Page 30 of Acquiring Ainsley
She agreed, and I ended the phone call with a promise that Janet would be in touch about my travel arrangements and a timetable. Janet told me she’d also book me a room at the Breakers Resort, and I returned to my email.
Five hundred sixty-eight messages waited for me.
I set about answering and deleting as many as possible, and I had just worked my way through the first half of them when an email from an address I didn’t recognize caught my attention with the subject line “THE ARTICLE” written in capital letters.
I clicked it open.
I read the article inPage Sixthis morning, so let me be the first to congratulate you on your marriage to the rich bitch of your wildest dreams. I should have known that you’d end up with Ainsley Ross; something about that always seemed predestined. After all, she’s a member of one of New York’s finest families, right? I’m sure she’ll make you very happy—if you let her. Not that you ever let me do the same.
By the way, you look like you’ve lost weight. Finally getting in some sessions with your trainer? And did you have a good time at the Hunt Club last night?
I still love you,
Olivia
My stomach flipped, and all the memories I’d made with Olivia came flooding back to the forefront of my mind. Two years of wasted time with a crazy woman who’d drained my patience and almost derailed my career in the process. A woman who couldn’t accept the end of “us.”
Did you have a good time at the Hunt Club?
I read that line at least ten more times, dissecting and mulling it over. What a crazy, cryptic line. Was she following me? How did she know I was there? I’d ducked in the night before after wrapping up meetings about a block away, and it was the first time I’d been to that bar in at least eighteen months. The Hunt Club had a great selection though, and that day I had called for a strong Manhattan. I’d spent no more than a half hour there before my driver took me back to my penthouse on Park Avenue.
So how in the hell did she know about any of that?
I clicked reply on the email and contemplated what I should say in return. I had about a thousand things, none of them complimentary. She’d almost ruined my life, for Christ sakes.
But in the end, I closed the email and swept Olivia from my thoughts. That was in the past, where it belonged. Best to ignore her. She’d been a mistake that I couldn’t change, but that didn’t mean she would be a part of my future.
I had other things on my mind.
After I ended the call with Trevor, I sat in the kitchen for a long time, going over once again the whirlwind that had happened in my life over the last few days. Not only had I agreed to marry Trevor, but my entire life had begun changing before my eyes. The coverage of the engagement alone had been substantial.Page Sixmight have published the most detailed article, but I’d found plenty of other posts on New York City centric blogs and gossip sites. EvenHarper’s Bazaarhad gotten in on the action.
Which was why I had a phone call to make. One that couldn’t wait any longer. I poured myself a fresh cup of coffee and dialed the number.
“So,” my mom said, not bothering to greet me when she answered the phone. “You really did go through with it.”
“I did.”
“And you waited until it hit the news to call me and confirm it?” My mother tsked.
“Well, I figured you would already assume that I’d say yes to him.”
She sighed. “And I suppose this means that the gears are already turning. We’ve got a wedding to plan.”
“And an engagement party.” I sipped a large cup of brew. “Trevor and I talked about that a few minutes ago, and I think we want to plan something at the Flagler Museum for next month.”
“Oh, really?” My mother’s voice raised an octave, and I knew this development interested her. She had a knack for planning parties, and I’d never met a better hostess than her. If we were going to pull off a great party, she needed to be a part of it. “So soon? If I didn’t know better, I’d question why the two of you would be in such a rush.”
“I know. I know.” I drew in a long breath. “But will you help us make it a great night? We need this, Mom. Trevor wants more than anything for society to accept him, and I want…” I shook my head. “You know what I want.”
“You want to save your father’s legacy. And by extension, you think this will save the family.”
“Yes.” I drank some more coffee, savoring the bitter flavor as the heat of the liquid flowed over my tongue. “So, will you help us?”
“I will,” Mom said after a pause. “I’ll do it because if nothing else, I’m curious myself. I want to see how this all turns out.”
“Me, too.” I took my coffee cup and began pacing through my condo, winding in and out of the bedroom, living room, office, and kitchen. “But that’s not the thing about all of this, Mom. The fact is, he… When he proposed, Trevor had the ring I’d always wanted.” I paused in the hallway and took another look at the enormous diamond weighing down the fourth finger of my left hand. “I don’t just mean a similar style. This was—this is—the ring design I would have chosen every single time.”
“Can I see it?”
