Page 36 of Call You Mine

My heart skips a beat as I reread his last text.

Me: I promise we’ll leave as soon as she orders her third martini. That’s when her filter drops.

Damon: She has a filter.

I laugh to myself. Yeah believe or not the other day was Willa playing nice and being on her best behavior.

Damon: I’ll pick you up at 12:30.

12:29PM.

Of course, the bastard shows up just before our arranged time, not bothering to drop inside before demanding I come out to the car to meet him.

After all, he’s the one on a tight schedule, and I'm forcing him to skip out on one of hisclientsto make room for his fakegirlfriend. Jealousy tastes utterly bitter on my tongue but it’s something I can’t help. I’ve always been the jealous type, only before I had no need for it. No significant relationship, other than my on and off arrangement with Luke, but even that was more a convenience than a necessity.

No one ever had what I wanted and if they did, I could just as easily make it mine. But knowing Damon Drake might be mine temporarily and only on paper, while he gives it all away for a price to everyone else makes my skin crawl with disgust. I guess I’m paying for it only according to him, yesterday was a one-time thing and I won’t be reaping any of the benefits any longer.

So, while he sees this arrangement as just another one of his business contracts, I have spent the better part of the morningtrying on outfit after outfit and obsessing about what I would say to my mother when we see her. Three years and I’m once again going to be face to face with her, listening to her spew out lie after lie. It’s like I'm suddenly teenage Wynter again obsessing over ways to please my mother even if only temporarily.

I figure she must be in the clear with the law if she’s risking being out in public again but from what I heard from Ace last night when he texted me to ask if I’d seen our mother since the wedding, the investigation into Wesley's extracurricular affairs has been shut down since the arrest of his accomplice Stephan Silver last year.

Which means she might be here to stay.

Grabbing my purse, I head down the stairs to the front door, taking one last glance at myself in the full-length mirror hanging in the foyer. I kept it simple, a fitted, mid-length white dress with thick straps that with a slit in the back that ends just below my ass in the four-inch clear strapped heels I’ve paired it with. My hair falls along my shoulders in sleek waves, while my eyes glisten under a soft shimmery shadow.

I’ve toned my look down on purpose, trying to blend into the aesthetic of the women in this town, but feel it’s impossible with the almost snow-white color of my hair. I’ve thought about potentially dying it, perhaps a dull and uninteresting shade of brown but just can’t get myself to do it.

Knowing where we’re headed to lunch, I’m sure my mother’s old society friends will be there ready to judge every hair on our heads.I’m not doing this for her, I remind myself.

Though just as I’m about to twist the doorknob to open the door, it’s pushed open from the outside. Damon stands under the doorframe in an all back ensemble, fitted slacks and a dress shirt, crisply ironed and tailored to perfection. The fabric of the shirt strains against his chest while the pants are doing the same around his thighs and ass.

I falter slightly in my heels, having to grab onto the frame to steady myself as I take a step back to put some distance between us. The scent of his cologne hits me like the breath of fresh air I’ve been dying to take. My eyes flick over his body as his gaze refuses to leave my chest, which moves in sync with the tick in his jaw.

The sexual tension is excruciatingly painful, wrapping around my neck and threatening to suffocate me if I don’t walk away or give into the temptation. But the look on his face as he takes in my full appearance, the pain etched into the corners of his eyes, is proof he doesn’t want me to choose the latter.

Thankfully, my phone chimes, breaking the tension between us and I thank the gods for this brief interruption before reaching in to find it's my mother who’s texted me reminding me of our lunch date.

Willa: Don’t be late, darling. I would hate to have to come looking for you. I’m offering to meet on neutral ground but I won’t hesitate to come to you, my sweet girl.

I can taste the bitter sneer in her tone just as another message comes through, this one more antagonizing than the last.

Willa: I hear your beau has a pretty swanky place of his own I’m sure he wouldn’t mind hosting me at.

Drake grunts as I slip my phone back into my purse, looking up to meet his gaze. “We should go, my mother’s waiting.” I don’t give him a chance to respond, instead rush out the front door and toward his car afraid he’ll call me out on what he justsaw. That my mother still makes me cower down like a scared little girl is embarrassing.

Quickly, I slip inside his car and rest my hands on my lap trying to calm the nerves in my stomach. I have no clue how I’m going to survive this lunch but I better make this relationship between Damon and I believable if I want to ensure she doesn’t make meetings like this a recurring event.

Chapter Ten

WYNTER

Saint & Second is a beautiful, indoor establishment which was previously one of my favorite places to dine in. Its laidback atmosphere combined with the chic and elegant decor of the modern space, makes it the perfect place to wind down after a long day, have some delicious diverse cuisine, and indulge in the decadent handcrafted cocktails they offer.

Any other day, I’d be happy to be here as it used to be a place I frequented. However, today, it’s the last place I want to be.

I honestly thought my mother was going to weasel her way back into the country club and use my boyfriend's name to get her membership reinstated, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that wasn’t the case.

Damon might have been a nobody until about a year ago, but he’s now one of the wealthiest men in Hillcrest Hills, and that means something to people around here. Not that Damon would give two shits about being part of the obnoxious and elitist establishment, but he could definitely be if he wanted to.

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