“This is our table,” Chandler said. He gestured with his chin to a group of people talking a few feet away. “Mom’s over there.”
I stared at the back of the woman I knew to be Sophia Walden Pierce from Internet pictures. Her dark blonde hair was swept up in a tight bun showing off her long graceful neck. Even from behind, it was evident that Hudson’s mother was a beautiful, commanding woman.
As if she sensed our presence, she peered over her shoulder at us, offering a smile to her acquaintances as she did so.
A wave of unexplainable nervous energy rolled through me. What if she didn’t buy our act? What if I screwed it all up?
Hudson must have sensed my anxiety because he tightened his grip on my hand and leaned in to whisper, “You’re going to be great. I have no doubt.” He kissed my hair.
His distraction worked. I was no longer worrying about impressing his mother, focused now on wondering whether his tender kiss had been for me or for anyone who might be watching us.
And why did it even matter? We weren’t a couple, this was pretend. Tender kisses were romantic and we were not involved romantically. Sexually, yes. Romantically, no. I visualized another snap of the elastic band. Obviously I hadn’t counted on holding Hudson’s hand all day when I’d put the dang thing around my wrist.
By the time I’d thoroughly reminded myself that everything Hudson did was pretend, Sophia had wrapped up her conversation and approached us. As I had suspected, she was quite beautiful. Her body was lean and trim, and her complexion perfect. She’d had Botox, her forehead smooth and unexpressive. Or else she wasn’t an expressive person, which was highly possible considering she was related to Mr. Show-No-Real-Emotion at my side.
“Hudson.” The slight nod of her head matched the stiffness of her greeting.
Hudson responded in kind. “Mother.” Her eyes flickered to me briefly. “I’d like you to meet Alayna Withers. Alayna, this is my mother, Sophia Pierce.”
“Glad to meet you, uh…” I suddenly didn’t know what to call her—Sophia? Mrs. Pierce? If I had inflected my voice differently, I could have ended at “Glad to meet you” but I’d left the sentence hanging and I had to finish. I settled on the safe bet. “Mrs. Pierce.” I let go of Hudson’s hand and thrust mine out to shake hers, hoping my palm wasn’t noticeably sweaty.
My worry was unfounded. Sophia Pierce made no effort to take my hand. Instead she scrutinized me with narrowed eyes, circling around me like a hawk. “She’s pretty enough.”
I lowered my hand to my side and made a conscious effort to close my jaw.
Before I could decide if I was supposed to say thank you, she’d moved on. “Where did you find her again?”
I was flabbergasted. She spoke about me like I wasn’t there—like I was a puppy Hudson had found on the side of the road.
Mira tried to save me. “Mom—”
Sophia waved her away, and I caught Mira’s unspoken apology in her eyes.
I looked to Hudson, but his gaze was locked on his mother’s. “I told you. We met at a function at Stern.”
Sophia chortled. “What the hell were you doing at NYU? Slumming?”
I flushed with anger, my hands balled into fists at my side.
Hudson stiffened as well. “Mother, don’t be a bitch.”
Chandler smirked openly at his brother’s choice of words.
Sophia, on the other hand, made no indication that she even heard. “Tell me, Alayna—were you first attracted to my son because of his money or his name?”
Pissed didn’t even begin to describe how I felt. I was seething, but still in control. Without skipping a beat, I wrapped my arm around Hudson’s and answered. “Neither. I was attracted to him because he’s hot. Though, I stayed with him because he’s fucking awesome in bed.”
Sophia’s mouth fell open. I had a feeling she was a woman that was rarely thrown off guard and seeing her taken aback gave me a thrill.
Hudson raised a brow, but he didn’t appear displeased. In fact, the gleam in his eyes seemed amused. It empowered me to continue. “Look, Sophia Pierce. I may not have graduated from Harvard like your son and your husband—” Admittedly, I paused to note Hudson’s reaction to the fact that I knew details about his family even though he hadn’t told me a single thing. Again, I saw the gleam. “But I’m proud of my NYU degree. And I didn’t come here today to have my education insulted by a woman who dropped out of law school.”
Sophia took a threatening step toward me. I was taller than her by a couple of inches in my heels, but she carried her stature with authority. “Why did you come here today?”