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He looked over at her. “What do you mean, ‘someone like me’?”
She shrugged. “You know. You’re a handsome man with all the money in the world and you’re single. I’d think that you’d have women beating down your door.”
He rolled his eyes and said, “Money isn’t always everything.”
She scoffed but didn’t say anything in response.Coulda fooled me…
They arrived at a lavish mansion several minutes later. Stella looked out of her window with wonder as large, iron gates opened for them and they cruised onto the estate. The front lawn seemed to go on forever beyond the winding road leading up to the house, which was probably the biggest house that Stella had ever seen outside of movies. She looked up at it with wide eyes as if trying to get it all in her vision at once.
“Wow,” she whispered. “This…this is ahouse?”
Richard chuckled. “Yes, of course, it is. What does it look like?”
“Honestly, it looks like the capital building downtown. Or maybe a museum. It’shuge.”
It was huge. Once they parked at the front of the house, she found herself looking at the doors so large that she imagined it took more than one person to open them in the first place. The driver opened her door and she got out, her eyes still on the front door. Inside, she could hear very faint music. No doubt, from the party. Richard took her by the hand and smiled warmly down at her.
“All smiles, love,” he said. “It’s showtime.”
She smiled back and mentally got into character.
They walked up the porch to the impossibly large doors. Richard paused for a second, then rang the doorbell. A few moments later, a woman in a bright red dress and equally bright red hair answered. She was smiling, but upon seeing Richard, her smile faltered.
“You showed up,” she said. Her eyes turned to Stella and her smile got tight. “And you must be his…fiancée.” She took another moment to look at them both, then stepped aside to let them in. “Come in.”
“Stella,” said Richard as they walked in, “this is my father’s wife, Rebecca. Rebecca, this is my fiance, Stella Durand.”
Rebecca’s eyebrows lifted slightly. “Durand? Of the Paris Durands?”
“Yes,” Stella answered. “I’m Sterling Durand’s niece.”
She opened her mouth in a silent “ah” and then said, “I didn’t know his brother had any daughters.”
“My mother is his half-sister. Lula? From Maxmillion’s second marriage.”
To Stella’s delight, she looked impressed but also suspicious. She narrowed her eyes a little and muttered to Richard as if Stella couldn’t hear. “You trained this one well.’
“Sorry,” said Stella leaning in, “Excuse me?”
She stared at her, challenging her. Stella wasn’t about to allow someone to insult her right in front of her face like that. Fortunately, Richard stepped in.
“It’s nothing,” said Richard. “You’ll have to forgive my father’s wife. She has a strange sense of humor.”
The fact that Stella was there was not sitting well with Rebecca at all and Richard was loving it. He hoped her head exploded before the night was over.
Rebecca kept up her tight smile and said, “Come. We’re having cocktails in the parlor.”
As she led them through the house, Stella caught Richard looking at her with what she could only describe as pride. He winked as she hooked his arm in hers.
The parlor was less a parlor and more of a ballroom. At one end of the room, there was a string quartet playing classical music that almost sounded unreal to Stella. All around were people in formal wear befitting a royal event and Stella didn’t recognize a single person there. She clung to Richard’s arm as they stepped all the way into the room, suddenly fearful that he would leave her there.
“You never said what the occasion was,” said Richard to Rebecca. Rebecca waved her hand nonchalantly.
“It hardly matters anymore,” she said. “I planned this weeks ago and with your father getting ill, I just forgot to cancel. You two should have some drinks and mingle. I’ve got a few people I mean to talk to.” She paused, taking Stella’s hand. “It was very nice meeting you, Stella.”
Stella just smiled as Rebecca patted her hand, then disappeared off into the crowd. Richard leaned into her and said, “Well done. I don’t remember the last time I’ve seen her that flustered.”
“I told you, I’ve got this,” she said. “How much you want to bet this party was to celebrate her getting your dad’s fortune?”
