Page 138 of Choosing You

Garret’s dad is too busy talking to notice us at first. But Mr. Sinclair, the could-be-president, does.

“Hello, Garret,” he says. “Good to see you again.” Mr. Sinclair already looks like a president with his dark, stiffly-styled hair and fake politician smile. He seems very confident in himself, almost arrogant, which I guess you’d need to be if you’re running for president.

“Good to see you, too,” Garret says.

Mr. Kensington’s jaw drops when he sees us there together. He quickly tries to compose himself. “Garret, I didn’t see you arrive. Did you just get here?”

“We haven’t been here long.” Garret puts his arm around me. He’s playing it cool, but I can almost feel his heart beating through his hand as it rests on the side of my waist.

I notice Mr. Sinclair staring at me and I glance away.

“And who is this young lady?” he asks Garret.

“This is Jade. My girlfriend.” Garret glares at his dad as he says “girlfriend.”

Mr. Sinclair doesn’t notice. “Jade. That’s a lovely name. Do you go to Moorhurst?”

I freeze for a second. I didn’t think the guy would even notice me and now he’s asking me questions? “Yes. I’m a freshman.”

“Are you from Connecticut?”

“No. I’m from Des Moines, Iowa.” I don’t elaborate. I just want this guy to stop asking me questions and go back to talking to Mr. Kensington, who is now giving the death stare to Garret.

“I was in Des Moines just last week. I practically live there now with the caucus coming up. It’s a nice town. Low crime rate. Good schools.”

“Well, I’m sure these two need to move along,” Mr. Kensington says with a fake smile. He seems very anxious. Beads of sweat have formed on his forehead. He’s obviously furious that I’m here and embarrassed that his son introduced someone like me to the could-be president.

Mr. Sinclair ignores Garret’s dad. “How long have you two been dating?”

I glance at Garret to answer. “Not long. But we’ve been friends since Jade arrived on campus. I showed her around when she first got here.”

“How do you like it here, Jade? Are you enjoying Moorhurst?” The guy continues to stare at me and it makes me wonder if part of that appetizer I ate is stuck in my teeth.

“It’s great. I like the school a lot.” I half smile, making sure not to show my teeth.

“Royce, I see the Donovans over there.” Mr. Kensington points to the side of the room. “We should go say hello. They’re big donors.” He looks back at us. “Jade. Garret. Enjoy your evening.”

“It was a pleasure meeting you.” Sinclair reaches out and shakes my hand. Then he shakes hands with Garret.

“Good luck with the campaign,” Garret says.

We make our way back through the crowd to the other side of the room.

“That was strange,” I say, taking a glass of sparkling water from the beverage table.

Garret takes a glass, too. “I thought it went okay. My dad didn’t even take me off to the side to yell at me.”

“Why was that guy staring at me like that?” I ask, checking my dress to see if I might have spilled something on it.

“Because you’re hot.” Garret leans down and kisses me. “Even the old guys can’t take their eyes off you. Should we go find some food?”

I look around at the tables of food around us. “The food is right here.”

“Those are the hors d’oeurvres. The dinner is in another room.”

He takes me to a huge room at the back of the house where people are sitting and eating at white linen covered tables.

“Guess it’s just a casual buffet tonight,” Garret says. “Usually it’s a formal sit down dinner. This is way better. We won’t have to wait to eat.”

---