Page 4 of Made For You
“Great. Let’s everyone head inside for some lunch.” Speaking to Autumn and Alex, he suggested they call their men over to join. Eloise and Molly would be a bonus for us all. “Autumn, have Colton bring his sister. Isn’t Sadie staying with y’all this weekend?”
Before my sister could respond, Andrew inserted a brusque, “No.”
My dad’s leathery face scrunched as he looked at Andrew in confusion.
“Yes. Absolutely have her come as well. It wasn’t up for discussion,” Dad said after a moment, and using his arm around my shoulders, he guided us up the steps until he was face-to-face with Mom. She couldn’t fight the blush as he leaned down and kissed her gently, just as we’d seen them do all our lives. They were always affectionate toward each other.
When he stood back up, he demanded, “Now, as we wait for everyone else to arrive, someone tell me whythatwoman was leaving our farm.”
Mom had laid out an impressive spread of sandwich makings. We stacked loaves of French bread next to an array of deli meats and sliced vegetables. She’d rallied all the ranch hands to join us for lunch, so we converted our dining room into a buffet, and the ten or so workers were out on the back deck, enjoying the break. The rest of my family sat around the breakfast table we normally ate at when we were dining together, but unlike those nights, no one was speaking. Not since Mom dropped the bombshell about Mrs. Mitchell’s visit.
Across from the buffet, from my perch on a chair in the dining room's corner, I heard my siblings murmuring in the kitchen. I felt betrayed by everyone, and if I hadn’t been so hungry, I’d have left an hour ago. Molly and Eloise were also nearby, keeping watchful guard over me. Even at the newly turned age of six, those girls acted more like adults than some of my soon-to-be students at the high school.
“Are you sure we don’t want to get out of it?” I heard Mom ask Autumn.
“We would not only face a breach of contract, but the aftermath of her wrath in political society could do some actual damage.”
“Gah. How did this all happen?” Alex questioned.
I could guarantee there were two reasons they wanted to host the wedding at my family’s venue. First, The Easterly Event Venue had a waitlist a mile long, since Colton had spread word on television, and we’d hosted a few hockey and football player events. So, it was now theitplace to host an event, especially an exclusive exchanging of vows. Second, they wanted to rub it in my face. Well, Jeremy did, most likely. He was one of the most vindictive people if you got on his bad side. And it seemed, as his ex, that included me, even if I hadn’t been the reason for our breakup—just a few months ago.
Begrudgingly, I stood and made my way back into the kitchen, dumping my paper plate in the trash along the way.
“I’m going to head to my place. I need to get ready for my flight.”
As if realizing I rejoined the room, everyone spun in their chairs to face me.
“Sweetie, we’re so sorry. When she came here today with the signed contract and a scheduled look-around with Autumn,I didn’t know what to do. We had the dates open from a few cancellations.” I knew she was feeling terrible. We usually didn’t advertise when any cancellations happened, giving our crew a few days of respite. But if someone asked, we tried to make it work. “When she called, she didn’t mention it was for a wedding. I thought maybe it was something for her husband. And then I couldn’t turn down a personal invite for the family to the event. We all used to be so close.”
Walking around the table, I leaned down and wrapped my arms around my mother’s neck in an embrace. Her skin was splotchy, as if she’d been on the verge of tears. “It’s okay, Mom. I know you two used to be good friends.”
“What are you going to do? I have a feeling it’s going to cause more of a scandal if youdon’tshow up. Jeremy was always one to instigate a scene,” Alex said.
“I guess I’m showing up. I’ll bring Franny or someone from school to diffuse the situation.”
“Or it could just make it worse.”
“I can’t really control what he does. It’s clear he’s doing this, knowing it’s going to affect me. He probably planned it all this way. The wedding is in… what, two or three months? His goal is to probably drive y’all crazy with his fiancée’s demands.”
“Seems like something he would do,” Mom added as I pulled away and started toward the door. “I’m sorry about all this, Aurora. Maybe we can read over the contract again and try to get out of it.”
“It’s okay, Mom. You don’t have to worry about me. I’ll be fine. It’s just a wedding, right? How bad could it be?”
Chapter Two – Talon
Cracking an eye open, I reached toward my nightstand, even though I knew without a doubt it was somewhere close to 4:00 a.m. My body had chosen that ridiculous hour to awaken since I was ten. No matter what time I went to bed, I never slept past the ungodly hour. Though it gave me a leg up on starting my workday.
Grasping my phone and pressing the power button, the light from the screen illuminated the room. I winced at the startling brightness. Beside me, there was a groan, and I jerked to attention.
Who the fuck was in my bed?
Quickly, I started recalling the night before. I didn’t remember bringing anyone home with me last night. Of course, I was exhausted after attending another charity event in lieu of my uncle. That was my third one this week while he was spending his days gallivanting around the world with his fourth girlfriend. Maybe it was his fifth? Once he was given the CEO title of Wilder Hotels, he and my aunt went their separate ways. A divorce was never finalized, but the two lived entirely apart. My cousins were the same. Delilah spent her time flitting from party to party. And her brother, Charles, hadn’t had his nose… or veins… clean in years. To my uncle, they were a complete disappointment.
Just as I was.
Phone in hand, I launched out of the bed and stomped toward the adjacent bathroom. Once I flicked on the light, it cast its yellow glow across the threshold and over to the edge of the bed.
“Talon?” the scratchy voice questioned. I didn’t need her to turn over to know it was Allison, my neighbor and sometimes bed partner. Except I hadn’t slept with her, or anyone, in over a year, despite what the rumor mill and magazines claimed about me.
