Giana delicately folds her hand into the crook of my arm. The deep purple dress she’s wearing complements her dark skin. Her curly hair hits just above her shoulders. She blows every other woman in the room out of the water, but that’s only because Brielle isn’t here.
I check us in and find our table, pulling her chair out for her.
“Do you want a drink or anything?”
“The table wine is fine. Sit,” she says, patting the chair next to her.
I pour us each a glass of merlot from the bottle on the table and nearly jolt out of my seat when her hand lands on my thigh.
She removes her hand before I have a chance to and takes a sip of her wine.
The social hour seems to last an eternity. I take an hors d’oeuvres on the way by and two glasses of champagne.
Giana knocks back her glass before I’m even halfway done and collects another from the waitstaff as he traverses the room. The ballroom is packed with people, all vying for their own agendas. Everyone around me is playing some sort of game to get something they want. I’m probably one of the youngest members in the room, which leads people to underestimate me. They speak to me like they’re impartingsome great wisdom when, in reality, they sound like a bunch of self-glorifying asses.
I really do hate these things.
Finally, the lights dim a couple of times, and everyone moves to take their seats. Giana takes a third—or fourth—glass of champagne before we make our way into the dining hall. The first of the speakers gets up, talking about all the amazing things the governor has done for us.
Giana’s hand caresses the back of my neck, her fingers threaded into the hair at the back of my head.
“Stop now,” I tell her, pulling away from her for the third time tonight.
“Your mother didn’t mention that you were seeing someone,” she says casually. “It can’t be that serious if you haven’t even told your family.”
“What makes you think that I’m with somebody?” I ask. She eyes me with bemusement, one brow raised. My skin heats, and I scratch the back of my neck. “It’s serious to me.”
“Then why am I on your arm tonight and not her?”
I take a sip of my wine, stalling. I’m well aware that anything I say has a chance of making it back to my mother. “It’s complicated.”
She places her hand on my thigh again. “I can handle complicated, Damian. We had a really good time last time.” She smirks, recalling the last event that I brought her to or, more specifically, how that night ended.
“I wasn’t involved with someone else last time.” My voice is getting colder. I remove her hand with a stern look.
“Damn. Did Damian Edgerton go and fall in love or something?”
I don’t answer her. I can’t. Not honestly anyway.
The speaker at the mic drones on, and I focus my attention on him, as if I actually give a shit what he’s talking about.
My foot taps on the floor, my knee bouncing with pent-up energy. I just want to leave, to get home to Brielle.
But she isn’t waiting for me at home. She doesn’t live there, even though she spends almost every night in my bed. When I get back to my apartment tonight, it’ll be to the sound of silence, a cold bed waiting for me.
A photographer comes to our table with a large camera around his neck. Giana pulls in close to me, her perky tits brush against my arm. Her hand goes to the back of my chair instead of my shoulder. She smiles at the camera, but as soon as he’s got his shot, she backs up again.
She plays the part for the rest of the night. Hanging on my arm, engaging in conversations, smiling and laughing at the not-funny jokes we have to listen to from the social elite.
“Are you ready to get out of here?” she asks quietly, her mouth pulled into a tight smile.
“I’ve been ready since we got here.”
A couple starts to approach us, but before they can get to us, I spin her around and head for the door. I’m not wasting another second making inane small talk with these people.
The valet brings my Mercedes around quickly. I open the door for her before rounding the car. Twenty minutes later, I pull up to her house and wish her a good night.
“One last chance. Are you sure you don’t want to come inside?”
