Page 70 of The Ring Thief
“Oh, what?—?”
“Don’t ask, Dec,” Darcy interrupts. “Unless you want to be traumatized, don’t ask.”
Mom leans forward, her eyes sparkling as she whispers one word, “Werewolves.”
Not touching that one, I go for a subject change. “Where’s Nolan?”
“He’s at work,” Darcy says glibly. “He can’t just take long lunches whenever he feels like it.” Her smile brightens as she stares at me. “But I guess an intern doesn’t have that problem, right? It’s not like you have anything important to be doing.”
I meet her eyes impassively. “How long have you been waiting to say that?”
“Now, now,” Mom interrupts. “That’s enough of that. No bickering while we’re eating.”
Darcy shoots her a look. “We haven’t even ordered our food yet.”
Mom acts like she didn’t speak, looking at me pointedly. “Now, I know the bare bones about your annulment.” Her expression falls into the same look of disappointment she’d had when I first told her everything. “How much of it is public record?”
“You can look up who filed for annulment, and the reason it was granted.”
“Fraud, right?” Darcy murmurs quietly, and I nod.
She leans forward, her eyes fierce. “So, why is Silvia, of all people, running around telling anyone who’ll listen that Lily faked a pregnancy to trap you into marriage?” She was studying my expression and, almost before she finished talking, her eyes widened. “You don’t seem surprised. Did you know about this? Declan?—”
I hold a hand up. “Before you rip into me, I only found out last night. Someone close to Lily told her what was happening, and she told me.”
Her expression brightens. “Lily told you? You were together?” She sounds so hopeful, and even Darcy looks curious.
“I’m not talking about that,” I say firmly. Her face falls, so I soften my tone, “Not yet. I’ll let you know when there’s something to know, okay?” She nods reluctantly. “I’m guessing Silvia is using her connection with our family, convincing people to believe her without checking the facts.”
“But they know Lily, right?”
Darcy grimaces, knowing as well as I do how unforgiving high society can be. “Mom, with everything that’s come out about Donald and her mother… the vultures are circling, looking to sink their teeth into anything they can.” My expression darkens. “Lily’s an easy target for them.”
“But I don’t understand why. Why is Silvia doing this to you and Lily?”
“Really, Mom?” Darcy bursts out, exasperated. “She was horrible to Lily. Her whole family was. Silvia was always bad-mouthing her as soon as Declan’s back was turned.” She rolls her eyes. “She thought she should be the one to marry Dec.”
Mom’s eyes bounce between us, clearly taken aback. “Why would she think that?”
“I imagine it was something Donald and her father put into her head,” I murmur quietly. “I don’t know. I warned her off, and instead, she’s trying to ruin Lily’s name.”
“Do you think she still wants you?” Darcy asks.
I shrug. “I won’t presume to know how her mind works, because clearly she’s batshit crazy.” Mom makes a noise of protest, but it dies as quickly as it came. “I don’t know what she hopes to gain by trashing Lily’s name, but she’s fucked up.”
Darcy’s eyes flare with eagerness. “Do you have a plan? You sound like you have a plan.”
I moisten my lips, looking between the two of them. “I might. The Harbor of Hope gala is in two weeks. Are you both going?”
His mother stiffened almost imperceptibly. “I purchased our table months ago, and I won’t be chased away because of some scandal about your father.” She gives an elegant sniff. “Our family attends every year, and this one will be no different.”
Darcy snorts. “Maybe a little different,” she tells Mom. “It’ll be more fun without him.”
Mom’s mouth trembles, just slightly, like there’s a small smile trying to escape, but she doesn’t comment, asking me, “Why are you asking about the gala?”
For a long dramatic moment, I say nothing, waiting until Darcy starts huffing impatiently, before announcing, “Lily agreed to be my date.”
Mom’s mouth drops open. “You just said there was nothing to talk about,” she says almost accusingly.
