Ivy glared at me, so I avoided eye contact with her. Meanwhile Charles shoved as many honey-roasted peanuts into his mouth as he could. I thought to dissuade him from doing so, but it didn’t matter to me if he spoiled his dinner by eating the nuts. They were $20 a pound, so someone should enjoy them.
“Anyone we know?” Charles asked. He munched the nuts as he looked up at me, blue eyes locked on mine. Charles was an old friend, old as they came, and hard to get rid of, but he was a bit more conservative than me. Adam and I had considered making him partner, so given the fact that this news may actually drag the firm through the mud, I thought it important to have him here.
“Maybe not, or maybe so. Just save the judgment for when she arrives.” As I answered him, I saw a black sports car pull up out front. Jillian was the first to exit the vehicle and she stared up at the house, her jaw dropped and eyes wide. “Excuse me, will you?”
I strolled through to the kitchen where Mimi, my maid, was stirring the tomato bisque on the stove. The fresh spinach salad and homemade vinaigrette looked appetizing, but I hadn’t come into the kitchen to check on food. I snuck through the back way, into my den and around to the front room where I could watch through a crack in the door as Kat entered the house with her mother.
Jillian was prim and proper as always, dressed in an expensive designer blouse. Her purse probably cost more than the Uber they’d arrived in, and her bottle-blonde hair covered the grays I knew she sported. Kat looked stunning. A simple pair of jeans with an oversized hoodie made her as appealing as any ball gown or lingerie. Fuck, who was I kidding? It didn’t matter what she wore. It was her heart that I was smitten by.
Kat let herself in, letting Jillian pass by her before shutting the door. I turned my ear to the conversation so I could focus on what they were saying.
“All I am saying is this man must be loaded.” Jillian nudged Katherine with an elbow to the ribs. Kat had her back to me so I couldn’t see the expression on her face, but the comment from her mother didn’t surprise me one bit. “You nailed a good one, Kitty.”
“Mom, please don’t call me Kitty.” Katherine’s voice came in a whisper-shout, the kind reserved for moments where your anger must be hidden. I smiled at the nickname, remembering when she was 14 and we had to stop calling her “Kitty” because she thought it was childish.
“Katherine, really. If he is so amazing, he won’t mind a little nickname.”
“Mom, he is a lawyer. His partner is here. You can’t embarrass me in front of them.” Katherine scrubbed her hands down the front of her jeans. It appeared as though she was very nervous, and rightly so. Both of us had been concerned about her mother’s reaction to finding out her “secret boyfriend” was none other than yours truly. Part of me wanted to put her out of her misery now and just burst through that door and save her. But we had agreed to wait until everyone was seated together. There would be less of a chance that Jillian would react poorly if others were around.
“Let’s just go sit down, dear. I won’t call you Kitty in front of the group, but it’s just too priceless of a memory to let it go to waste.” Jillian charged forward deeper into the house, and Katherine held her hand over her face for a moment before following.
Slipping back through the kitchen, I hovered just inside the Kitchen door, pushing it ajar to watch as Kat escorted her mother to the table. She scooted her chair out and set her oversized purse on the floor next to her. Then Kat sat down, chewing on her lip. I still had my apprehensions about her motives, though now they seemed a bit less threatening given the fact that she was not shying away from telling her mother. Still, Jillian had fooled me enough that I almost married her. I was not going through that again.
“Mom, this is Adam Cosgrove, Charles Carlisle Sr., and Ivy Stewart. They are friends and they all work with—”
“So nice to meet you all. Charmed, I’m sure.” Jillian cut Katherine off before she could finish the introductions. Her overinflated sense of self-worth disgusted me. I thought when she walked in that she hadn't changed a bit, but I could see clearly that she had. She’d gotten worse. I would never have entertained the idea of dating her.
“Nice to meet you Mrs. Scott.” Ivy smiled politely as she unfolded her napkin and laid it on her lap. “Katherine hasn’t said much about you.”
