Page 66 of Forever & Always You
“Cheers,” we all say in unison, clinking glasses.
Austin’s parents, however, are still miffed. I get the vibe they weren’t given the heads-up about my presence here tonight either, but perhaps this will be a good thing. Maybe they’ll see I’m not that bad, that I’m here because I support and care for Austin, and I’d never, ever do anything to hurt him again.
So, I’m on my best behavior.
As we sit through the three-course meal, I dip in and out of conversations with the rest of the table, showing interest and asking questions with Austin’s associates and their partners. I don’t refill my champagne flute that often, because the last thing I want is to lose all inhibitions. I also don’t talk too much, because I have a bad habit of making too many crass jokes thatmost likely only Austin would find the humor in. Tonight, I am polite, shy, and hopefully forgivable.
By the time the meal wraps up and the awards ceremony gets rolling, Caroline and Mike’s icy demeanors seem to have thawed, though I’m pretty sure Mike is just straight-up wasted. Austin, Helen and the other advisors become increasingly nervous as the host works through each award category until she reaches the final award. Pierce Wealth Management is nominated for Best New Business, and as the nominees for the category are read out, I swear all five of them hold their breath.
Now it’s my turn to squeeze Austin’s hand under the table. “Good luck,” I whisper.
The host opens an envelope and leans forward into the mic. “And the Best New Business Award this year goes to .?.?. Pierce Wealth Management!”
Applause fills the room, but our table is the loudest. Mike thumps the table in celebration, while Caroline jumps to her feet and cheers with pride. Austin slips his hand around my waist as I wrap him in a brief hug with an immense amount of self-restraint not to kiss him. He buttons his tux jacket and exchanges congratulatory handshakes with his associates before they all head toward the stage to collect the award. They each say a few words, then get ushered out of the ballroom to have professional pictures taken.
As the lights dim and music plays through giant speakers, the atmosphere in the ballroom relaxes, yet I am far from relaxed because I feel so vulnerable without Austin here to have my back. I reach for a bottle of champagne to top up my glass in order to keep my hands busy, but Caroline slides over into the empty seat Austin has left beside me.
“More champagne?” I offer with a polite smile despite the tightness in my chest, but Caroline shakes her head no. Her solemn expression is unnerving, so I fill my own glass and takethe high road. “How amazing that they won, right? I’m so proud of Austin.”
And the decent thing would be to agree with me, to make civil conversation and remain pleasant, but no—Caroline simply says, “I don’t think you should be here.”
I look at her with indignation. “Excuse me?”
“I don’t think you should be here,” she repeats. Her eyes dart around the room, perhaps scanning for Austin making his return to the table, and when she doesn’t spot him, she scoots in even closer to me. In a low, tortured voice, she says, “You broke him, Gabby.”
“Caroline—”
“Listen to me,” she cuts in sharply, holding up her hand to silence me. “You think we are holding a grudge against you over some playground games, and maybe that’s all it was to you, but you have no idea .?.?.” She squeezes her eyes shut for a moment and sucks in a breath. “No idea at all what you put him through. We were so happy he’d made a friend when we first moved into your neighborhood, but as the years went on, our lovely, happy boy became a shell of himself. A seventeen-year-old should be enjoying their senior year, attending football games, and getting tipsy on beer for the first time. Instead he’d come home from school with these empty, ghostly eyes and shut himself away in his room all evening. And I know it wasn’t just you, Gabby. I know there were a lot of cruel kids at school, but he had such a soft spot for you. You broke so much trust with him. You made him question what he did wrong. You made him ask himself what the point was. He didn’t deserve that, Gabrielle, and to let him believe he was taking you to prom .?.?. It was the height of cruelty, andyou broke him.”
My heart malfunctions, seizing up in my chest. “I know.”
“And you show upnow,all these years later, when he’s happy and confident and successful. How can I trust that you won’tbreak him down all over again? How do I accept the girl who once had me holding my teenage son in my arms as he cried his poor little heart out? You have no idea how much it took for Mike and me to pull him out of the hole he was in.”
Caroline visibly seethes with contempt, but I reach for her hand in her lap and grip it tight. “Caroline, I know there aren’t enough words to convey just how deep my apologies are, but I promise .?.?. I promise with everything in me that I willnothurt him again.”
“And how do you expect me to believe that?” she whispers, pulling her hand free of mine.
“Because I’m falling in love with him,” I splutter. There is no hesitation when I say it, only frustration.I’m falling in love with him, and his parents don’t believe me, and they’re going to push me away and ruin everything. “I want to support him at award ceremonies whether he wins or loses, I want to wait for him at the finish line of marathons, I want to make terrible jokes around him because it took me far too long to realize his laugh is my favorite sound in the world.Please,Caroline,” I beg, my eyes wide with desperation. “Please let me make him happy.”
Caroline’s eyes drift over my shoulder as a flicker of guilt crosses her features. I twist around, and my entire body stiffens when Austin’s gaze meets mine.
23
“Austin,” I gasp. I haven’t said a single incriminating word, yet the heat of humiliation still radiates through my entire body. Did he hear everything I just said?
The expression in Austin’s gaze is unreadable. The muscle in his jaw tightens as he looks to Caroline and very sternly asks, “Are you bothering Gabrielle, Mom?”
“Of course not,” Caroline stammers, but Austin sees straight through the flustered shaking of her head. “We were just chatting.”
Austin reaches for my hand, gently pulling me to my feet and wrapping a secure arm around my waist as Caroline stares up at us both, looking guilty as sin. “Thanks for coming, but I think Gabby and I will continue the celebrations upstairs, where she’ll be safe from ambush.”
“You’re leaving?” Mike asks, staggering over.
“Sorry, Dad, but it seems Mom can’t follow my crystal fucking clear instructions.”
“Hey,” Mike snaps, pointing a finger into Austin’s chest, but Austin simply brushes his hand away.
“Goodnight, everyone,” he says coolly with a courteous wave to the table.
