concussion was from the air bag, that’s all.”