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But he does look good in that suit. His reddish brown hair is textured in a long French crop, swooping just over his suit-matching blue eyes. Tattoos sneak out along his collar and down his hands. He looks young but intimidating at the same time.
His eyes finally glance at me, realizing he should look at the woman he’s supposed to marry. To him, I’m just a small part of what he has to put up with to get what he really wants—my father’s power.
I narrow my gaze at him, his eyes turning darker, more cynical. He’s agitated just looking at me with his twitching jaw and tense fist.
“You could at least pretend to like me when everyone’s watching,” I whisper through a fake smile.
“Why? Everyone knows I’m not in love with you. And they’ll respect me more for not pretending, you spoiled brat.”
I roll my eyes and vow to make him pay for seeing me as a posh princess. I may have all the money I could ever desire, but most of my life I grew up with nothing. I’d gladly trade in my princess title for a little bit of liberation. My mind whirls with torturous ideas. One in particular solidifies in my head, but I’m not sure I’m brave enough to do it. We’ll see how dinner goes.
I gulp down the glass of my favorite wine in front of me, but it won’t be nearly enough to get me through this dinner. Nor will wine help me teach Lennox the lesson he desperately needs. So instead, I snatch his whiskey and down it before he can protest.
I expect another brat comment or to be scolded in some way for stealing his drink—a reaction, any reaction at all. But Lennox doesn’t even bat an eye. He was expecting me to behave like a child, which somehow annoys me even more.
River looks at me with raised eyebrows but doesn’t admonish me either. She may be like a big sister to me, but thankfully she’s not the type to tell me what to do unless it involves my safety. Drinking excessively may be stupid, but it most likely won’t cause me any harm other than a horrible hangover in the morning.
Lennox flags down one of the waiters. “Two whiskeys and another glass of wine.”
The waiter nods and then leaves.
I squint at him in confusion.
When the waiter returns, he places one whiskey in front of Lennox and the other in front of me, along with a refill of my wine. I just stare at my two drinks. I don’t know if I’m happy with my soon-to-be husband or furious.
“Why did you do that?” I ask.
He sighs. “You getting wasted helps us both. I don’t have to talk to you, and you won’t even have to remember tonight.”
“You’re a fucking prick.”
He shrugs. “Doesn’t change the fact that we’re getting married.”
“It does if I have anything to say about it.”
I pull out my phone and send a quick message, deciding to put my plan in motion after all. Then I turn my attention to River.
“Do you want my advice?” River asks me, looking from me to Lennox.
“Nope, not even a little.”
“Okay, then.” She smiles at me, trying to hide her own concern. There was a time we were inseparable and bluntly honest with each other. We often didn’t even have to speak because we already knew the other’s thoughts. That bond was broken when we were forced to spend much of our childhood and teenage years apart.
“Are you going to talk to me about whatever is going on between you and Beckett?” I spit back.
River frowns. “There is nothing going on between Beckett and me. We are happier than ever.”
“Bullshit. You two are more paranoid than ever.”
River’s mouth opens to speak for a split second—ready to spill whatever secret she’s hiding, but it snaps shut quickly, and she shakes her head.
I nod, understanding. It’s going to take time for us to get that trust back, if we ever do. Even so, she’s still the person I trust most in the world. Still, neither of us is ready to spill our secrets.
River and I make idle chit-chat through dinner. I ignore Lennox, and he seems happy to be doing the same.Well, that’s not true—Lennox is never really happy.
He always has a scowl of gloom on his face. He thinks he’s above everyone else around him, and it’s hurting him to have to talk to anyone. He’s a moody, surly grump. I don’t understand why anyone would want to be his friend. While River, Beckett, Hayes, Gage, and I make jokes and laugh, Lennox sulks.
If I do end up having to marry him, the only positive will be that he probably won’t speak to me. We’d live on opposite sides of a grand mansion. The only problem is the whole having to create heirs part.
