Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 98398 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98398 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
On paper, she was perfect. In person, she was mind-numbingly dull.
“I don’t know, Mary, a spring wedding? It’s so soon. People might think there is a reason for the wedding,” Catherine whispered.
“Don’t worry, dear. We will make sure there is a photo of you sipping Dom, and that will silence any rumors.” My mother patted her hand. “We will spin this as the wedding of the century. A young love that is just too impatient to wait. We will sell the story of a whirlwind romance for the ages.”
“When will we make the announcement?” Catherine folded her hands under her chin, leaning in like a child listening to her mother tell a fairy tale.
“I think we should schedule a photoshoot next weekend. That will give me time to arrange a plausible story of when you two met and all of that. I want the photos published in all the best magazines and, of course, the Times and the Herald.”
“No,” I interrupted.
“Oh.” Catherine looked at me, her bright eyes wide. “Do you think the Herald is too conservative? I know you are a Democrat, though I can’t for the life of me imagine why.”
“I don’t care where you publish it. What I’m saying no to is the photo shoot and any other interviews in the next few months. I have work to do.”
“Harrison.” My mother scolded me. That tone didn’t work on me when I was a child. I had no idea what gave her the impression it would work now.
“No, Mary, that makes sense. I can do the interviews and photo shoots. We can spin it so I am the face of this union. The woman who handles everything so her man can get the ‘real work’ done.”
I didn’t think I had ever heard a woman other than my mother say something so sexist in my life. And even then, my mother only said things like that about my sisters.
I made a mental note to check up on Rose soon.
My mother was busy with this wedding, but once it was done, Rose would be in her crosshairs and she wouldn’t have anyone to shield her. Being the youngest was both a blessing and a curse. She’d had buffers growing up, since my siblings and I could take the brunt of my mother’s schemes. But once she was done with us, all her focus would go to little Rose. Though she was born with more fight in her than my mother knew.
“I really don’t mind,” Catherine said.
“Right, well, I am going to powder my nose. You two get to know each other.” My mother stood and headed to the bathroom.
I looked around at the pristine dining room with its white tablecloths, waiters in suits, and over-the-top, ornate floral centerpieces on each table.
“So, did you want to know anything about me before we get married?” Catherine tilted her head to the side and bit her lip. I assumed it was her attempt to look seductive.
She was very attractive, but I felt nothing for her. No lust, no admiration, not even a speck of attraction. She was the type of woman who could have men ready to come in their pants with just a wink. Yet my dick lay flaccid in my pants, completely uninterested.
It was fine. That wasn’t what this was about, anyway.
“Sure. My mother mentioned you are a philanthropist. What charities do you work for?” I asked.
“Oh, I don’t work, silly.” She reached over and touched my hand as she threw her head back like it was the funniest thing anyone had ever said.
“Then what do you do for those charities?”
“I attend their parties if the theme sounds like fun and there will be people I like there, and I allow myself to be photographed. Then, my assistant will approve any photos that are good enough, and she will put a few of those on my social media. I have a few million followers, so it gets the charities a lot of exposure.”
“I see…” I didn’t see.
“Oh, and if the party is really good, I will have my assistant tell people to donate to whatever their cause is, protecting whaling rights, or fixing ugly children, or protecting third-world children’s rights to work, or whatever. I’m big on supporting kids.”
“Okay, so you really don’t care about the causes?” I chose to ignore the entire children comment. I was far too sober to unpack that.
“I mean, there are a few charities I will never donate to. Anything that supports PETA or goes against animal testing. I refuse to have anything to do with that. I mean, can you imagine the travesty of not testing products on living animals first? What if a brand decided to skip that crucial step, and someone bought a product and had a bad reaction to it?”
Jesus fuck, this woman is the worst.