me, faux-sweetly. “Come along.”
As she flounced ahead, I expected Ford to say something, but he was looking at his phone and didn’t even seem to notice the casual disrespect that his ex had just flung my way. Meanwhile I was fuming so hard there was practically steam coming out of my ears.
“Ford,” I hissed, but he was already halfway across the lobby, following the manager.
“I’ve put together dozens of incredibly successful events here,” Claudia was bragging when I caught up with them. “What do you think?”
I couldn’t help glaring daggers at her as she held out her arms and executed a twirl in the center of the polished parquet floor.
“Gorgeous,” Ford said, nodding.
I kept reminding myself that I was doing this for the girls, but with every passing moment it became harder and harder to resist tripping Claudia in her heels so she’d fall flat on her face.
“We’d go for something classy and elegant, not necessarily a theme,” Claudia was telling the hotel manager. Then she turned to Ford with a smirk. “Remember those tacky fundraisers we went to in college?”
Ford laughed. “How could I forget?”
Claudia continued, “Remember that horrible one at the marina our senior year? Half the guests got seasick and the other half got sick watching everyone else be seasick.”
My husband was in stitches now. I had no idea Claudia was such a gifted comedienne.
“Oh yeah, that was disgusting,” Ford said. Hardy har har.
“I don’t think the school raised any money at all!” Claudia giggled. “That was the last time they let anyone from Gamma Kappa Omega plan one of their events. They should have known better, though, those girls were always such a disaster.”
She gave me a pointed look. Even though I’d never been in a sorority, it was clear that she thought I would have fit right in with the “disaster girls.”
“Luckily, this is a ballroom and not a boat,” I pointed out dryly. Claudia ignored me. Then, inspiration struck. “Wait, what if we used part of the room as a gallery for some of my mentees’ photography? We could even do a silent auction for the photos, get them framed…”
“That’s an interesting idea,” Ford said, nodding.
“It’s very cute,” Claudia cut in. “But this is a banquet, not show and tell for all your little art projects. Ford, I was actually thinking we should do something more like what I did for the polo team fundraiser.”
Cute? Art projects? I stalked over, absolutely livid, but Claudia didn’t even seem to notice. She just talked over me. Literally. I was about a head shorter than both of them.
“Remember that night, Ford?” Claudia was asking. “With the polo team?”
She stepped closer to him, wrapping a hand around his bicep. I held back a growl and firmly grabbed his other arm, flashing my wedding rings in Claudia’s face.
“You know what night I remember, Ford?” I said, impersonating Claudia to a T.
“Why don’t I show you and your husband the staging area,” the manager said, cutting in.
With a sinking in my gut, I realized he was talking to Claudia.
“My husband and I would love to see the staging area,” I said, making sure my voice was loud and clear.
Everyone looked at me, slightly startled.
“Oh,” the manager said, looking uncomfortable. “I’m sorry, I thought—”
I waved off the apology. “Staging, please?”
Claudia had dropped her hand from Ford’s arm, but her expression was stormy. As we all followed the manager, she came up alongside me. “That was unbearably rude,” she said.
“I agree,” I said. I was just about to tell her exactly how rude when Ford joined us.
“What was that all about?” he asked me.
Claudia frowned. “I’m not sure Emzee wants my help,” she said. “And if I’m not wanted, well, I’m happy to just go and leave you to it.”
Part of me wanted to tell her not to let the door hit her in the ass on her way out, but I knew that if I wanted this fundraiser to be a success, I needed her.
“Don’t go,” Ford said. “I’m sure Em was just eager to see everything.”
“Yep,” I said, grinding my back teeth together. “That’s what it was.”
Claudia gave Ford a dazzling smile. “I’m so glad we’re working together,” she told him. “We always made such a good team, don’t you think?”
My nails were digging into my palms.
“I guess we did,” Ford said.
“Remember that time in Ibiza?” Claudia asked. “We had so much fun traveling. All those adventures.”
Ford chuckled and patted Claudia’s arm. “That was a long time ago. Another life.”
“I