Man of the House: A Dark Bad Boy Romance(21)

Normally, I would have been fine with that. I didn’t want to go on camera talking about my mom’s fake marriage to some age-inappropriate rich tech billionaire, especially considering all I wanted to do was f*ck that rich billionaire. I didn’t want to pretend like everything was okay when clearly everything was so far from okay.

Unfortunately, I didn’t know a single person aside from Carter and Mom, which meant I was stuck sipping a glass of champagne and standing off to the side, observing everyone around me.

After twenty minutes of standing there watching old people greet each other, I still couldn’t figure out what the charity was supposed to be for. I got some vague idea about public education, but nothing more concrete than that. I figured the actual charity didn’t matter to these people so long as they got the opportunity to show off how much money they had and to make new business connections.

The whole thing was gross and boring and I regretted showing up. Nobody cared about me, and I didn’t care about that, and that should have been the end of it.

Unfortunately, I was stuck in high heels and a dress that made me feel way too sexy at an event I really didn’t want to be a part of. I should never have let Carter talk me into this.

Too late for all that, though. As I sipped my champagne (surprisingly delicious), I slowly made my way over to the table where I would be spending the next few agonizing hours. Other people were starting to filter in, and I figured Mom and Carter would be busy for a while, so I might as well go sit where I belonged.

I found my spot after about ten minutes of searching and avoiding small talk. I didn’t know the elderly couple decked out in their militaristic finest sitting across from me, but fortunately they didn’t seem too interested in chatting. A waiter came by with some water and another glass of champagne, which I eagerly accepted.

“You look miserable.”

I nearly jumped out of my seat. Carter grinned at me as he pulled the chair out next to me and sat down.

“This isn’t my scene,” I said.

“No kidding. You’re under fifty and not filthy rich.”

“You’re under fifty too,” I pointed out.

“Sure. But I’m filthy rich.”

“What’s the point of all this?”

“About what you’d expect. It’s more of a business and publicity thing than anything else.”

I nodded not surprised. “Where’s my mom?”

“Bathroom.” He said, taking a glass of champagne from the waiter. Before I could ask any question, two men came up to Carter and started talking to him about steel prices in China. I tuned them about.

Ten minutes later, my mother returned. She sat down on the other side of me and smiled.

“Having fun?” she asked.

“Not at all.”

“I know, honey. But please try and pretend.”

“Do you like this?”

“No, not even a little bit.” She sighed. “When I signed on for this, I had no clue what the media aspect was going to be like.”

“Do you regret it?”

“Not yet.” She smiled tightly. “It’ll be worth it for us in the end.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

Carter leaned in toward us. “What are my two favorite ladies talking about?” he asked.

“We were just discussing how bad your breath is,” I said to him.

Mom smiled. “Nice to see you two aren’t getting along too well.”

Carter laughed. “Are you implying something, Evie, my dear?”

“Never.” She gave him an innocent look.

“Oh my god. This is really gross.”

The two of them laughed at me.

“Come on, honey. Lighten up.”

“I’m trying to, but you guys make it hard.”

Carter laughed but the lights in the room flickered, signaling everyone to return to their seats. He just grinned at me and leaned back in his seat as the waiters came around serving the first course. A speaker got up on stage and began to talk about the great social benefits of a strong public education system, and soon I completely spaced out.

That was how the next hour went. Mom and Carter sat there pretending to listen, though I knew Carter was on his phone most of the time, and I just picked at the food that they kept placing in front of us. I kept thinking back to earlier in the night when Mom and Carter were pretending to be married, Mom hanging off of his arm, and it all just made me so grossed out. I was making out with Carter too recently for it to be anything but totally crazy and weird to see the two of them acting like they were really married. Back at the mansion, I barely ever saw them together, which was fine. I knew in the abstract that they were married, but there was no real proof of it right in front of me.

Watching them together in front of the cameras as bizarre. It really hammered home that these two were married, Carter was my stepfather, and nothing was changing that.

After the first speaker, there was a short break, and then the next speaker went on. This time she spoke about the charter school system, and I got the sense that nobody really had any clue what this charity was supposed to be about, including the people that organized the event.

The whole thing was a sham. A gross, media-obsessed sham. After the second speaker was finished, I abruptly stood up. “Bathroom,” I mumbled to my mom and quickly walked away.