"Andy, come here please," her father called from the living room after dinner.

She walked into the room reluctantly, preferring to spend as little time as possible with her parents. Knowing that they still considered her their innocent little girl made her uncomfortable but she couldn't stop thinking about Miranda nearly all the time. Even in the middle of a dinner conversation she found lost herself in memories of Miranda's voice when she made that hoarse sound of pleasure when Andy sucked hard on her nipples or buried her fingers deeply in her wetness…

Andy tried to remember that she was upset and even angry with Miranda, but at times she could only remember how much she wanted the older woman, the unattainable and yet so available editor. It was as impossible to stop thinking about it as it was inappropriate to do so in the presence of her parents.

"I just wanted to talk to you about Miranda Priestly's daughter, Elaine," her father explained, and Andy froze. "You're invited to some kind of fashion party, aren't you? Stephen seems to think that you are."

"I'm not going to the party," she said.

It was just a reflex. Even as the words left her mouth she knew that she couldn't avoid going. Miranda and Emily had other things to do that night but someone from Runway had to be there. It was just that as soon as she heard that name she wanted to run away. She didn't get it, she really didn't, but she knew that it was important to Miranda that she didn't even meet Elaine and now she couldn't even hear the name without a cold shudder down her spine.

Her father went on talking.

"Of course you're going to the party if you're invited. Stephen says Elaine is very sweet with the twins and a very nice young woman. She's part of the family, so he's hoping that she'll like it here. Make a few new friends, have fun…"

"You need to be nice to her," Andy's mother said, "but you will be, of course."

Andy gave her an empty glare, trying to hide the sudden rush of desperation.

"Why?"

"What do you mean, 'why'? She's Miranda's daughter and you liked her when you were little, don't you remember?"

"No," Andy grunted, "I don't. I don't remember her at all. I don't see why I have to hang out with her."

Andy's parents stared at her in disbelief.

"What's the matter with you? Miranda and Stephen are our friends and Elaine is a very nice person, that's why!"

Andy wanted to shout: 'But Miranda says I can't see Elaine, I don't want to see her, I just want Miranda to trust me!', but of course she couldn't say any of that. Andy knew that Miranda wanted her to keep their relationship – or perhaps 'affair' was the better word for it – a secret.

"Elaine's older than the twins," she muttered, "and she's older than me. She doesn't need a babysitter."

"Stephen thinks you two would hit it off well," her dad said, as if that was all that mattered.

"I would never be rude to her or anything if I happened to meet her some time," she promised, "I just don't see why I have to see her…"

"Stephen also mentioned," her dad said, looking out of the window as if he saw something interesting out there, "that Elaine appears to be gay, as far as he knows."

"So?" Andy said with an unpleasant feeling in her stomach, "So what if she is?"

"No, nothing," her dad mumbled, "It was just that it hit me… I was just, um, thinking…"

"It's none of our business of course," Andy's mom supplied, and she dared to look at Andy when she spoke, "and we don't want to jump to any conclusions but since you've never brought a boy home so far…"

"Mom!"

Andy stared at her parents. What were they, a couple of matchmakers?

"Well," said her mother, "maybe you aren't, but… we just want you to know that if you are, then it's fine, and maybe…"

"No!" Andy cut her off. "Listen, even if I'm gay I'm not going to date Elaine. I said I'll be nice to her, okay? But nothing more and that's all."

Andy stormed out of the living room and wished desperately that she could get her own place. But there was no rush, said her parents, why should she pay rent for some shabby little apartment when she could live comfortably in their house until she had decided what she was really going to do with her life? Because she wasn't going to work at Runway forever, was she?

No, maybe not. A part of her wanted to quit right that instant. She thought about calling Miranda and telling her to tell her husband to stop helping her parents run her life. Maybe Stephen and her dad had been planning it all along? 'When I get married, I will have a fine son who will eventually take over for me and you will have a daughter for him to marry…' It was just that Andy's parents only had her, and Stephen and Miranda didn't get the twins until years later. Andy wished that she had a younger brother, or even a sister, who could date one of the twins.

