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“You’re very lucky.” She sighs.
It occurs to me that while I had to auction myself, I would hate for this lovely, young woman to do the same thing. But her father is wealthy, and I assume she’ll never find herself in my kind of mess.
Wanting to change the subject immediately, I say, “I hear you want to study abroad next semester?”
“I do.” Her eyes light up. “Of course, now my mother is mad. She told me no, but my dad pays for everything. It’s up to him. Plus, I’m an adult.”
Mother/daughter relationships are complicated. At times, I’m suffocated by howmuchI miss my mom.
“Maybe she’s just looking out for you.”
“No. She’s a bitch. She’s still bitter because my father worked all the time. She’s remarried but keeps blaming my father for ruiningtheirmarriage.”
“Haven’t they been divorced for a while?”
“It’s been ten years!”
“Has your dad had a girlfriend in that time?” I hold my breath, preparing for an answer that will smack me sideways.
Why, I don’t know.
“No.” Jess shakes her head. “He says he’s never getting married again.”
That news tightens my chest.
Clearing my throat to get past it, I say, “When marriages end badly, people say that.”
Jess opens her mouth to respond, but it turns into a wide smile.
Spicy cologne hits me, and I’m spun around.
“I am so sorry,” Ash apologizes.
Emery stands behind him, looking proud. Wow, he got Ash away from his father.
“It’s okay,” I say to Ash but try not to look sympathetic.
He doesn’t need that.
He sends Emery a thank you grin and steers me toward the bar.
“Really, I didn’t mean to leave you alone for so long. Did Victoria find you? I asked her to keep you company while my father...”
“She did.” I smile at him. “And I met her husband, her brother, and his wife. Sylvia Preston came over to say hello, too.”
Ash’s face falls at what I hoped would make him feel better.
“And you were standing all alone in the middle of that.” He curses under his breath. “Fuck, I am so sorry. My father is a monster. I wanted you walking this room with me. You. Not him. That poisonous bastard cornered me. I’m going to have to add a layer of security. This is an expensive fundraiser, not a club. I don’t hire bouncers. I probably won’t make my numbers tonight.”
“Every table is filled.” I glance around.
“Yeah, but I always get more when I greet donors personally.” Ash signals a bartender, and a man brings over a bottle of what I know is very expensive champagne. “My father is trying to throw me off my game. He can’t stop me from meeting people, but he can get to me in a way that makes it hard to smile and focus on potential donors. My opening a surgery center is a nail in the coffin that proves I am never working for him.”
“How can a doctor not want to see children taken care of?”
“Because he’s pure evil.”
“Is he still here?” I tuck myself next to Ash.
