I schooled my face into a blank expression, and then concentrated on Bliss. I placed a kiss on her temple. She hugged me, and against my chest, I heard her say, “Kill me. Just put me out of my misery, please.”
“And leave me to be miserable without you? Never.”
“So selfish.”
“When it comes to you? Absolutely.” Already I wanted to just take her away, to just be the two of us again. I sighed and looked around. Some people were staying in the foyer, others were streaming into other parts of the house, laughing and drinking, and grabbing hors d’oeuvres from passing waiters.
I said, “I guess our odds of finding somewhere to be alone just got significantly smaller.”
She looked up at me and frowned. She looked so disappointed that my stomach clenched with desire all over again.
Just a few hours. This thing couldn’t last forever.
“I’m so sorry about the vase. And for making such a scene.” Her face scrunched up like she was going to cry, and my method of dealing with her tears yesterday morning probably wasn’t going to fly in this room full of people. I smoothed a hand over her hair and said the only thing I could.
“Marry me?”
Her eyes turned sad.
“Garrick, not now.”
My heart twisted. It was another one of those moments. “Yes, now, love. Marry me.”
“Still? You know I’m just going to keep breaking things.”
“And you know I’m just going to keep loving you anyway.” Her frown twitched, and I added, “Besides . . . not marrying you would break me.”
The frown softened, and she blinked away the film of tears in her eyes. “Me too.”
“It’s settled then. You’re stuck with me forever.”
She shook her head and made a noise that sounded like disbelief.
My biggest fear was that someday she would talk herself out of our relationship. That she would shake her head and listen more to her own poisonous thoughts than the words coming out of my mouth.
I kissed her cheek and whispered in her ear, “We are forever. If you don’t believe me, I’ll have to make you. As soon as we find that place to be alone.”
I only got a faint pink in her cheeks as she looked down at her feet, but I’d take it. After a second, she tipped her head back and groaned, a sound that went straight through me.
She said, “I’m wearing jeans.”
I nodded. I loved those jeans. They fit her perfectly.
“And by the looks of it, I’m in a room filled with people in designer dresses. And you’re crazy if you think this foyer is only slightly grand. There’s a freaking chandelier.”
“Luckily that can’t be knocked over.” Mum’s voice was like whiskey, it came off smooth, but ended with a burn.
“Mum.” It was halfway between a greeting and a warning.
“Hi sweetheart.” She leaned up and kissed my cheek before turning to Bliss.
“Mum, this is Bliss. Bliss, my mother.”
She smiled. “What a name.”
Bliss knotted her fingers together. “Um . . . thank you?”
Mum’s smile was all red lips, white teeth, and sugared kindness. It was the razor-sharp tongue behind those teeth that I was worried about.
“Mrs. Taylor,” Bliss began. “I am so sorry about the vase. I don’t even know how to begin apologizing.”
“Then don’t.” God, my mother’s voice should be listed on WebMD as a cause of frostbite. “It was just an accident after all.”
“I am so very sorry though. And so thankful that you’ve welcomed me into your home. It’s so nice to meet you. And I’m just so, so happy to be here.”
“So you are. And we’re happy that our Garrick has come home. And brought you along, of course.”
“Yes, I’m so happy to be here.”
“You’ve already said that much.” She turned to me then. “She’s very sweet, Garrick. Is it just the clumsiness she’s overcompensating for? Or something worse?”
And so it began.
I laughed like she was joking. Because that’s how you have to handle my mother. She wants a reaction, and humor is the safest one. I kept laughing, and after a few moments, Bliss’s uneasy laugh joined mine.
I changed the subject before Mum could point out that she wasn’t, in fact, joking.
“Was this party your idea, Mother?”
She gave me a look before rolling her eyes toward Dad. “Your father wanted to make sure you and your fiancée had the best welcome possible.”
Read: He wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to show off. The “best welcome” was just the company line. And though my mother certainly had her issues, I loved her for not even pretending to go along with it.
“Right. Thanks for that.”
She gave a single, solitary chuckle and took a long drink from her champagne. Mum hated events like this. I suppose that was at least one thing that she and Bliss had in common.
I saw Bliss fidgeting with her shirt and shifting her feet.
“Mum, would you excuse us for a moment? Since we had no warning, we’re not quite dressed for a party. We’ll get changed and then come back down.”
“Of course, dear. That’s definitely a good idea. Just casual party attire will do fine.”
As we turned to grab our luggage, Bliss said, “In what world is this casual?”
My world, unfortunately. Or my old one anyway.