My Nicole is a star now, playing to ever-growing crowds. Sometimes her old friend Damien Bell joins her on cello; other times she plays alongside a world-famous musician, like the pianist Grigory Sokolov. But it doesn’t matter who’s onstage with her—she’s the one they’re all looking at.
No matter what kind of concert it is, Nicole always, without fail, plays the songs she knows I want to hear. “Tomorrow Is My Turn.” “Lovesong.” “Summertime.” Those are for me. They’re ours.
One day, many years from now, I know we’ll be together again. Until then, I wait.
I listen.
Acknowledgments
None of this would be possible without the love, support, and encouragement of my incredible parents: my father, aka my first and forever love (FAFL!), Shon Saleh, and my mother/best friend/angel on earth, ZaZa Saleh. I am so grateful to you both for going above and beyond to nurture my dreams ever since I was a little girl, and for your constant belief in me. Thank you for reading every draft of my every idea, for being the best parents and friends I could wish for, and for giving me a life filled with love.
To the readers: Thank you for bringing meaning to my every story. This is for you!
It’s such a wonderful feeling to be publishing my fourth novel, and I have two amazing women to thank for this dream come true: my editor, Krista Vitola, and publisher, Beverly Horowitz. Thank you for steering me so wisely, and for believing in Girl in the Picture when it was just a seed of an idea. Beverly, your continued support and guidance truly means the world. Krista, your editorial brilliance helped me take this book so many notches above the first draft, and I’m grateful to work with someone as smart and talented as you. Book #4 has been a blast—I can’t wait for our next one!
Thank you to everyone at Penguin Random House who has blessed this book with their skills: Dan for stunning cover design, Annette Szlachta-McGinn and Colleen Fellingham for their copyediting wizardry, Marketing and Cassie McGinty in Publicity for spreading the word about the book, and Jocelyn Lange for bringing it to foreign shores. I am thankful for all of you!
Many thanks to the world’s best agents: Greg Pedicin, Joe Veltre, and Lynn Fimberg at Gersh. I am so grateful for your support and guidance with all the projects cooking in my brain! You guys are wizards. And thank you to my awesome lawyer, Chad Christopher, who not only introduced me to this dream team but is also such an invaluable part of it.
Brooklyn Weaver, I can’t thank you enough for reading this book and deciding to sign me and change my life. Thank you for dreaming big dreams for my writing and pushing to make them come true! I’m forever grateful, and so happy to be with Energy Entertainment!
Thank you to the booksellers and librarians across the country who shared my books with readers and invited me to visit. I couldn’t do any of this without all of you!
Many thanks to my fellow YA authors, especially Kara Thomas, for honoring me with a wonderful blurb, and Jessica Brody, Colleen Houck, and Amy Plum for being so vocally supportive of my books—it means a lot coming from you writing dynamos!
So much love and thanks to my truly awesome big brother, Arian Saleh, for fostering my imagination while at the same time keeping me grounded with your love and friendship. And thank you for giving me a sister I adore, Sainaz Saleh!
To my incredible family, the Salehs and Majidis—I love you beyond words! And lots of love to my in-laws, Dottie and the Robertiellos!
To my family members in heaven: Papa and Mama Monir, Jimmy, and Honey: I love you forever and am so grateful for your influence on my life.
So much love and thanks to my honorary big sister (and maid of honor!), Brooke Kaufman Halsband. Your belief in me all those years ago was a life-changer, and there aren’t enough words in the dictionary for how grateful I am for your unwavering support and your incredible heart!
Heather Holley: producer, songwriting partner, kindred spirit, friend, and matchmaker! From the day we met, my world grew so much bigger, and I am so thankful for you.
Josh Bratman, thank you for championing my writing in such a huge way and helping me make one of my biggest dreams come true. I’m a better writer because of your insightful notes, and a happier human thanks to having you, Alex, Jordy, and the Bratman kids in my life.
Special thanks to Alex, Josh, and Jordy Bratman for your wonderful friendship and support. You guys are like family, and I thank you for welcoming me into yours!
Thank you to Chessa Donaldson for reading practically everything I’ve written since we met, and for your helpful feedback! Lots of love to you and Ross, as well as Dan and Heather Kiger, Jon and Emily Sandler, Alex and Lisa Tse, Mike and Seema Pietrocarlo, and the rest of the amazing group that I’m so lucky to have married into.