“Same here,” I reply, really happy to see him. “You look good.”
“Ha!” he laughs. “Desperate damage control before leaving the plane. You should have seen me escaping New York and those horrible rehearsals. I looked like a fugitive.”
We both laugh, and when I turn towards Landon and my eyes meet his, he has a thoughtful expression on his face. I incline my head, curious, but just then, someone approaches him and he turns away to give them his attention.
Aidan continues to entertain me with
anecdotes from the theater. When I ask him about Elizabeth Mckay, the beautiful young star of his play, his face clouds, and he changes the subject. Again, I start to wonder if there is more to his seeming dislike for that particular girl.
Another person approaches us just as the man conversing with Landon walks away. The new arrival is a woman, none other than Ava Sinclair. I’d spotted her earlier, across the room, standing out like a swan among the other socialites. She looks ravishing in a stunning black gown, her hair in an elaborate hairdo set with jeweled pins, and her lips, a dark striking red.
She takes Landon’s hand and smiles up at him before leaning forward to whisper something in his ear. There’s a white flash as one of the press people takes advantage of the moment to take a picture. Why wouldn’t they? I think unhappily, as a couple they look incredible.
“Ava Sinclair,” Aidan’s voice is a mocking drawl, sounding more mature than his years, “I never thought I’d see this face again.”
She looks at him, a hint of dislike in her eyes, then she smiles. “It’s been ages, hasn’t it?” She smiles at me and wiggles the fingers of one perfectly manicured hand. “Howdy you do, Rachel?”
I smile back. “Wonderful, thank you,” I pause, then add politely, “You look great.”
Her brows go up. “Well, so do you.”
I smile inwardly. I have no intention of allowing her supercilious attitude get to me. If there’s really anything going on between her and Landon, then I won’t stand in their way. I won’t fight for something, or someone who I don’t even know for sure belongs to me. “I was just thinking that it’s such an enchanting event you all put together.”
She smiles sweetly. “Were you? We did have a great time arranging it all,” she gives Landon a sly smile before gliding off, her whole bearing elegant and almost regal. I stare after her, wondering how bad it would look if I abandoned my decision to ignore her cattiness and dump my glass of champagne in her hair.
As if he can guess what I’m thinking, I feel Landon’s fingers curve around my waist. “They should announce dinner any minute,” he says.
Aidan nods. “And then after the boring speeches, some dancing.” He looks at me. “I’m looking forward to seeing what you can do.”
Pushing Landon and Ava out of my mind, I give Aidan a grin. “Game on.”
They announce dinner soon after. We are all at the same table. Landon, me, Aidan, some members of the board of the Shelter Project and their partners and dates. Ava is with us also, but she’s alone.
She’s seated on Landon’s other side, like a constant reminder that she is one of the big unanswered questions in our relationship. I try not to bristle as she engages his attention again and again. Instead I concentrate on Aidan, listening to his jokes, and joining him in conversation with some of the others on the table.
After dinner, Landon goes up to give a short speech about the Gold Dust, the history and the refurbishment, and his decision to work with the Shelter Project. He mentions some of their successes around the country, and how he hopes the gala would raise enough to make a real difference. There will be an auction, he announces, naming some of the exclusive items he and other sponsors of the Shelter Project have donated. He is in turn serious, then smiling, his voice low, almost sensual, with an appealing cadence that makes it impossible not to listen to him.
I watch him with rapt attention, unable to look away. I want to tell myself that he’s mine. I want to believe it. I want it to be true with every single fiber of my being.
“He’s wonderful isn’t he?” Ava leans over Landon’s seat towards me, her voice a low murmur only I can hear.
I contemplate her face for a short moment. “You already know that,” I reply.
She chuckles, then looks over at Landon. “How do you women bear it? Holding on to him, even when you know that at best it’s only for a little while, and soon you’ll have to let him go.”
I look her squarely in the eyes. “How did you bear it?”
Her smile widens. It’s a self-satisfied, almost catlike smile. “Oh, it was never like that with us. He was so in love with me. I suspect he still is. No matter how many times I walked away from him, he always came for me. I believe I broke his heart when I eloped for my first marriage, but the reunion after my divorce…” She chuckles. “It was worth it. It’s been worth it every time to come back to find him still waiting.”
Still waiting. It made sense. Maybe I had been wrong to imagine that he didn’t commit to the women before me because of some aversion to love, because of the scars from his childhood. Maybe he’d simply been waiting for the woman he really loved.
My eyes go to Landon on the stage. He’s still talking, but his eyes are on me. My heart tightens, with desire, hopelessness, love… I swallow. “Good for you,” I tell Ava, my voice slightly shaky. The room erupts into applause as Landon finishes his speech and hands the podium over to one of the board members of the charity.
There are more speeches, then the auction. A musician has donated a private concert, someone else a cask of rare wine. Landon’s donation is a special edition chronograph which goes for more than a million dollars.
When the auctions are over, the music kicks up a notch, and Aidan takes my hand. “Still up for the challenge?” he asks.
“Of course.” I follow him away from the tables. A pop singer is doing a rendition of one of her hits over the sound of the orchestra, and on the dance floor guests are already moving to the music. I follow Aidan’s lead, responding to his catchy exuberance and letting go of my inhibitions.