Page 11 of Perfect Sin

“The kind who kidnap children and–”

“Enough!” Arthur shouts, cutting me off.

“We’ll handle it. There must be equivalency tests he can take,” Carina muses.

“You poor dear,” Rochelle tries to comfort me. “It must have been terrible.”

Throughout the entire meal, Whitney remains silent. It makes her easy to ignore. It would be nice if she could offer some kind of distraction. Awkward silence stretches among our party following my bombshell.

“Can I offer you an digestif?” Arthur addresses Steven.

“Rochelle, would you like to join me for a coffee in the solarium?” Carina extends.

Without a second glance at us, the men and women separate to different sections of the house.

“You’d think we lived in the Victorian era the way they insist on perpetuating gender roles,” Whitney speaks at last.

I chuckle. Perhaps there’s a brain in her head after all. “So you don’t want to be sold to the highest bidder and rein over your own manor, like some kind of feudal queen?”

“Hardly. I took a gap year to do an internship with my father, at his insistence, but I’m going to Brown in the fall. I know my parents would prefer it if I got engaged instead and studied place settings or another equally useless skill.”

“Arthur and Carina would like me to magically become the son they thought I would have been if I’d never been taken. I’m sure they’ve got my entire future mapped out, down to trading in my wife for a more acceptable model.”

“They are all manipulative bastards. You don’t have to escort me to the benefit.”

“Is there some financial deal riding on us getting together?” I ask. There must be a reason both sets of parents are pushing it so hard.

She shakes her head. “No, I believe Arthur has his holdings in a blind trust since he entered public life. They do have a reason though. It turns out they don’t like the people you and I have chosen to be with.”

“You have a boyfriend then?” This is actually good news.

Another shake of her head. “No, I have a girlfriend. My parents pretend to support the LGBTQ community, but not their own daughter. Apparently, our people aren’t lesbians.”

“I think my wife is going to like you,” I comment.

“I’d really like to meet her. I’ve heard Raven Blackthorne is a beauty.”

“Ah, so they’ve told you who I married. She really is stunning, but that’s not why I married her.”

“You love her.”

I nod.

She laughs. “So that annulment really isn’t going to happen, is it?”

“Not if I can stop them. Of course, men in Arthur’s position can manage backroom deals to make just about anything happen. I’ll just marry her again if he does. Over and over.”

“I wish you luck, Jackson.”

“If we’re going to be friends, call me Sin.”

“Sin? That’s an unusual nickname.”

I smile. “It fits, trust me.”

She rises from her seat. “It’s been interesting meeting you. I can’t usually say that after one of these mind-numbing dinners. I’m going to collect my parents, or they’ll be here all night.”

We part ways in the dining room. I suppose a gentleman would have escorted her to one of her parents, but I’m eager to avoid another battle with Arthur.

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