I’d only met him a couple times before and each time I’d felt tongue-tied in his presence. He was an intelligent, gorgeous, and highly intimidating man. My heart leapt at his touch and I looked up at his striking face, startled.
“Gabriella,” his smooth voice said in greeting. “How lovely to see you again.” Then he turned his gaze to the other in our party. “Victoria, you’re looking lovely as always.” Victoria’s face smoothed out as she greeted him, but he was finished with her and had moved his focus onto Scott’s mother.
“Constance, how nice of you to attend our event. You always bring heavy hitters along, and the good people heading this charity will appreciate it. However, I’m disappointed that you would cause a personal scene in the middle of a Brandt Industries event, while your son is working.” Constance flinched visibly and paled at his words, and I bit back a smug smile.
It was terrible of me to be smug about Mr. Brandt’s remarks to Scott’s mother, but she was such a horrible person that it was gratifying to see her put in her place.
Mr. Brandt turned to look at Scott.
“Scott, I trust you will be through here in a few moments. In the meantime, I’m going to take Gabriella to freshen her drink.” His look to me brokered no argument, so I nodded slightly as he said, “Good evening, ladies,” and guided me away from the group and toward the bar.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Brandt,” I stated, feeling like I needed to smooth things over for Scott. I would hate for him to get in trouble over me. “Scott didn’t mean to bring a personal issue to work.”
“Please, Gabriella, call me Carson.” The rich timbre of his voice soothed my nerves as we walked. “And you don’t need to worry about Scott. Constance and I have known each other for years. I know exactly what she’s like. It’s none of my business,” he was saying as he handed me a new glass of champagne, “But I’m pleased to see Scott with you. I’ve met many men like him over the years. Men born to money, to parents who are only concerned with wealth and position. With Victoria, he would have probably become a man like that, but with you, he’ll have more balance. And a man who’s happy at home is much more productive in business, so it’s a win for me as well.”
He flashed a handsome smile and said, “If you’ll excuse me, I have to see to my guests, but it’s been lovely talking to you again, Gabriella.”
“Thank you,” I said stupidly, unsure how to respond after everything he’d just said.
I was watching Mr. Brandt maneuver through the room, kissing women on the cheek, shaking hands with the men, all the while flashing his dashing smile, when Scott came up behind me.
“I’m so sorry about that, Gabs. I should have realized my mother would be here; she lives for these events. I never thought she would act so wretchedly.” Scott’s face was flushed, and I knew he was embarrassed to have that all play out with Mr. Brandt involved.
“It’s okay, Scott, your mother has never liked me … I know that.” I lifted my hand to his cheek, hoping to soothe. “Don’t worry about this now. You’re here to work. It’ll be fine.”
Scott closed his eyes briefly, and I knew he could see that I was right, but when he opened them he said, “It’s not okay, Gaby. I want to be with you, and my mother doesn’t get to have an opinion about it, or treat you poorly … You’re right, though. I can’t let her actions ruin the rest of our night. Thank you for understanding.”
I smiled up at him reassuringly, but in my heart I wondered how we could ever work, if his mother so obviously hated the idea of us together.
Chapter 27 – Scott
I could tell Gaby was nervous. She was sitting next to me in the car, fumbling with the strap of her seatbelt. Every few minutes, she would fidget with the radio and flip around until she found a song she liked.
After the way things had played out with my mother at the charity event on Friday night, I knew she was worried. Gaby was pretty easy to read, and even though she knew my relationship with my parents was strained at best, I knew she had a hard time understanding it. Even though her parents were divorced, she had a great relationship with them, and always had. She didn’t know what it was like to have parents who didn’t care about her emotionally, but I did.
I needed to convince her that what my mother, or father, thought about her or our relationship didn’t matter to me, and that it shouldn’t to her either. Their thoughts had no bearing in the way I viewed us.
So I kept my smile to myself when I stopped the car and she looked out the window, then looked back at me.
“I thought you said we were going to see your family,” she said, confused.
I’d picked her up this morning and told her that I was taking her to lunch with the family, because I wanted to make her understand where my head, and my heart, truly was.
“Yes,” I agreed, then nodded toward the house we were parked in front of.
“But this is Cal’s parents house,” she said again, still not getting it.
“It is,” I replied, then I explained further. “My parents are simply that … my parents. They clothed me, fed me, and gave me a place to live growing up. That’s all.” I brought my hands up to her face to cup her cheeks and watch her as I spoke. “Their opinion doesn’t matter to me, because that is all they’ll ever be. This,” I nodded toward the house in front of us, “is where my family lives. Calvin and Rose showed me a life that I never knew existed. They gave me brothers, in Cal and Craig, and they took me in as one of their own. Yes, I have actual parents, and they will always be around … I can’t discount that. My mother lives for charity events like the one we went to, and I will have to spend holidays and special occasions with them. I hope you can handle being around them, even if sporadically … But, if you’re worried that my family won’t accept you, or love you, you don’t need to. They already do. This is the only family whose opinion matters to me. I brought you here to show you that. Rose knows that we’re dating, and she’s been bugging me to bring you around. That’s why we’re here. Do you understand?” I asked softly, hoping that she took to heart everything I said, and believed what I said was true.
Gaby had tears in her eyes, and when she smiled up at me, my heart lifted.
She got it.
“I’m so glad you had Calvin and Rose growing up,” she said with a sniffle. “I hate to say it, Scott, but your parents are awful.”
I laughed and said, “I know … me too. I think I may be one of the luckiest men alive.” I looked at her meaningfully, then pulled her in for a hug. We held each other for a few minutes, and when I heard her breath even out, I asked, “Are you ready?”
When she said that she was, I jumped out of the car to open her door, and walk her up the path to the house. I opened the door and indicated she should go in, smiling when I heard the shouts coming from the living room.