I felt the knife slicing through the tension as Ivy slung the insult. I should have prepared for that better. Katherine was well aware that Ivy and Charles neither one approved of our relationship; I just hadn’t expected Ivy to act so rudely. I had sincerely hoped that all the rudeness would be contained to Jillian.
“That is Scott-Baxter, and I’m shocked.” She looked at her daughter. “Maybe she is just too fixated on this new man she’s dating to worry about her mother.”
Katherine visibly sighed and looked down at her empty plate. That was my cue to step in and ruin the so-far peaceful dinner. Mimi strolled up behind me with a tray of appetizers, so instead of moving aside and letting her pass by, I opened the door and strutted through. Mimi followed closely behind.
When Katherine looked up at me, a look of relief flashed on her face. Her lip was pinched between her teeth, and she had eyebrows raised. Jillian was looking down at her lap, situating her napkin across her cream-colored dress slacks, so I strolled right up to the table and smiled. Adam, Ivy, and Charles joined Kat in watching me as Mimi set the tray down in the center of the table and backed up.
“Thank you, everyone, for coming.” I started with my prepared welcome speech and took Katherine’s hand, squeezing it in mine. She rose to stand next to me, just as Jillian’s eyes popped up.
Her jaw dropped again; eyes wide in abject horror. She blinked a few times, looking to Katherine, then to me, then at our guests. It appeared as if she were trying to formulate words, but nothing came out of her mouth. So, I continued.
“I wanted to introduce you to the woman I love, Katherine Scott.” I didn’t have to look at Kat to know she was moved by the words. Maybe I should have told her privately first, but I was in love with her, and now seemed as good of a time as any to make that announcement. When I did look at her, she had tears brimming in her eyes. “I know not all of you approve of our relationship, but I want you to know I don’t care. We are both consenting adults and we wanted to let you all know that you are free to share your opinions, but they will not affect our decision to be together.”
I swallowed hard as Jillian stood. Her face contorted, nostrils flaring. I couldn’t tell if she was angry that Katherine had nabbed me after I walked away from her, or if she was so upset that Kat would date someone so much older. It was obvious by the exasperated way she gestured with her hands without so much as saying a word, however, that she was displeased.
“Mom, I—”
“Well, I, for one, am so glad to meet you, Katherine. I’ve seen you around the office a few times, and I’ve been itching to meet you.” Adam slid a few slices of meat and cheese off the appetizer tray onto his plate, and sat back, looking content to eat in peace now.
Jillian let out a scream-growl and shook her head. Her hair jostled as she spun around looking for her purse. She lost her balance, falling back onto the chair as she bent over to retrieve it from the ground, then stood up, glared at Katherine and squared her shoulders.
I had expected the anger, rage, even some fanfare, but an exasperated, speechless woman had not been on the cards. Her heels clicked violently across the marble floors as she stomped to the front door and let herself out. Charles and Ivy both scowled, though Charles seemed to sate his rage with another handful of nuts, while Ivy just scowled at me.
“Anyone else have an issue with this?” I squeezed Kat’s hand for moral support, though she should have been the one supporting me at that point. No one said a word in response; maybe Ivy had learned her lesson after my lecture in the office that afternoon. The entire point of this dinner was to bring together those most important to us to make it clear that we were a couple. I knew it would ruffle feathers, and I was glad that at least my friends were not storming out.
There was nothing I could do about Jillian and her outburst, but it did occur to me that Katherine may be overwhelmed. Not only had she heard me confess my love for the first time, but her mother had not had the best reaction. I looked down at her, and she gazed up at me, starstruck. She blinked and a tear trickled down her cheek. I didn’t see a hint of doubt in her eyes either, which bolstered my confidence in her.
“Good then, let’s eat.” I sat down, gesturing to Kat to join us, and she slid into her chair, looking down at the empty spot where her mother sat. She needed to face the music, and I couldn’t go with her. I just hoped whatever Jillian said to her didn’t make her want to run away.