Page 38 of If You Could Only Imagine
I didn’t know what to say. I knew my parents would never get an actual divorce but living separately was a big deal. Appearances meant everything to my dad. And it meant a lot to me that my mother was trying to…well, just trying without being overwhelming with her regret.
“Thanks, Mom,” I told her, honestly. “I really appreciate that, as I’m sure Denise will, as well.”
Her green eyes, the exact same as mine, Gabriel’s and Michael’s, glossed over. “I’ll get it right with my grandchildren, Aiden, if you boys will let me.” She didn’t give us a chance to comment as she made her rounds, kissing each one of us on the cheek, before walking out the front door.
There was a heartbeat of silence before Michael’s incredulous voice broke it. “What in the ever lovin’ fuck was that?”
Chapter 21
Denise~
I was going to kill Aiden Buchanan and his entire Buchanan brood.
Except Shane.
Shane would always be given the benefit of the doubt that she was unduly influenced by the overpowering strength in the Buchanan pheromones.
“Mom, you are being seriously ridiculous, right now,” I huffed into the phone.
“Well, I don’t see how, Denise,” she retorted. “I’m holding the invitation in my hand as we speak.”
I couldn’t stifle my embarrassment. “It’s not that big of a deal, Mom,” I repeated. “It’s not even really a promotion, per se.”
“Denise Hart,” she snipped in her mom voice. “The invitation states that it’s for the launch of a new division where you work that you are a part of. It looks to be a celebration or something.”
My mother had called me telling me she got an invitation in the mail requesting her presence, along with my father’s, to join BI in celebrating the birth of The Morgan Corporation restructuring. I didn’t know which Buchanan was being this evil, but I knew for a fact, that BI didn’t celebrate stuff like that.
Of course, that was before Mason Buchanan made it his mission in life to please his wife, so I could be wrong. But still…
“Are you saying you don’t want us attending?” she asked, sounding a little hurt.
I let out a sigh. “Of course not, Mom,” I relented. “I…I just don’t want you and Dad to feel as if youhaveto attend. I…just don’t want you guys feeling uncomfortable or to have a bad time.”Gahd,the excuses sounded lame even to my ears.
“Nonsense, honey,” she replied, sounding happier than she did two seconds ago. “Your father and I will have a wonderful time if the occasion has anything to do with you, and you know it.”
I did know it. But I was also feeling railroaded.
Aiden and I never got a chance to talk after I shamelessly let him screw me on his desk this afternoon, and then after accepting Shane’s offer, the rest of the day had been nothing but dealing with my transfer and replacement. It had given me something to concentrate on, other than the dramatic whispers following me down the hallways, but I knew Aiden and I had to have a serious come-to-Jesus talk soon.
“Well, it’s still about a month or so away, Mom,” I pointed out, knowing all the details thanks to her excited phone call. “You and dad have plenty of time to shop or whatever it is people do to get ready for these types of things.”
“You don’t know?”
“No, Mom. I don’t,” I answered back. “I’ve never been to a gala or ball or whatever the hell this is.”
“Well, like you said, we have a month to prepare for such a celebration,” she reiterated. “The invite even includes airfare and hotel accommodations, and I think that’s wonderful.”
Ugh.
I wanted to tell her it wasn’t a celebration so much as an ambush, but she had sounded so excited about my new work path when she called, I wasn’t going to be a dick to her simply because I couldn’t stay off Aiden Buchanan’s penis.
Before I could go farther down this rabbit hole with her, there was a knock on my door. I hoped it was Kelly with some tequila. At the very least, a bottle of wine.
“Hey, Mom,” I said into the phone, “someone’s here, so I gotta go, okay?”
“Okay, honey,” she responded, automatically. “I’ll talk to you later. Love you.”
“Okay,” I replied. “I love you, too.”
