He winks. “You’re fucking right I am.”
Stellan guides me over to an older couple. He says hello, chats with them for a moment, then introduces me.
“This is Margot Keane, my girlfriend.”
My eyes widen a little. I glance at him with a startled look. We definitely didn’t talk about labeling this thing between us. The older couple look at me curiously as we shake hands.
“Hi,” I say, because I have no idea what else to say.
“You’re American!” the woman says, a little taken back. “How… interesting!”
My cheeks burn sixteen shades of red. She just made it clear as day that I am the weirdo, standing here in a dress I don’t own, on the arm of a man who isn’t mine. I nod dumbly, feeling like I want to crawl under a rock and never come out again.
This was such a bad idea. I watch Stellan’s face anxiously, trying to figure out when he’s going to pull the ripcord and bail out of this disaster.
It’s only a minute before Stellan excuses us, pulling me by the elbow as he moves away. He looks down at me, but never stops moving. “If we keep circling, it will look like we are on the way to talk to someone,” he confides.
“Should I leave?” I whisper.
That causes him to stop. “What? Why?” Then he glances back where we just were. “Oh, because of the Eldins? God no. I picked them as the first people becausethey will hate you no matter what you do. They hate me, to be perfectly honest.”
My jaw drops. “What?”
“Ja. I just wanted you to cut your teeth on them. Because it doesn’t matter if you are the most charming person ever or if you’re a nervous wreck… they are so old and so conservative that they won’t approve of you either way.” He slides his palm up my back, his smile genuine. “It wasn’t that bad, actually.”
A surprised huff of laughter leaves my lips. “It was terrible! Not to mention the fact that you sprang the whole girlfriend thing on me…”
He smirks. “What? You’re going to say that you don’t desperately want to be my girlfriend?”
I blush and roll my eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“I do.” His eyes shine with a mischievous light. “Are you ready to meet people who aren’t an absolute waste of space?”
I suck in a deep breath. “Okay. I’m ready.”
For the first ten people I am introduced to — as Stellan’s girlfriend, no less — I’m nervous. The next thirty or so go by in a blur. And after the next thirty, my head starts to spin.
“I need a break,” I whisper to Stellan.
He raises his brow. “Now? We are almost done.” he wrinkles his nose. “We just have to greet my grandmother and Prime Minister Finley. Don’t worry, they are almost always together at these things. My grandmother thrives when she feels like she’s important. Finley does his part by following her around and kissing her ass.”
I color faintly. “Okay. I just… I don’t know how you do it. Smile for everybody, remember mundane details about their lives…”
He shrugs. “I’ve had years of practice. Trust me, you get better at it the longer you do it.”
Taking a deep breath, I close my eyes briefly. “Okay. I can do one more.”
When I open my eyes, I find him looking around the ballroom. “I think my grandmother and Prime Minister Finley are holding court all the way over there.”
He takes my hand and leads me through the densely crowded ballroom. It’s weird to watch people realize that they are in the path that Stellan intends to take. They jump out of the way, apologizing profusely for having done exactly nothing.
We pass Pippa again, who is slow dancing with Lars. Her head is on his shoulder, her eyes are tightly closed. He holds her as carefully as if she were made of the most delicate glass. As if he is afraid to shatter her.
I tug on Stellan’s hand. When he looks back, I nod at them.
He doesn’t look the least bit surprised. “That’s been going on for years. They’re best friends. Or maybe they are lovers. Who can keep track anymore?”
He turns away and keeps going, and I force myself to turn my gaze toward the far corner of the ballroom. We pass by more people and then the path we are on clears. There in the corner of the room is a huddle of people, centered around the most petite figure, that of Stellan’s grandmother.