Andy sighed. She was not going to quit. And she was not going to call Miranda. What could she say? Surely Miranda wouldn't understand what it felt like to answer stupid questions from her parents when all she wanted to do was to tell them that yes, she was in love, with the most wonderful woman in the world and she only wished that they could both be happy.

***

Andy was not a party girl, normally, but working as Miranda's assistant meant that she had to go to all sorts of functions and, one step at a time, she eventually became used to it. She had even learned to recognize a few important faces, such as James Holt and other designers, and she felt quite at ease when she talked to them.

One familiar face she didn't want to meet, however, was the face she only knew from a photo she had seen once; the face of a woman whom she was supposed to stay away from or become friends with, depending on who was talking.

Andy was having a glass of punch when a voice behind her gave a warning.

"It's right about deadly."

Andy turned around and faced a smiling woman with long, curly blonde hair. The woman extended her hand, saying:

"Hi, I'm Elaine Robinson. Miranda's daughter."

"Oh, hi! We've met, like um, ages ago…"

A part of her wanted to run far, far away but another part of her told her that Miranda's behavior had been absurd and besides, Miranda wasn't even there so what harm could it do if she talked to the woman?

"I know. You're Andy Sachs. I remember you. And you work for Miranda now and that's why you're in desperate need of hard liquor."

It wasn't really true. Andy had learned that a drink in her hand at a party didn't do her any harm but she wasn't in the habit of drinking a lot or often. She got all the intoxication she needed from Miranda's sparkling eyes.

"Um, yeah… I guess so… So, what do you do, Elaine?"

"I'm a writer."

Andy gasped and felt her head start spinning. Why hadn't she taken a closer look at that photo Miranda had shown her? She hadn't been paying attention at all at that moment. Now she realized that she had seen photos of Elaine before next to articles and newspaper columns.

"Oh my god! You're… you're Elaine Robinson!"

"Yes," Elaine smiled, "that's what my birth certificate says."

Andy blushed and felt stupid. But how was she supposed to know? There could be more people with that name out there! For some reason she had not connected Miranda's daughter's name to the writer she admired so much.

She was angry with her parents for never telling her. Then she thought that they probably didn't even know. Miranda had probably never told them much about Elaine. Andy knew that it was mostly Stephen who was her parents' friend, not his wife. And maybe Miranda had been silent on the subject of Elaine even in front of her husband.

Now that Andy thought about it, it didn't surprise her much. She just couldn't quite grasp the fact.

"You're kidding. You write for like every magazine I love."

Andy smiled widely, completely oblivious of Miranda's request that she was not going to take any interest in Elaine. How could Miranda not have mentioned that her daughter was a famous writer? Did she not care? Did she assume that Andy knew already?

Elaine smiled, too, as if she was both very pleased and a little embarrassed about being recognized as someone important and admirable.

"I actually reviewed your collection of essays for my college newspaper," Andy went on, and Elaine cut her of by saying:

"Did you mention my good looks and my killer charm?"

The young woman smirked; her tone of voice was joking and light, but there was a strong hint of something unmistakably flirty in there, and wasn't that a rainbow-colored bracelet dangling from her wrist?

"No, but…"

Elaine must have sensed that it was best to steer the conversation away from herself and asked Andy what she was doing when she was not slaving for Miranda.

Andy thought it a little odd that Elaine wasn't referring to Miranda as 'mom' or something but she answered the question with a hopeful smile, if with a little bit of shyness.

"I want to be a writer, too."

"Is that right?"

Andy took a sip of her drink, searching for her confidence.

"Yes. I'd love to be a novelist one day, and write plays…"

"I should read your stuff… Why don't you send it over?"

Elaine was suddenly looking all serious and earnest, as if she really was eager to do something for Andy. Since she hadn't had any interested and competent readers of her 'stuff' after she moved back home to her parents, Andy accepted with joy.

Elaine was very different from her mother, so open and so smiling.

"I'd love to read it. I've got a good feeling about you, Andy. I just can't get over the fact that you're working for my mother, that's… whoa…! You'll never survive her."

