Page 419 of Hell Hath No Fury
Dear God, he looks…
Good enough to eat.
And how I hate him for it.
It’s only when he chuckles, the teasing expression on his face unmistakable, that I gain the will to start walking, head held high as if a crown is on my head.
Jerk!
Argh!
When Sierra and I finally manage to walk down the flight of stairs, I don’t give Owen the pleasure of my attention, concentrating on my mother’s other guests instead.
“Vera, Richard, so nice to see you. And you, Adam and Louise, I must say you both look lovely this evening.” I throw them a smile.
“Thank you, dear. That’s very kind of you to say so,” Louise replies, her cheeks turning a beautiful shade of red.
How can two people as sweet as the Turners have spawned such a pompous prick? It boggles the mind.
“What about me? Don’t I get a hello?” He snickers, as if hearing my thoughts.
“Owen.” I smile through gritted teeth.
“Colleen,” he retorts with a smirk.
“And may I say that you, Sierra, are a vision. As always,” Vera interrupts to praise my sister. “Don’t you think so, Richard?”
Richard just nods, looking like he’d prefer to be anywhere but here.
How I understand him.
“Thank you, Vera,” my sister preens with the compliment, before turning her sights on me. “But I think it’s Colleen who will be the true star of the evening. Don’t you agree?”
Vera’s smile drops to a thin frown as she eyes me with the same distasteful glare my mother is showering me with.
“I see you share in my sentiments, old friend. Yes, it seems my eldest daughter wanted to try out something …bolder…if that’s the correct term for it, but as you can see, she failed in her mission to shine. An error in judgment I won’t allow her to make in the future. Well then…now that all the pleasantries have been done, it’s time we leave for the gala,” my mother says, tilting her head towards Ferguson for him to bring her coat and purse.
I keep my fake smile intact, watching him place her coat over her shoulders, doing my utmost best to pretend I don’tsee the Turners throwing not-so-discreet awkward glances at each other, while their son’s previously taunting features turn to stone.
“I’m not exactly sure what you mean by that, Josephine,” Owen chimes in before my mother is able to take a step towards the door. “But I agree if what you’re implying is there is no accounting for taste. Some people have it. Others don’t. But I won’t let that spoil my evening. And I’ll make sure it won’t spoil Colleen’s either.” My mother’s blank features never change, but there is an edge in her stare that tells me Owen’s remark hit a nerve. “Shall we?” he says, back to his usual playful self, offering me his arm for me to hook mine to.
I take it without thought and let him lead me outside in front of everyone else to where our chauffeurs are waiting for us.
“Do I have a choice?” I mumble under my breath, when it finally dawns on me that my mother must have consorted with the Turners in forcing Owen to be my date for tonight’s dance.
“No. And neither do I. How about we make the best of it?” He cocks a flirtatious brow.
“With you? I can’t see that happening.”
He chuckles, the low timbre of his voice going straight to my lower belly.
“Don’t be like that, beautiful. I might surprise you.”
And then the womanizing jerk has the nerve to wink at me.
It wouldn’t bother me so much if my heart didn’t do a stupid backflip in my chest with the way he can’t keep his eyes off me.
God, this is going to be a long night.
