“But she said she would give it back to you!”

He scoffed. “Even if she really meant that, she wouldn’t be able to. It’s my uncle’s decision.” His face softened at my bewildered expression. “I know that you want to believe her. Hell, I do too. Aunt Beth was always my favorite growing up. She was always sweet with me, but everything’s different now.”

I bit my lip. Was he right? Was I just naive? I knew nothing about his world, but I couldn’t help but wonder if Luke was being paranoid. “All I know is that if you keep being unpleasant, she’ll want to help you less. Don’t bring it up again.”

He got up and slammed his chair back under the table. I could feel his stress balling inside me. All of it was unfair. There were millions of dollars at stake—his millions, and sharks surrounded him.

“Let’s just try to get through tonight. I want to fly back to San Francisco tomorrow.”

“But we just got here.” I couldn’t believe that he was so willing to leave. “Wouldn’t it be better to keep visiting your dad?”

“No, he’s—well. He’s made up his mind. And I have to keep working.”

Uh, did he just forget that his dad fired him? “Luke,” I began awkwardly. “Your dad fired you.”

He looked at me coolly. “I never got a phone call from my boss, so I’m just going to ignore him. Sometimes he doesn’t deliver on his threats. It happens.”

Wow.

Upstairs, I stalled for as long as possible before getting ready. After Luke’s confrontation with his aunt, I had no desire to go back down there and mingle with a bunch of rich people. I couldn’t help but obsess over every minute detail of my dress. I winced as I looked down at myself and saw scuff marks on my black pumps. I’ll look like a joke compared to them.

When we finally descended the staircase, I realized that despite Luke’s assurances, my fears were genuine. Everyone looked like Saks Fifth Avenue had dressed them. If it weren’t for Luke’s hand at the small of my back, I would have turned tail and ran. The black lace dress that I bought at Macy’s looked ridiculous by comparison.

“Just relax, Jessica,” he murmured in my ear.

Right, easy for you to say. I fought the urge to dig in my heels as Luke wheeled me towards a coterie of drunken WASPs.

“Luke! We heard you were here,” one of them exclaimed comically. “None of us could believe it.”

The man who spoke had mousy-colored hair, slicked back over his shiny head. His bright blue eyes were the same as Luke’s. He was slim and his suit was impeccably tailored; his patent leather shoes gleamed in the light. Hanging on his arm was a blonde woman who reminded me strongly of Victoria Beckham, her thin arms looking like they could snap at any second. She smiled at me politely as her eyes dragged up and down my outfit and I my arm shook against Luke’s.

“Justin, Barbara—this is my girlfriend, Jessica.”

They wrung my hand and acted as though they were delighted to meet me. Barbara snatched her hand away from me as though she was afraid that she would somehow be contaminated.

She leaned in, her eyes glossy and her lips shining. “When Luke’s in the papers, he always has someone new on his arm. We were surprised that you two have managed to stay together for so long—”

“Barbara!” snapped Justin impatiently. He fixed me with a pained expression. “Sorry, she’s had a bit much to drink.”

“No worries.” Inwardly, my heart beat a violent tattoo against my chest. I never felt so uncomfortable in my life. For the first time, I really missed home. I wanted to collapse onto my sofa at home and watch TV with Natalie. Everyone was extremely well dressed and clutching glasses of champagne that I’m sure cost a small fortune and I was just planted in the middle of it. I felt like everyone was gathering around to gawk at the alien who had somehow entered their exclusive club. I did not belong here.

I could practically hear Barbara’s brain whirring as she leaned in curiously. Why hasn’t he kicked her to the curb by now? Is she pregnant?

“How did you two meet?”

I stiffened. I couldn’t imagine giving them the same story I had told Brandon, but my mind was blank.

“We met in a bar.” Luke glanced at me.

“Oh.”

I wished he hadn’t said that. I watched painfully as Barbara buried a small smile and exchanged a glance with her husband. Now, it made sense. They filed me away into a category they knew well. Perhaps I was very exciting in bed, but I was most certainly Luke’s new fling.

“I heard that you’ve been visiting my father.”

Oh Christ, not this again. I tried not to fix my heated eyes on Luke.

Justin shrugged good-naturedly. “Yeah. I thought that I should. He seems to enjoy our visits.”

Luke took two glasses of bubbling champagne and offered one to me. “I’m glad you’re both getting something out of them. Please excuse us.”

I was shocked at the unrestrained spite in Luke’s voice. Didn’t he know how to fake politeness?

Justin sneered at Luke’s back as he turned around. His wife whispered something in his ear and both of them laughed as they looked at me. I felt the hairs on my neck stand up.

“See?” Luke hissed as we walked away. “Do you see what I have to deal with?”

I felt bad in a way that I hadn’t in years, like when the girls at school used to bully me in the hallways. “I haven’t felt like this since sixth grade.”

He laughed. “It is childish, in a way.”

I didn’t point out that he, in fact, was the one who started it. I went along as Luke painstakingly introduced me to all the guests, who were all so unfailingly polite that my jaw felt wired shut with a permanent grin. These were not the sort of people who would be rude in front of your face. As Luke talked to his relatives, I hung back with my half-empty glass of champagne, my eyes occupied with the paintings that adorned the walls and groaning whenever I checked the time.

“Excuse me. Excuse me! Hey!”

A veined hand encircled by gold bracelets waved in front of my face, snapping its fingers impatiently. I looked at its owner, who was a woman in her late fifties who I did not recognize. She looked at me as though I was something under her shoe. What the hell did she want?

She thrust an empty champagne glass in my hand. “Take this away.”

Stunned, I took the glass and looked from her to the glass and back again. What had just happened?