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“We look like we just came hitchhiking off the highway,” I hiss back. Apparently my voice is louder than I think because the hostess coughs to hide her chuckle.
She gestures towards a table against a far wall with a kind smile. Leaning forward towards me, she drops her voice, “There’s no dress requirement to enter. The owner shows up in sweats half the time, as Mr. Ravenscroft can confirm. Ignore the others.”
Somehow knowing the owner shows up here in similar clothes to us makes it a little more bearable. Until she walks away and I notice several people staring at us in confusion. Mandatory clothing might not be apparent, but it seems to be expected among the guests.
A server comes over sporting the same black attire the hostess is, grinning as he recognizes Thorin. “Good evening, my name is Andrew and I’ll be taking your order. Can I interest you in our specials?”
Thorin shakes his head. “Can we have two burgers and chips and salsa?” He looks at me. “Is that alright with you?”
“Y-Yes,” I stutter. The waiter writes down our order and takes off to the kitchen. Leaning forward, I lower my voice, “Is that even on the menu?” Nothing was handed to us so I have no idea what they have to drink or food wise.
Thorin tips the pitcher of water into my empty glass with a smile. “No. But it’s really fucking good. I order it every time I come here. Usually it’s with King so they’re used to what we like. The owner, my friend Lincoln, usually eats the same as well, but sometimes goes for a filet mignon. But it’s not unusual for the kitchen to receive random orders. They oblige most of the time depending on the customer.”
Well, at least that’s fancy. After being in the school working to remove spray paint, I definitely don’t need a pop or alcohol at the moment. Water seems the best course of action for my parched lips. I raise the glass up, clinking it with Thorin’s, as I try not to let everyone’s gaze overtake my anxiety.
“What’s on the agenda for tomorrow?” Thorin asks. “Anything new in the world of Hastings Center?”
My face screws up in annoyance before I can stop my weary muscles. “I’m not sure what Dad’s doing. I have a few meetings with some college students who want to get into political speech writing so they can ask questions for some essays they’re doing. Their professor was one of mine so I offered to help if need be.”
Thorin smiles. “That’s really nice of you–”
“I didn’t realize this place let riffraff in,” a snotty voice bellows towards us, drawing the attention of most people in the room. I glance over at the man making a beeline towards us. He’s wearing a tan suit, which makes his already pale skin appear sickly. His light brown hair is slicked back with a little too much gel, and he has a giant gold pinky ring on his finger the size of a quarter.
Thorin’s face doesn’t change from its calm expression, though his eyes grow thunderous. “Donner.”
Oh. So this is the man trying to turn his hotel chain into a rival of Ravenscroft Hotels. Somehow I thought Gabriel Donner would look more polished and less like a greasy rat.
The man in question turns his gaze to me, green eyes narrowing as he takes in my attire. “I didn’t realize Bexley Hastings was taking on charity cases in terms of people.”
I frown. When people talk for me, making assumptions, it drives me insane. I hate being told what I’m thinking or doing by someone who has no idea who I am as a person. Leaning back in the soft chair, I cross my arms over my chest and level a glare that would make King shift in his seat. “I’m sorry, I don’t know who you are. You clearly know me. And if youdidknow who I am, you clearly have a poor representation of my values I find in people. I’m here with Thorin as a friend and on a date.” I purse my lips as I rake my eyes over him, finding him lacking and conveying as much with my look. “If you want to whip your dick out and have a measuring contest, be my guest, but leave my name out of it. I have no interest in knowing how small you are.” I reach for my water glass again, my fingers barely refraining from trembling as I take a sip, solely staring at Thorin and dismissing Donner immediately.
People begin to murmur, no doubt overhearing what I said.
“Are you being paid to sit here?” Donner throws at me. “Is he paying for your time?”
My nose twists up in distaste. “You mean like an escort? No, he’s not.” I lean back in my seat. “Why are you still standing here? You’re interrupting us.”
“Sir,” the hostess from earlier says, tapping Donner on the shoulder. “You’re causing a disruption and you’re being asked to leave the premises.”
He twirls around at her, eyes bulging out of his head in anger. “I’m not causing a disruption!Theyare!”
Thorin reaches across the table and nabs my staking hand. All the adrenaline suddenly leaves me in a rush as my confidence waivers. Starting a scene is the last thing I want to do. Yes, Donner started it, but I want to curl up and hide in my chair now that everyone, including the staff, are making obvious attempts to eavesdrop.
Donner stalks off, the hostess following closely behind him. She tosses us a tight smile before ensuring he actually does leave and not just loiter in the main foyer. Everyone surrounding us slowly goes back to their dinner, occasionally shooting us curious glances. Murmurs begin to erupt in the silence, which thankfully helps to settle my nerves now that there’s noise from other patrons.
“You surprise me,” Thorin says in a calm, low voice.
My eyes dart to him in surprise. “What do you mean?”
“You defended yourself and our date.” He pauses, swallowing roughly. “You defendedme. I thought I was going to have to be the one defending your honor. Should have known you’re capable of taking care of yourself in any situation, even if a person is making you terribly uncomfortable.”
I pull my hand away from his to push the bridge of my glasses up my nose and shrug. “I’m used to having to defend my choices on occasion. Detrick often tells me I should have been a lawyer with how easily I can emasculate some men who try to intimidate me. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like confrontation or being put in a position where I need to stand up for myself, but I learned how to do that a long time ago. Girls are mean so you either drown or rise up from their torment.”
“Still, he went after you and that’s no small thing.” Thorin’s jaw clenches tightly. “Going after me is one thing, but he didn’t need to stoop so low to go after your character.”
A small laugh escapes me. “Of course he did. He’s pissed off that his smear campaign against you isn’t working. If it was, I wouldn’t be here. Essentially, I’m undoing every bad piece of press out there about you by simply giving you my time. As much as I don’t like being known as the Princess of Philanthropy, people do take notice of what I do and where I spend my time. If the rumors about you were true, I wouldn’t be here.” A stiff smile escapes as my voice tightens, “Besides the entire world knows you have an ex-wife now and it’s me.”
Now that I think about it, people were probably looking our way wondering what in the world we’re doing together if we’re divorced. Maybe this new development about the elusive Thorin Ravenscroft is enough to capture people’s attention and lead them away from the whole drug abuser angle the media is trying to push.
