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My house has been professionally designed and I have a cleaning service here once a week so it’s pretty set, but there’s got to be room for Ashley’s things—Ashley’s life. It’s going to be an adjustment period for both of us, but probably more so for me. She’s always lived with someone, but it’s been a long time since I had to share a place with anyone for more than a couple of days.
I take a bit of time to fiddle around on my social media too, making sure to update all my profiles to show that I’m seeing someone. Social media is a pain in the ass, but an active online presence is necessary for my public image. I’m sure that before the end of the day, I’ll have plenty of people texting me to see what is going on—and by tomorrow night, I’ll probably get a call from Charlie or my dad, for the details.
This is a good way to get things started, laying out the first hand of cards to the playing field so to speak. I think that if we can make this work, I’ll be making my dad happy, and in the process, I’ll have a good chance of getting the position that I’ve been vying for.
I figure it should make Ashley’s family pretty happy, too. I make a great face for all these photo shoots that her father keeps doing, and having my family name attached to his run for city council is only going to help matters, not hurt them.
Yeah, this should work out great for all parties involved.
Chapter four
Ashley
“Whereareyougoing,all dressed up like that?” My mom wonders, watching me step into the room. She's sitting at the large kitchen island with Heather, looking at something on her laptop. The two of them have been crowded together, so that they can both share the same screen. The moment that my mom speaks, my sister looks up too, with a sweeping sort of motion, and then announces, “Alright girl! You look nice.”
“Yeah?” I hold out my arms and give a little twirl. The yellow fabric of my dress flutters out around my knees. It’s hard to feel sexy in anything when my dad is harping about maintaining a totally family-friendly image, but it’s easy enough to feel pretty.
And right now, I feel pretty. I also feel strangely excited about going out to eat too, even though I know that it’sjustGrant and we’rejustpretending. I’ve been hanging around him for years, mostly through Brooke and Sasha, and we’ve already become pretty good friends. But still, the excitement is building in my belly.
Maybe it’s the secret aspect of it?
Yes, that’s probably it.
I feel it again when my mother asks, “Who are you going out with?”
“I’m going on a date,” I tell them, unable to keep my voice as smug as I had been hoping. “I probably won’t be back until late.”
“Ten o’clock,” says my father, sweeping into the kitchen to get himself a drink.
“John, don’t be so ridiculous,” my mother says. She tuts at him, and then turns and tells me, “You go on and have a good time, honey.”
My father grabs a can of diet coke out of the fridge, popping the tab and cracking it open. “Who are you going out with?”
Heather gives me a sympathetic look. We’re both used to having to give our dad the detailed rundown of everything that we do. But in this one instance, it’s actually working to my advantage. I need everyone to know that Grant and I are going to be dating each other, and this seems like the absolute easiest way to do it.
“I’m going out to dinner with Grant,” I say. “And I’m not going to tell him that I have a curfew, because I’m twenty-four, and that’s absolutely ridiculous.”
My father’s expression sours. “Grant. The man next door?”
“Oh, that’s wonderful,” says my mother, clapping her hands together. “He’s such a nice young man.”
“He’s hardly a young man anymore, Mary,” says my father, looking unhappy about the whole situation. This is not how I thought this would go. “What is he, forty? Fifty?”
I frown at him, just a little bit. Then I turn back to my mom and sister, telling them, “Yep, he really is a sweet guy. And he can cook!”
“Trust me, I know. I finished off those fish tacos that you brought over yesterday,” says Heather, looking amused. “They were delicious.”
“You only get a free pass on that because I’m going out to dinner tonight, and won’t need to raid the fridge myself,” I say, cheerfully. Despite my father drenching our home with his tension, me and Heather’s relationship has never really been affected—we are still very close.
It’s one of the best things about living here, and probably the only thing that I’m going to miss when I move out. But we’re going to be just a few feet away from each other the whole time, so it’s not like I’m never going to see her again.
“Ashley, I don’t know that this is a good idea,” says my father. “He’s a lot older than you are— What do the two of you have in common? And think of how this looks.”
My mother grabs a nearby pen and flicks it at him. It thumps against my father’s chest and then clatters onto the floor. “Oh, hush, John! When was the last time she went out anywhere? Just tell her that you hope she has a good time and get back to your office.”
For a moment, I think that my dad is going to keep arguing—but my mother’s glower wins out. He lifts his hands up, a clear sign for giving up. “Alright, fine. I was just expressing concern for my little girl, but since that’s not wanted—”
“It’s not,” my mother tells him, smiling.
