“Oh?” Kelsey smirked. “Dr. Rawlings is your fiancé? I thought the rumors weren’t true. I figured you had better taste than that, but I suppose you don’t know someone all that well after only going on one study abroad with them over the summer.”
Tatiana’s face was screwed up into an ugly mask.
Kelsey glanced at me and looked me up and down. “And if he’s your fiancé, then who is that? He’s who I would have thought you would bag.”
Tatiana scowled at Kelsey. “Sebastian is my soon-to-be stepson.”
Kelsey winked at me. “Maybe I’ll have to bag him for myself. You can be my elderly mother-in-law.”
“We are the same age,” Tatiana hissed at Kelsey and dug her nails into my father’s arm.
“Now, Tatiana, Kelsey’s just joking with you,” my father said in a patronizing tone. “She just returned from Europe. She’s probably been dying to converse in English.”
Kelsey preened. “After speaking German all year and then, of course, Italian when I travel, it’s quaint to speak English for a spell.” She smiled at me. “You should come to dinner with us. My treat.”
“Unfortunately, we have reservations.”
“Why don’t we all go together?” my dad insisted, clapping a hand on Kelsey’s father’s shoulder. “My son, Sebastian, is a billionaire. I’m sure he doesn’t mind paying.”
I didn’t mind anything if it meant I could keep Alfie.
* * *
Though the reservationwas during off-peak hours, the restaurant was fairly busy. But after I handed over my American Express black card, the hostess was more than happy to secure us a bigger table.
My father sat Kelsey on one side and Tatiana on the other. However, as soon as the wine arrived at the table and we had ordered appetizers, he all but ignored his fiancée.
Even though Tatiana’s family told her how great she’d looked on stage and how proud they were of her, she became angrier and angrier as the lunch progressed. It was supposed to be her day. However, instead of fawning over his fiancée, my father asked Kelsey about Germany and how she was liking Europe. Kelsey showed everyone photos of her time in Europe, one of which just happened to be a skimpy swimsuit photo.
It was cringey and embarrassing. Kelsey’s parents were mostly silent while my father flirted with their daughter.
“How are you enjoying the food?” I asked Kelsey’s parents.
“Very nice. Thank you so much for treating us,” her father said in a strained tone.
“My pleasure.”
“Are you in college too?” her mom asked as Kelsey and my father reminisced about some funny event on the Greek study-abroad trip.
“No,” I said, “I earned my masters quite a few years ago now, in fact. You couldn’t pay me to go back to school.”
“Oh.Oh,” her father said, suddenly doing the math of just how old my dad was. “I see.”
Like I said. Very. Awkward.
“So, you own your own company?” Tatiana’s sister asked me from across the table.
“Yes, a biotechnology firm. Our headquarters are in Harrogate.”
“I love small towns,” her sister said.
“Stop flirting with him!” Tatiana shrieked at her. “He’s too old for you, and you’re too ugly for him.”
“Might want to look in the mirror,” her sister shot back.
“Girls!” their mother pleaded.
Kelsey’s mom looked forlornly at her wine glass then at the empty bottle on the table.