Elaine laughed, or did she snort? There was something bitter and experienced, even blasé, in her voice and Andy became a bit watchful. How could Elaine know anything about what working for Miranda was like? And even if she had known, Andy knew more about Miranda than most people. Or at least she thought she did, sometimes.

"Gotta go," she said, and began to turn around.

There was that little laugh again.

"Okay. Well, it was very, very nice to meet you again."

Who talks like that? Andy asked herself as she looked around for someone else she knew. She sounded like she was almost flirting with me or something…

The idea was remarkable. Andy had never really thought about that possibility before, that a woman could flirt with her. What Miranda had done was, after all, not quite that. She hadn't smiled or asked interested questions about Andy. She had, in fact, behaved completely differently and yet Andy had fallen for her.

But she felt Elaine's eyes on her many times that night. She looked her way sometimes, just a very quick glance, and Andy couldn't deny that there was something in her that enjoyed the attention.

Elaine showed up at the office one week later. She stormed in through the glass doors as if she belonged there.

"Hi Andy, good to see you again." Her wide grin faded. "What's the matter with you, do I have something on my face that makes me look scary?"

Andy blushed, realizing that she must look petrified. She took a deep breath and tried to smile back.

"No, not at all. Good to see you, too. You're here to see your mother, right?"

Elaine laughed, making heads turn in the office. Andy's colleagues were no doubt dying to know how Andy could dare bring a friend in during office hours. Because someone who laughed like that must surely be a friend and not someone important…

"No, silly. I'm here to see you. I just wanted to tell you in person that I've read some of the stuff you sent me. Some of it is really good; you write well."

Andy would have loved to talk about her writing anywhere else except in the office. Any minute now, Miranda was going to return. Andy could feel it; she always did. And she was right.

Miranda, who had been away somewhere with Emily, walked in and a chilly wind followed in her wake.

"Elaine," she said coldly as she dropped her coat and bag in Emily's hands, "what are you doing here? Do you need me for something? Has anything happened to your sisters?"

"Not at all," Elaine replied, "I just came to see Andy for a minute. I was going to ask her out to lunch."

Miranda's glare shifted from her daughter to Andy.

"Andrea," she informed, "is not free to have lunch right now, she has a lot of work to do. As do I, so if you didn't want anything else?"

Elaine was going to answer but Miranda didn't stay to listen. She closed the door to her office and it wasn't until Andy began breathing again that she realized that she had been holding her breath for far too long.

"That's my loving mother," Elaine said with a sniff. "She's even colder than she usually is, you guys must have a lot to do here today. I should go, right? I'll call you some time."

"Andrea," Miranda called from her room.

"By the way," Elaine went on, "are you seeing anyone?"

Andy stared at her as if she had forgotten how to talk. She felt an unexpected longing for the time when the only possible answer had been a simple 'no.'

"Um," she hesitated, "I'm, um, sort of… it's, you know, complicated."

"Andrea," Emily snapped, "I don't think Miranda is referring to me when she calls your name!"

Andy had never been so glad to hear Emily's voice.

"Gotta go," she said, and hurried to Miranda.

Miranda's face was blank. Then she slowly pursed her lips.

"What were you doing talking to my daughter as if you know her?" she asked in a surprisingly calm and low voice.

Andy knew better than to think that she wasn't upset.

"We met at James Holt's party," she explained. "I didn't mention it because I didn't think it mattered. It's nothing to be upset about."

"But I am extremely upset about it," Miranda said.

She barely moved her lips when she spoke and she didn't look angry. Someone who saw them without hearing the words would only believe that Miranda was simply instructing Andy about something work related.

"Look," Andy said, exasperated, "we had to meet sooner or later. It happened to be at that stupid party and if I hadn't met her then, my parents and your husband would have made me meet her because it's important to them. I have told you before that I'm not interested-"

Miranda cut her off,

"I don't recall having asked for an explanation. You are not to see Elaine again. Those are my orders. Is that clear?"

Andy stared at her. Miranda was very good at giving orders and nothing could be clearer than what she had just said. She looked away without waiting for a reply, as if it was unthinkable to her that Andy could have her own opinion.

"That's all," she said.

"We have all the published Harry Potter books. The twins want to know what happens next."

