Holden's Resurrection (Gemini Group #6) - Riley Edwards Page 0,6
nauseating, but it was also exhausting to deal with.
“I can assure you no one will think you’re poor.”
It was becoming increasingly harder to swallow the bitter taste of disdain.
“Maybe we should hang crystal chandeliers.” Lizza pointed to the ceiling.
“You could, and it would certainly be a lovely addition to the voile that will be draped along the rafters. You’ll need to hire an electrician to wire outlets.”
“Yes, yes, yes.” Lizza spun in a circle. “I’ll have Stone call someone. That’s what we need. A touch of elegance. Very Martha Stewart.”
“Yes, very,” I agreed and fought the need to roll my eyes.
And for the record, Stone was not Lizza’s husband’s real name. It was Steve, but she called him Stone because it sounded “classier”.
“Perfect. Then I’ll wait to hear from the electrician and adjust the sheets of fabric as needed. Was there anything else you wanted to go over?”
Please God say no.
“You’re sure about the caterer?” she pressed.
“He comes highly recommended and both you and Sydney enjoyed the tasting,” I reminded her.
“Yes, well, I just want to make sure he’s in line with who our friends hire.”
Sweet mother of God, I’m going to strangle this woman.
“Mrs. Goldman from your yacht club recommended him, so I’d say you’re fine on that front.”
“Right. I forgot. I just want everything to be perfect for my girl’s party. You only turn fifteen once.”
Right. This fifty-thousand-dollar party was for a fifteenth birthday, and not even a quinceañera. Totally new money. And the way Lizza went through it they’d be in the poor house sooner rather than later.
“Everything will be perfect,” I promised, then added, “So perfect, no one will be able to stop talking about it.”
“Yes, that’s what I want. The party of the decade.”
Yeah, I knew that’s what she wanted. People like Lizza had zero self-esteem and needed others to stroke their egos. Sadly, she was passing this trait down to her pretty teenage daughter.
Speaking of daughters, I needed to end this meeting and go pick up mine from Jameson and Kennedy Grant’s house.
“I have to get going, Lizza.”
For a moment she looked like she was going to argue, then at the last second thought better of it. It was a Saturday—not only that, the Saturday before Christmas—and she was lucky I’d come out at all to deal with her latest hissy fit.
“Yes, of course.”
No “thank you for coming out” or “I appreciate you dropping everything, finding a sitter for your child” not even a “sorry to bother you on a Saturday”.
Nothing. Pure entitlement.
Annoying.
It had taken nearly the entire drive to Jameson and Kennedy’s for me to put my irritation aside. The only good part about my impromptu meeting was Faith got to spend time with Kennedy. My daughter loved helping Jameson’s wife make jam and honey. Now that it was winter and there was no garden to tend to or wild berries to pick, Kennedy was teaching Faith the art of bread making. Today was sunflower seed bread. Faith would totally love that. My heart constricted at the thought of moving her away from the people she’d bonded with.
I wish she could’ve had this her whole life. Good men to help protect her. Good women to help me guide and teach her. Even Chasin’s fiancée Genevieve was kind to Faith, though it was very obvious she disliked me. But that hadn’t stopped the former country megastar from giving Faith guitar lessons. And Bobby, Genevieve’s best friend, was a riot of laughs and was welcoming and friendly to my girl. Though she was firmly in the I-hate-Charleigh Camp.
As long as they were nice to my daughter, they could hate me all they wanted. I deserved most of their ire. Most—not all. Though I did understand why they’d shifted all the blame from Holden onto me. Holden was theirs; it was natural they’d protect him from an outsider. But part of me did wonder if they knew the whole truth.
You know the saying, ‘there are two sides to every story, and then there’s the truth?’ They only knew Holden’s side and I found it doubtful he’d been forthright.
By the time I pulled into the Grants’ driveway, my heart ached. When would I stop loving Holden? Would there ever be a time when I could move on and not pine for a man who didn’t want me? After all of these years, I still loved him the way I did the first time I saw him. So at this point, it was a good bet I’d die