AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“They don’t teach life lessons at Georgetown,” he replies deadpan and raises his eyebrows at me.
If this is supposed to make me feel sorry for him or even Darren, it doesn’t, but he doesn’t give me a chance to respond. He tips his empty glass in my direction. “Stay out of trouble, Evangeline.” With a wink, he heads in the direction of where Darren is having an animated conversation with a group of guests.
Alistair is getting inside my head, because I think about how Darren harbors deep resentment towards his father, and I’m trying to make sense of it. I know I shouldn’t be thinking about this – not tonight – not ever again, but the Kerry Walker I knew – well, he wasn’t my father – far from it. He was just a man who loved Emerson, and in turn, inspired a love of Emerson in me.
The group laughs at something Darren says, pulling my attention back to them, and a woman with auburn hair and an emerald-green A-line dress touches his arm. This is a different side of him that I’ve never seen; charming and warm, albeit the slightest bit tight. He grew up in this life, whether he rejected it or not, and he’s still one of them… and it is all the more apparent that I am not. I take a sip of my champagne when I feel someone stand beside me.
“And to think he’s only scratching the surface of his potential,” Rausch says close to my ear. His cologne smells like deep woods and dark caves.
He’s turning a glass tumbler of something amber around in his hand as he watches Darren with a satisfied smile on his face, almost as if he’s a proud parent.
He looks very different in black tie – almost handsome. I begin to wonder if Rausch is a wolf or a shark.
Frustrated, I pull the mask from my face. “I suppose these do little to provide anonymity,” I say with frustration while tucking it into my purse.
Rausch makes a throaty noise. “I don’t need to see your face to know it’s you.”
Ignoring his comment, I turn back towards the crowd to avoid letting him know that he’s getting to me. Rausch is a hard read. Because of that, just his presence in the room makes me uncomfortable.
“Did Darren pick this out?” he asks, pointing to my dress.
I glare at him with a look that says, do you think I would pick this out on my own?
Rausch laughs. “Well, he always did like flaunting his trophies.” He shoves a hand in his pocket and surveys the room.
“He looks like he’s raising a lot of money for the foundation.” I move around the edge of the room towards the table displaying the silent auction. “Isn’t that what you wanted?” I muse.
“Among other things.”
I look at the cards on the table, displaying items such as plastic surgery with a top-notch L.A. surgeon, a private tour of the museum, lunch with a famous actor, a vacation rental in Aspen, a trip to Paris, the items seem endless.
“Jesus,” I whisper.
“All the wealth in this room must be good for something,” Rausch challenges.
“We both know why you're talking to me, and it’s not because you find my company enthralling.”
“Ah well, you’re wrong. I do find your company enthralling, Ms. Bowen.”
“Mrs. Walker,” I correct him.
I feel him bristle next to me. He lets out a long sigh. “Darren’s a child, he still thinks with his cock.”
“Don’t all men?”
Rausch shrugs. “True men know when not to listen.”
“I just want my money and to move on, not to be some chess piece between you and Darren.” I narrow my eyes at him.
“You married into the wrong family for that, I’m afraid.”
There’s an announcement at the podium and everyone turns their attention to the front of the atrium where Audrina Ellwood stands, looking perfectly poised. The voices in the room haven’t died down enough for me to hear all of it, but I’m able to catch the end.
“She has received many accolades and at such a young age. Please help me in welcoming a very talented violinist, Ms. Noelle Kennedy.”
As everyone claps, a young woman steps to the front of the courtyard wearing a beautiful black strapless gown, with a violin propped to her chin. She holds the bow high and looks at the strings with her brows furrowed instead of looking at the crowd as if she’s mustering up some inner strength. As soon as the bow hits the strings, music fills the courtyard like a rushing avalanche, and there is not one person that doesn’t look affected by it.
“What do you say we get out of here?” Darren surprises me by whispering in my ear, and I look around to see Rausch has disappeared just as easily as he had appeared.
