Begin Again (Again #1)(57)

A waiter offered us champagne, and I reached for a glass. Kaden followed suit. As usual, he first took a whiff of the drink and as the bubbles burst in his face, he narrowed his eyes.

“Sometimes you remind me of a cat.”

Kaden’s mouth twitched. “A cat? Can’t think of anything better?”

“There’s nothing better,” I replied, distracted as more people entered the foyer. They bubbled over in greetings, talking all at once, dropping lots of empty phrases that sent one unpleasant shiver after another down my spine.

They were all dressed to the nines—Kaden and I stood out.

“Crystal?” A high voice rang behind me, and I froze, then turned like a robot.

Standing before me was Brianna Mellery, a former high school classmate. She looked like she was dressed for a Hollywood film premiere, not for a benefit gala. Her shoes and shimmery dress must have cost a fortune.

“Brianna,” I said, hoping my smile didn’t seem fake. Once upon a time we’d been good friends, went to lots of parties together. We’d even looked similar, with our blonde hair and short skirts. But now I couldn’t see anything we had in common.

“I can’t believe you’re here,” she gushed, bending to peck a kiss on each check. “You look so … different. So casual. I like it.”

I raised an eyebrow. Yeah, right.

“And you’ve brought someone with you!” she shrilled, looking Kaden up and down, devouring him with her eyes.

He nodded: “I’m Kaden.” When Brianna hesitated to kiss him on the cheeks as well, he added: “Crystal’s boyfriend.”

For a second I must have looked just as confused as Brianna.

“How cute.” Brianna covered her mouth with her hand and let out an affected giggle. “You go off and move to the other end of the world and come back with a man like that. I’ve got to tell Lindsay. I was looking for her anyway—but come find us. We’d love to hear how you’re doing.”

With these words she strutted off.

I stared after her, and when she was out of sight and earshot, I turned to Kaden: “Crystal’s boyfriend?”

He lifted his hands. “Self-defense. I didn’t want her to think of me as fair game. She had claws.”

I couldn’t laugh. “You realize that she’s now spreading the word?”

Kaden grinned. “I don’t have a problem with that.”

“Whatever you say.”

“You do?” he whispered.

I didn’t answer right away, instead looked around the room. Though it was still early, most of the guests had arrived. A few shot indignant glances toward Kaden and me; others tried to hide the fact that they were whispering about us. No surprises there. I knew what conclusions people would draw when they saw us together at this event.

I took a big gulp. “No, I don’t,” I finally answered, though I could have sounded a little more convinced.

Kaden rubbed his hand on my back. But instead of calming me, his touch reminded me of his hands on my naked skin, and I immediately felt hot.

Until I saw my father. And felt cold again. Even in a simple black suit, he broadcast absolute authority. He was standing at one of the bar tables, talking with a man who later wandered off to chat with others. Without hesitation, I took Kaden by the arm and walked toward Dad. He was just lifting his champagne flute to his lips when he spotted us. His eyes widened, but he masked his surprise with a tight smile.

“How nice that you managed to fit this in.” He didn’t look at me, but instead fastened his eyes on Kaden.

“This is my roommate, Kaden,” I said, trying not to let his frown unnerve me. “Kaden, this is my father.”

“Nicholas Harper,” Dad introduced himself and reached out his hand to Kaden. They shook, and sized each other up.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir,” Kaden responded.

“You live with my daughter?”

“Dad! We’re just roommates!” I cried, and felt myself blushing.

“Yes I do, sir. She rents a room in my apartment.” Kaden’s voice was strong, his attitude self-assured but easygoing. If he was feeling intimidated, he didn’t let on.

I’d never imagined being in such a situation. Dad had never been interested before in what I did or who I hung out with. During the week he worked like crazy, and on the weekend I was always out and about. We’d lived together for years and never really got to know each other.

“Nicholas! I’ve been looking for you everywhere.” An older man had stepped beside Dad and laid a hand on his shoulder.

“Francis!” Dad exclaimed. “Great that you could make it. Can I offer you a glass of wine? But now I remember—you always preferred scotch, right?”

My father nodded to us again before guiding his business partner toward the bar.

“That wasn’t bad at all,” Kaden said, leaning his arms on the table in front of us.

“Mh hm,” I responded, unable to evaluate this encounter. Yes, Dad had met Kaden—but did he also understand that I hadn’t come here as a favor for him and Mom. Quite the opposite? I thought my outfit and Kaden’s tattoos would make it pretty clear on their own, but that hadn’t worked. Frowning, I put down my champagne glass and rubbed my finger around its edge till it squeaked.