"You want the unpublished manuscript?"

Andy was standing in front of Miranda's big desk, receiving instructions. It was the first conversation they had had in a couple of days and Miranda spoke to her as if she were explaining that one has to peel an orange before eating it, as if it was the most natural thing in the world that Andy had to get that book.

What's wrong with her? Andy asked herself, What is she trying to say? Is it too much to ask for, wanting to be a part of her life? Just because I hinted that I want to have more of her…

"Look", she said, "if this is about that stupid party… I've already told you that my parents insisted on it, I didn't have a choice…"

Miranda looked at her over the edge of her glasses.

"I'm talking about Harry Potter. If I wanted to talk to you about whatever party you are referring to, I would say so."

Andy refused to back off.

"I talked to her, that's all. I don't know why you're so upset…"

Miranda looked down at the photos and papers on her desk and began flickering through them as if she hadn't heard.

"We know everyone in publishing. It shouldn't be a problem, should it?"

Miranda looked quickly up at Andy,

"And you can do everything, right?"

Andy didn't reply. She knew that it was some kind of test. Maybe it was an attempt to fire Andy without actually saying so. If Miranda demanded impossible things of her, then maybe she would quit, and Miranda wouldn't have to have her around.

On the other hand, since when did Miranda need an excuse to get rid of someone? Andy supposed that she just liked to be…well, evil. Miranda had been overreacting ever since she mentioned Elaine the first time and, instead of admitting it, she punished Andy, using the twins no less. What kind of a twisted logic was that? She knew that Andy loved those two little brats as if they were her own little sisters and she knew that Andy would hate to let them down.

But Miranda must also know that what she was asking for was impossible – who could get an unpublished book?

Andy turned around without another word and left Miranda's office just as her cell phone rang. When Miranda took the call and began talking to one of the twins, Andy heard that there was something unnatural in her cooing voice. It was as if she was fuming inside, as if she was a volcano on the verge of an eruption.

Everybody in the office knew that they were walking on eggshells. They had no idea why Miranda was in a particularly difficult mood at the moment but none of them bothered to ask Andy. For them it was only natural because Miranda was a devilish boss and they knew and accepted it. Andy knew that it was just a cover. Her only problem was that she didn't know what Miranda was trying to cover.

And on top of that she had to get Miranda her steak in fifteen minutes.

Andy was running across the streets of New York, steak hunting, and calling everyone she could think of, asking them to make the impossible possible because it was for Miranda Priestly and surely they must know that no one could survive her ire?

But they didn't seem to get that, because no one was willing to even think about lifting a finger to help her.

Then she saw a passing bus advertising Elaine Robinson's latest work on the side.

Elaine.

Cars rushed past her and people had to walk around her as she stopped and blocked the busy traffic on the sidewalk for a moment. If anyone could get her hands on Harry Potter it would be Elaine Robinson. Andy really didn't want to call her but it was her only chance, she knew that. She also knew that Elaine wasn't going to refuse to help if she could.

Not that Andy was an expert on flirting – far from it – but the woman had been standing a little too close to her, hadn't she? And her parents seemed to think she was gay… and that look in Elaine's eyes when she came to the office had been a little too much like Miranda's 'I want you'-look.

Thinking that made Andy's hands ache with longing for Miranda but then she remembered that she was angry with Miranda, and besides, she wanted that book.

So she called.

Then she rushed back to the office, with the steak, and she was falling to pieces.

What does a girl have to do to win Miranda's heart?

No, she didn't say that. Because Elaine called, saying that a friend of a friend did the cover art for that impossible and so very important book.

And, later, when the manuscript was in the hands of the twins, Miranda looked at her as if she really was impressed, not that she'd ever say so, and Andy was relieved.

Or at least a little bit relieved. Was Miranda impressed by her as an assistant? Or did she realize that Andy didn't care one bit about her job; she cared only about winning Miranda's trust? Andy could only hope that Elaine was going to keep her promise not to tell her mother that she had helped Andy.

Andy murmured:

"So, um… will I see you tonight?"

Miranda didn't answer but there was a spark of fire in her icy eyes.

"No. That's all."