“See?” she said proudly, letting the lights bounce off a five-carat diamond, blinding almost everyone in the room. “Isn’t it gorgeous? Jake picked it out, I knew he’d been eyeing it,” she cooed, winking at me.
And I didn’t say a word because it just wasn’t the place or time. The guests fawned over our hostess some more before turning back to the food. I was steaming under the collar but what was I going to do? We were in the middle of a fancy dinner party, and I could hardly stand up and stalk out, leaving a gaggle of gossip in my wake.
Instead, I was an automaton going through the motions, bidding goodnight to my friends as they left, Jenna at my side playing the gracious hostess. I knew it looked right on the outside, the handsome couple with their beautiful San Francisco penthouse, perfectly matched, my dark complementing her light, everything in sync. But I felt oddly hollow. It was just a ruse, I wanted to roar. Everything you see is fake. Look at her tits! This chick has the fakest fake tits, rubbery and heavy, and if you punched her in the face I bet your hand would come glancing back at you, her cheeks and lips are so full of filler.#p#分页标题#e#
But I was silent, miserable with no clue how to dig myself out of this hole. It sounds perverse, I know. The CEO, with multitudes of employees at his command, an empire to run, and I couldn’t shake this blonde who dogged me like bad hand.
“Brother,” said Matt, “If you’re not feeling it, just call off the wedding, fuck the deposits, fuck the flowers, who the fuck cares? If it ain’t right, it ain’t right.”
Matt is the marketing whiz of our group, closest to me in age, older brother to Caleb and Cade. After our parents divorced, Matt stayed in the Midwest with Mom and Caleb while Dad moved Cade and I to San Francisco. But the distance was nothing. The four of us were close and worked as a team now, guiding Sterling through the choppy waters of the pharma industry.
“Brother,” repeated Matt. “A bitch is a bitch is a bitch,” he concluded, downing a shot of whisky in a gulp. “Better to lose your money to the markets than to some fucking ho,” he drawled. Growing up in Wyoming, Matt has a country accent and farm boy persona, but buyer beware – Matt’s sharp as a whip, graduating summa from the University of Wyoming and getting a Ph.D. shortly thereafter. Sterling product is popular in the drug industry in part due to his efforts pushing our brand and the money lining my pocket proved it.
“Fuck I know,” I growled, “but the thing is I don’t have a reason, you know something concrete, to break it off.”
“You ain’t gotta have no reason,” drawled Matt. “The bitch ain’t right, you don’t buy,” he said with finality. I guess he was right and I needed the kick in the ass. Fuck me. Fuck my life. “I’m gonna find a way out of this, this is so fucking unbelievable and has gone far beyond what I ever imagined. Fuck me,” I repeated again.
“You do you, brother,” said Matt, downing another shot. “I’ll see you at the family dinner tonight, yeah?” he said. “Dad says he’s bringing his new fiancée, and you’re bringing yours right? Or should I say … your soon to be ex?” he queried, an eyebrow raised.
“Yeah, whatever,” I muttered. “The fucking doll needs to be kicked to the curb, I’m just gonna do it after this dinner is over. I mean, why the fuck should I throw a shadow on Dad’s announcement? He’s been single for so long, it’s a miracle he finally found someone to put up with his ornery ass,” I said.
“Whatevs,” shrugged Matt. “Do it on your own time but that blonde has a way of testing your limits like I’ve never seen,” he said, shaking his head. “I mean, you were the one who was never going to get married, and now some chick’s got your ring on her finger? Damn man, and it’s not even someone you like.”
I didn’t bother to reply, pushing back roughly from the bar.
“Listen, I’ll see you there tonight,” I grunted. “Don’t be late.”
And now here I was, dressed in a suit with Jenna on my arm, looking around for my family. It should be a substantial party. Supposedly Dad was going to introduce us four boys to his fiancée, and then meet her four daughters at a separate dinner. Only at a later date would the two families combine. What a happy Brady Bunch ending, my ass.
“Sir, please follow me,” said the hostess, beckoning us in her wake. Jenna strode forward only to stop short when she reached the designated table. I, too, froze when I saw who was there, turned to stone by the turn of events.