was somehow "slumming" being with her. At the thought, she sat up straight and looked out the window unashamedly. She hadn't done anything wrong and she was definitely not going to allow any situation to make her feel less than.
They pulled up to the curb next to a tall building and the door next to her opened. The older gray-haired man who had driven them nodded to her pleasantly before moving to the trunk to deal with their bags. Unsure of what to do with herself Mara thumbed the strap of her purse and watched him heft out the luggage. She wasn't so much of a rube that she thought she was supposed to help him but it felt so strange, so foreign to just stand here and be waited on.
"Come on. It's time you saw your new place." Trent took her elbow gently and steered her toward the entrance. Another man in a crisp black suit opened the door for them.
"Welcome back, Mr. Townsend."
Trent smiled, the first true smile she'd seen on him so far. "Thanks, Ernesto. How's the grandbaby?"
"Getting bigger everyday, sir."
"Just wait, she'll be wearing makeup and asking to borrow the car keys before long."
They swept into the building, the older man's chuckles following them. As soon as they entered the lobby, Mara couldn't keep up the sophisticated veneer of boredom she'd been trying so hard to project.
"Oh wow. This is where you live?"
"This is where we live. Or, it's one of the places we might live if you decide you like it."
She could tell that he was trying so hard to make her feel welcome and included but there was nothing in her past that prepared her for the elegance of the marble lobby floor or the diamond bright cut of the crystal in the chandeliers. Even the elevator was some sort of technological marriage of steel and chrome and glass. She held on to Trent's arm and he turned his dazzling smile on her. He seemed so pleased and truthfully she was just hanging on to him because he seemed like the only safe, normal thing in this strange new place.
Trent inserted a white card into a slot in the elevator and then pushed the button for the penthouse. Besides their party, there was only one other person on the elevator, a young woman wearing a tank top and shorts who looked like she'd just been jogging. After she got off, they were alone.
She chanced a glance over her shoulder. Penny looked a little dazed. Matt raised his eyebrows as if to say, “Would you look at this place?”
It made her feel a little better. At least she wasn't the only one who felt more than a little out of place surrounded by all this opulence.
The doors slid open and they stepped directly into an elegant entryway. A living room with a stunning wall of windows was directly ahead.
"Wait… this is it?" Mara glanced around in confusion. She'd been expecting a hallway and then to have to open the door of their place with a key. Trent must have read her expression because he gestured for her to follow him.
"The elevator won't access our floor without a special keycard. Walter is bringing yours up as we speak."
"Oh, Walter. Right." She had no idea who that was or if she was supposed to care. Probably one of his many staff that seemed to be always just out of sight.
"Do you guys want a tour?" Trent looked between them and when no one else seemed inclined to say anything, Mara nodded.
He was trying so hard and it was painful to keep up this silence. Even though she was still hurt, she'd promised to give him this weekend to explain. This was his chance to show her his world and for her to decide if she wanted to be a part of it. It was time she took that promise seriously.
"You guys can go back to the hotel, Matt. I'm okay here."
Her brother cast one last look out the expansive window and then crossed the room to her side. He looked at her so long that for a moment she wasn't sure if he was going to leave at all. Then he nudged her arm and said, "I'm starting to understand what he meant when he said knowing about his background makes people uncomfortable. I'm afraid to touch anything in this place."
A soft laugh escaped before she could stop it. "I know, right? Everything looks so perfect."
He kissed her on the head and murmured, "Give him hell before you take him back at least."
As he entered the elevator where Penny waited, he was smiling.
Once the doors closed behind him, Trent walked back out of the kitchen. He'd been giving her space this whole time, only touching her when necessary and not expecting her to talk to him. But now he came and stood directly in front of her.
"Are we going to be able to get past this, Mara? Because just the thought that you won't even let me try is killing me. You're too good to toy with me deliberately so I'm asking you now, do I even have a chance?"
She looked around the room, her eyes skimming over the hardwood floors covered with rugs that were probably worth more than her house. The late afternoon sunlight cast everything with a golden glow, including Trent. Standing in the light with the sun setting his hair to flame, all she could see was her man. The same man who'd cheered her on, held her while she cried and promised her that he wanted forever.
Maybe it was time to let him prove it.
* * * * *