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“I look forward to speaking with you after the formalities.”
If I’m here, because if there is any chance of leaving, then I’m sneaking out.
I smile and do my best not to look nervous.
“If you could excuse me.” Jobe stands and takes the stage beside the emcee. Sophia beams at her son, oblivious to the awkwardness at the table.
“Get in line, Dad,” Charlotte jokes. “We all want to chat with Penny.”
I smile, hoping it’s a compliment, only to meet the glare of Daphne. Scooping my champagne glass from the table, I take a few more mouthfuls, wanting the desired effect to kick in soon.
“Penny. Right. Didn’t I see you at Noah’s wedding?”
My cheeks heat.
Yes, it was the weekend I fucked your ex’s brains out. Had the best orgasms of my life.
“Yes, you must have. Good to see you again, Daphne. Italy agrees with you,” I say pleasantly.
“It does, only I miss home and am making plans to return.” Her smile is less than pleasant, and her eyes seem to calculate my response.
Why does she seem so interested in me? Does she know I’m remodeling Franklin’s house?
Jobe addresses the room, and I’m saved from an embarrassing response.
We sit quietly while he introduces the emcee and calls his mother to the stage. Sophia glides across the hardwood floor and hugs her son before giving her address to the room. Without peering at Daphne, I feel her eyes crawling over my skin as if she’s assessing my worthiness of being here. But Franklin is not here, and for all she knows, I could be Charlotte’s plus one. So, in the next break, I get chummy with Charlotte.
“Has your college break commenced?” I ask in a soft voice.
“I return Sunday night for exams, then I’m on break… although I’m nervous for senior year.”
“Nervous? I loved my senior year.” I smile at Charlotte as though we are bonding over our college experiences.
“My father expects me to prove myself,” she says quietly. “It’s been fun and games until now, but this year will be different. I’ll be studying all the time. I’m smart, but I’m no Franklin. Anything less than a high distinction is unacceptable.” She pulls a face. “Unlike these two goons.” She tilts her head in the direction of Byron and Brandon. “Both are riding their athleticism and hoping for the NBA draft.”
I gape at her. “They’re that good?”
“They think they are.”
Her expression makes me giggle. “Didn’t your father buy a team?”
Her hand taps mine. “I know what you’re thinking. The LA Sharks won’t pick up these dicks unless they prove themselves more valuable than other draftees.”
Charlotte knows her basketball, or at least she knows how her dad operates.
“Have you ever been to a game?” she asks.
I shake my head. “I don’t even know the rules.”
She grins. “I’m sure Franklin will get you courtside tickets to the first home game opener. You’ll soon pick it up.” She laughs low, and I laugh with her as though we are in on an inside joke. The joke is me being clueless about the Hendricks family, and I sense Charlotte likes that I haven’t done my homework.
I take another mouthful of champagne. My body begins to tingle.
Hallelujah.
Jobe takes to the microphone and sings his mother’s praises for all her hard work organizing the gala. At the end of his speech, the crowd applauds and cheers as Sophia makes her way to stand beside him. She thanks him and everyone in the room for all their donations and talks about a friend of her family who has been affected by a brain injury.
At the end of her speech, the room falls quiet.
