Revel (Second Chance Romance #1)(26)

“Yes, I’d love to be a pediatrician,” Charlotte said. “Or maybe an obstetrician. I can’t decide yet.”

“Well, you’ve got time. That’s so admirable,” Anna said. “I wish Declan here had a clue as to what he wanted to do.”

Declan rolled his eyes, “Like you said, plenty of time to decide.”

Suddenly, they heard footsteps coming from the other room and with all the discretion of a bull in a china shop, there was Henry DeGraff. He was tall and imposing, a large man with a gruffness in his features. Henry was a man that suffered no fools, and Charlotte could tell right away that if she should be anxious about meeting anyone, it was him.

“Dinner’s not out yet?” Henry said. “I don’t have all the damn time in the world, I’m supposed to meet with a client over on Montagu at seven.”

“Henry,” Anna said, warning in her tone. “Now, be polite. We have our guest with us tonight. This is Charlotte.”

“Oh,” Henry glanced at Charlotte. “You’re the girl squatting in the carriage house?”

Charlotte gulped and Declan responded, “Dad. She’s not squatting. She’s renting it out, just like we do almost every summer. Jesus. Squatting?”

“It was a joke,” Henry said, but no one believed him.

An awkward silence ensued but it was broken by the entrance of Antonia carrying a large pot.

“Dinner’s ready,” she said. “Good evening.”

Charlotte was relieved to have a distraction. Henry DeGraff had really caught her off guard. She sensed maybe her being in the carriage house was not something he’d been consulted about. She wanted to kill Declan.

The four of them began to eat, the sounds of silverware clinking the only sound in the room for a few minutes.

“So,” Declan finally spoke. “How are things?”

Anna smiled, “Very good. I spent the morning with Helen planning the St Vivian Ball.”

“But it’s not until December,” Declan said. “You already have to start planning it?”

“Oh yes,” Anna said. “There’s a lot that goes into it. Helen was wondering if you could be one of the escorts.”

“What’s the St Vivian Ball?” Charlotte asked, wanting to show her interest in what was happening.

“It’s a debutante ball,” Declan said. “Probably the biggest one in Charleston. And boring as hell.”

“Declan!” Anna said. “That’s not true! It’s a beautiful affair, Charlotte. Don’t listen to my silly son. The girls wear these big beautiful white dresses and there’s dancing and food and everyone drinks too much, so the whole place is in a great mood.”

“You should go with me,” Declan said. “You can be my date.”

“She certainly cannot be your date,” Henry DeGraff suddenly bellowed. “You know good and well she’s not allowed at St Vivian. It’s for members only.”

Suddenly everyone was silent. Charlotte wanted to fall through a crack in the floor and never be seen again.

“Dad,” Declan said. “She’d be my guest. And since when do you even care? You hate the St Vivian Ball. You don’t even go anymore.”

“I’m just being honest,” Henry said. “You know how it is. This is Charleston. Unless Charlotte is from one of the old families or is the daughter of a member, she can’t come.”

“Since when did you become such a snob?” Declan raised his voice. “It’s a stupid dance where girls get paraded around like they’re part of some weird virginity auction.”

“You better watch your tone, boy,” Henry said, pointing his butter knife at his only son. “I don’t like how you’re speaking to me.”

“I don’t like how you’re speaking in front of Charlotte,” Declan said. “It’s pretty rude to come into dinner, not even acknowledge someone, and then tell them they’re not good enough to participate in your f*cking archaic ritual.”

Henry threw down his napkin, “You will not use such language in front of your mother. I won’t tolerate it. I think it’s about time you left the dinner table.”

“Well on that we both agree,” Declan said. “Charlotte, come on. I’m so sorry you had to witness this crap. And by the way, I was going to tell you this after a nice dinner, but I might as well say it now. Charlotte is also my girlfriend. And I was really looking forward to introducing her to you both. But for people who claim to be such experts on etiquette and manners, you seem to have none. So, yes. We’ll be going.” He stood up and offered his hand out to Charlotte.

She took it as she glanced over at Anna, who was giving her a sympathetic look.

“Charlotte,” Anna said. “I’m sorry about this. I hope we can maybe make up for it. My husband and my son, unfortunately, do this often. Just know it’s not you. It’s them.”

And with that Charlotte followed Declan out of the dining room and back to the carriage house.

********

“God, he pisses me off!” Declan yelled as they walked into Charlotte’s bedroom a few minutes later. He kicked his shoes off and collapsed onto her unmade bed. “He can be such a dick.”

“I didn’t take it that way,” Charlotte said, lying next to him. “I’ve been treated much worse by my customers. And he was just being honest. I didn’t take it personally.”