Page 39 of Dream Lover
And boom, there it was. Just once it would be nice if my mother would lay off the marriage shit.
“I don’t need a man to be happy.”
“Everyone needs someone to share their day with.” I wasn’t about to tell her I had been talking to Conner Davenport. It had been days since we talked last. I knew he was in Japan, but I had no idea where we stood or if or when we’d have a date. Maybe Conner only wanted sex. It wouldn’t be surprising for a man with his track record. Everything with that man was confusing.
A valet driver took my keys, and another guy carried our gifts in for us.
Here goes.
As soon as we stepped under the tent a server greeted us with mimosas. I eagerly accepted mine, hoping he went a little heavy on the champagne.
My mother wandered off to greet Rebecca’s mother, Gwendolyn.
I had no desire to mingle, feeling awkward and out of place amongst Becky and her gang.
In Vegas I had Conner as a buffer. Here I was on my own, and there were so many snotty bitches in attendance I’d be lucky to get out of here without saying something. The lot included her giggling sorority sisters in the far corner who tried and failed to make it seem as if they weren’t talking about everyone in attendance. Who the hell needed friends like those?
“Quinn, don’t you look darling in that dress,” Rebecca said sweetly, only because we were in close proximity to our mothers.
“As do you.” I returned her fake smile, taking a drink as our mothers approached.
“Drew had lunch with Conner last week. How are things between you?” Good ol’ Becky threw down the bomb. She really was a bitch.
“Yes, you two looked so cozy in Vegas,” Paula tacked on, sidling up to us. Great, and the sad thing was I actually thought Paula was okay. Not today, thank you.
“Conner?” My mother butted in. Oh great. I did not want to attempt to explain the nature of whatever I was doing with Conner. She would make a big deal out of nothing. Hence why I kept my mouth shut.
“Davenport.” Rebecca smirked and confirmed she had set me up. She thought our relationship was a farce, which it was, but screw her. The spiteful bitch wanted to embarrass me in front of everyone by calling me out. Not happening.
“Yes, Mom. Conner Davenport. He was my date for Las Vegas.”
“Date? I thought he was your boyfriend.” Rebecca’s eyes narrowed on me, her voice dripping with venom. My temper rose.
“It’s still new, and he’s out of town right now. Japan to be exact.”
“Why am I only hearing about this now? You know how much I adore Conner,” Mom started in, but I cut her off, not wanting this discussion here of all places.
“Because it’s new, and we haven’t exactly gone public yet. I didn’t want to overshadow Rebecca. It is her day, after all.” Yeah, the words were laced in hate, but whatever.
“Fair enough,” Paula said, saving face for me. Maybe she was okay, after all. With the wink she gave me, I thought yes, she was okay.
My mom leaned in and whispered, “I want to hear everything later on the drive home.”
I groaned inwardly. No way was I telling her the details of what was happening or not between me and Conner. I could just picture it. We had a sort of one-night stand in Las Vegas. Yeah, no. That wasn’t going to happen.
Not hungry, I saw an out with the food and moved that way. I loaded up my small plate with fruit and dip and found a seat next to Rebecca’s Aunt Gertrude who was old and hard on hearing, making her the perfect companion. She didn’t talk much and since she couldn’t hear, a smile went a long way with her.
Rebecca stood in the center of the tent as all attention went to her. “Thank you all for coming. And for all theI’m sure what will be fabulous gifts. Be sure to leave me a message on the board next to the gift table so Andrew and I can cherish it.” I glanced over and saw a ridiculous photo of her and my brother in matching outfits, both smiling like loons. It was their engagement photo Rebecca insisted on for the wedding announcements section of the newspaper. “We’re going to play some fun games and award prizes to the winners. So eat, drink, and chat amongst yourselves.”
No thank you. Quiet was good for me.
The first game, there was a box filled with household items one might find in a junk drawer. Everyone had a few seconds to glance at the contents of the box. Once the box made its rounds, we had three minutes to write down as many items as we could remember from the box. It was a silly game, but I played along. One of Rebecca’s friends won.
The next game was seeing how many words we could make out of Rebecca and my brother’s names. While I played along, I tried not to vomit finally coming up withBrace Drew.I kept my mouth shut when they asked for everyone’s answers.
The third game was ‘pass the present’. It was a cute game where love songs were played as the present was passed around the group. When the music stopped whoever was holding the gift opened it.
Everyone had a good embarrassing giggle when Rebecca’s mother’s best friend Joy opened it. The gift was a vibrator. Rebecca was mortified and giving Laura dirty looks.
