Greg chuckled. “It’s all a little much, isn’t it?”
“You could say that again.”
I pressed my lips into a thin line as I watched the two of them interact. I hated how friendly she was being, even though I knew it was how she was with every single person, no matter who they were. It could be the valet guy, the President of the United States, or the man I resented, she would always show warmth. I just didn’t want it to be with Greg, who was clearly making fun of this type of thing, when I had been so apt to show it off.
“So, what is it that you do, Greg?” asked Gabriella, before politely ordering a club soda and lime from the bar. I followed upher order with a double shot of whiskey, which had my mother raising a brow probably over how it was not even 10 a.m. yet and I was going for the hard stuff. Why have an open bar if you’re not going to use it?
“I’m a contractor,” said Greg proudly.
“Ahh, a man who likes to keep his hands busy,” said Gabriella with an impressed nod.
“Exactly. People forget the value of hard work these days,” he said, tilting his chin up slightly. I thought his head might explode from his growing ego that Gabriella was feeding.
“I agree,” she said. “What was your latest project?”
“I fixed up an old townhome in the center of Manhattan. Kept its charm, but added some modern touches to keep up with the times. The bones were good, but it was a hell of a project,” said Greg.
“I wanted to move in,” gushed my mother.
“It sounds amazing. Do you have any pictures?” asked Gabriella eagerly.
“You know, I just might.”
I knew he probably had an album ready to go on his phone, jumping at the chance to show anyone his “hard work.” Iwatched as he scrolled through his phone, Gabriella standing close and pointing at different photos. Her “oohs” and “ahhs” were genuine, but I hated the sound of them when they were pertaining to Greg, who was eating it up. I couldn’t take it anymore.
“Gabriella, I need you for something,” I said, interrupting their little bonding moment.
She looked up from Greg’s phone and raised a questioning eyebrow. I simply nodded toward the outside terrace behind me. She excused herself, leaving Greg shooting me a sharp look and my mother obliviously sipping her wine.
“What is so pressing?” asked Gabriella, trying to keep up with me as I stepped outside in the warm summer air. The whizz of golf clubs swinging sounded behind me as the tournament was set to begin. I watched as the golfers warmed up, ignoring her question. The jealousy I was feeling toward Greg pulsed through me. She hadneverbeen that nice to me.
“Is this because of your stepdad?”
“He isnotmy stepdad. Yet,” I snapped.
“You’re way too hard on him,” she said with a shake of her head. “He’s nice.”
“You don’t know anything,” I muttered, my anger starting to boil over. I had shared the smallest details of my private life, and she seemed to think she knew it better than I did. The worst part wasI knew she wasn’t saying it to get under my skin. She genuinely meant it, which just pissed me off more.
“Chandler…” she started.
“You know what? Why don’t you go shmooze Greg some more? I have some board members to talk to. You know…people whomatter.” I turned on my heel and walked down the steps where spectators had gathered, leaving Gabriella alone on the terrace.
Chapter 25
Gabriella
I watched as Chandler stormed off, a storm brewing over his perfect head. I hoped it would clear by the time he reached the board members because this charity event was important. I wanted it to go off without a hitch, since it was the first one without my father running it. By now, everyone knew I was Chandler’s right-hand woman, so impressions were everything, even if at first I wanted him to fail miserably.
Because of our business relationship, we had to put on an act, smiling for the cameras and pretending like we weren’t miserable around each other. When we stood on the red carpet together, I could feel the tension standing next to him, though we had stupid smiles plastered on our faces. I wished for a moment that he would dare to brush against me, but those days were seemingly over, now that I had pushed him away because of the pregnancy.
It was becoming harder and harder to do when a part of me wanted things to go back to the way they were. I hated to admit that I missed him, especially on days like today when he looked so damn good in a new suit. It was a cloudy blue color that set his eyes off from emerald green to more turquoise, a color I had never seen before. I had felt his gaze on me outside at the valet, and felt more satisfaction than I would have liked over the look in his eye. It was short-lived though, as if he suddenly remembered how cold I had been lately and that there was no chance he would be taking this white dress off me.
I was surprised to hear he invited his mother and Greg. I knew they weren’t on the best of terms, especially since he was one of the last to find out about their upcoming nuptials. I found them to be lovely people though, even Greg, the man he so very much despised. My being friendly to his family wasn’t something I did on purpose, but he took it that way, which was just ridiculous. His temper was a short fuse.
It was exactly the reason why I had been unsure of telling him about my pregnancy. I didn’t know how he would react and I was already confused and terrified as it was. I wasn’t sure I could handle a callous response. Plus, he struggled to be at peace with his own family, which was something I saw firsthand just now. How would that affect his ability to be a father?
I watched as he wined and dined the board members, a smile on his face. The one he usually put on when he was doing his best to impress. He looked so charming from up here. I almost believed it. They were eating it up though, which was all that mattered for today.
