Anyone But Rich (Anyone But..., #1)(68)

Rich chuckled. “I don’t know if that’s what I’d call it.”

Iris was glaring at me with her arms crossed. “I’m bringing my Taser. And my nightstick. Make sure I’m sitting near them, okay? If they get out of line, I’m dropping them like a banana with one of those nasty gray spots.”

“Like a—what? Why does your mind go to such weird places?” I asked.

“What—do you expect me to eat a diseased banana?”

Rich was looking at Iris a little strangely. “You know, I can kind of see how you and Cade dated. I’m actually surprised you two aren’t still together.”

“Yeah?” Iris said stiffly. “Well, I’m not surprised. He can go screw himself for all I care.”

“And what about you?” Rich asked Miranda. “Why do you hate Nick so much? I never really understood. You two were such good friends, and then suddenly it was like world war three.”

Miranda took her coffee in both hands and looked down without a word.

Rich waited a few seconds and then turned to me. “Maybe it’d be better if I just gave you girls some time to look at this stuff on your own.”

I gave him a quick kiss and leaned in to his ear. “They’ll come around. I promise,” I whispered.





Chapter 26





RICH


Kira had tried to convince me it was too risky to invite her to the wedding rehearsal, but I wasn’t hearing it. I wanted her to be there. I wasn’t willing to compromise her wedding experience any more than we had to for this little scheme of ours. In an ideal world, we wouldn’t have to compromise at all, but those just weren’t the cards we were dealt.

Everyone was there. My parents and a small army of extended family. The media—though we’d managed to ensure they were stuck outside the gates to the property where the rehearsal was taking place. Even Iris and Miranda had come. Kira had said if I was going to insist on her coming, her friends should be here too or it’d look too suspicious. At least this way, it looked like I’d been relatively indiscriminate in my invitations. There would still be whispers, but a pending engagement and wedding were enough to keep them at bay.

Stella was glued to my side. As usual, we avoided physical contact in a way that probably looked entirely unnatural from a distance. Many old-money marriages were bordering on arranged marriage, though, so a loveless pairing wasn’t unheard of. Otherwise, we likely would’ve seemed more suspicious.

“My father is here,” Stella said quietly.

I scanned the room and found him without much difficulty. It took all my willpower to wave and smile casually instead of recoiling from the intense stare he was directing at us.

Her father was tall, thin, and imposing, with white hair and glacial eyes. I’d seen him in person only a couple of times, but it was a fresh reminder of why Stella was so afraid to come clean to him about her sexuality.

“You’re not planning on telling him tonight, are you?” I asked.

“I already told him,” she said.

My chest tightened like an invisible fist had taken me around the ribs. I stared at her in disbelief. “What? Why would you do that? Why now?”

“Because, asshole, this isn’t just about you. You may be ready to burn every bridge in the world with your parents, but I’m allowed to choose how my parents learn about this, aren’t I?”

I gritted my teeth. She was right, of course, but I didn’t like the surprise discovery. Especially not right now. “You didn’t think I might want to know about this so I could plan for it?”

She regarded me icily. “I could’ve said the same about Kira. I don’t remember being warned before you started showing up with her in public like you didn’t care if anyone would notice or start to ask questions.”

I closed my eyes and forced a calm to come over me that I didn’t feel. “You’re right. You’re a bitch, but you’re right.”

She favored me with a faint grin. “That’s fair. And to ease your mind, he’s not going to tell anyone. Probably.”

“What? Why isn’t he going to tell anyone?”

“Because he took the news better than I expected. It turns out there’s a girl connected to much more money and respect than even you and your family. My father always wished he had a son to pair with her, but there are rumors she’s not interested in men anyway. So . . .”

I smiled. “That’s good, Stella. That’s really good.”

She finally smiled back. “I know. She and I might have nothing at all in common, but for once, I won’t feel like I’m going against my parents’ wishes. Believe it or not, I want to make them happy. I always have. Maybe he won’t be too thrilled with me if it ends up not working out with this girl, but it feels like a new door is opening up anyway.” Stella gave a little shrug, and her smile widened.

I nodded. I really was happy for her. I couldn’t remember ever seeing her look as free as she did now, and I almost hated to change the subject, but I needed to be sure. “So he’s okay with us going through with this? Isn’t he worried about how this will screw up things between him and my parents?”

“He’s not worried. He said your father cheats at poker, and he’s always secretly hated the man. This feels like an appropriate punishment, according to my father.”