Margot accepts it, taking a sip. “Mm. Thanks.”
I throw her a smile, then take my own glass of champagne over to one of the couches. I lie down on it, kicking my feet up. “I think my grandfather picked the books.”
She comes over, sitting on the same couch, but at the other end. I take the liberty of putting my feet in her lap. She makes a face and slides my feet to the floor.
“Hey!” I protest. I can’t suppress a grin though.
“Your grandfather had pretty strange taste. There’s a whole section of transcendental poetry wedged in there.”
My eyes find her face. “I have no idea what that means.”
A huff of laughter escapes her. “Neither does anybody else, so don’t feel bad.”
I cock my head at her. “You’re really smart, aren’t you?”
She turns red and rolls her eyes. “Shut up.”
“No. I mean it. Who the fuck has ever heard of transcendental poetry? And I’ve heard you call me privileged for growing up with private tutors, but you haven’t exactly missed any references. You are actually, genuinely smart.”
She covers her face with her hands. “Oh my god. A change of topic was needed like…yesterday.”
Smirking, I shrug. “Okay. Tell me one thing I wouldn’t guess about you just from looking at you.”
Margot peeks out from behind her hands, then relents. She drops her hands, still blushing but looking thoughtful. “Umm… Ooh. I like pop music. I mean, not all pop music. But like… Billie Eilish? I know every single one of her songs by heart.”
I chuckle. “I wouldn’t have guessed that.”
She sips her champagne, sneaking a look at me. “Now you.”
I pull my feet up again, this time resting them on her thigh. She scrunches up her face but doesn’t try to remove them. I consider that a win.
“I play polo.”
“Ugh, I could’ve guessed that. I need something good.”
I wag my finger at her. “You didn’t let me finish. I play polo, but only because one of my charities asks me to every year. And every fucking year, I get my ass beat. I’m ridiculously bad at it.”
She laughs. “All right, you win. At this game, not at polo. Because you apparentlysuckat polo.”
I sigh dramatically. “You wouldn’t understand. You’recommon.”
Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say, because she stops laughing. Instead, she fixes me with a frown. “I don’t like the way you say that.Common. Like there’s something wrong with everyday people. Why don’t you realize that we are what is normal? It’s you guys, the top one percent of the one percent… you’re fucking weird.”
Taking several gulps out of my glass, I pin her with a stare. “Maybe. Then again, I’m not putting on airs. I’m not pretending to be something I’m not, hanging out with people I wouldn’t normally meet. That’syou.”
Margot sits up straight, looking at me with a puzzled frown. “You get that I’m only here because my job told me to be, right? It’s important to me that you understand that.”
I roll my eyes and put my feet down on the floor. “This conversation has gotten very boring all of the sudden.”
Standing up, I upend my glass of champagne into my mouth and slurp it down. When I look back at her, she has this wounded look on her face, like I’m the one who is being a bully.
I’m not.
Am I?
“Come on,” I say, nodding my head to the door. “Let’s explore the palace. I bet you I can count at least six blades hanging on various walls.”
She wrinkles her nose but gets to her feet, following me around through room after room. She’s gone quiet.
