Maybe it was time to leave. Who was I kidding? I didn't belong here with these women who looked so expensive. I knew their clothes, shoes, jewelries were priceless. Maybe I should have worn the necklace. Maybe that would have helped me fit in.
The men were dressed in suits obviously custom-tailored for them. I watched how they held the women's delicate waists and whispered to them. If nothing else, my curves made me stand out. The red dress drew attention, and I started to regret wearing such a bright color when everyone else was dressed in black. I mentally cursed Amy for making me wear the dress when I could have worn a simple black dress.
An elderly woman walked toward me. I straightened and moved a little bit out of the shadows. Even though I didn't want to be seen, I didn't want to look like I was hiding either.
"Hi," the woman said as she approached me. I was too shocked to reply. I instantly recognized her: Madison Saunders, billionaire heiress and television personality. “How are you this evening?”
"I'm okay. Thanks," I replied quietly.
She waved a loose strand of graying curly hair off her face and sipped from the glass she was holding. "Dear, I noticed you were by yourself and I felt you needed a friend."
I wasn't sure how to respond, but I didn't have to; she continued talking.
"What's your name?"
"Sara. Sara Nolles."
"Hi, Sara. I'm Madison Saunders. Nice to meet you." She extended her hand for a handshake.
I took her hand, shaking it, a billion questions running through my mind. It never occurred to me that Madison Saunders, who I loved watching on TV, was related to Nick Saunders. "So honored, Ms. Saunders. I love your show."
She smiled. "Thank you so much. If only they would stop introducing new technology. It makes me crazy. It's hard to keep up with that stuff, you know?"
"I can imagine," I said. A moment of warm silence passed between us.
"These affairs can be intimidating, right? I remember my first ball. My parents had prepared me for it, but I was still shocked."
"Yes," I said, glad to have company, any company. I relaxed.
"But this is for a good cause. Nick and Zia raise money every year to preserve the forest. Someone has to save our lands or they'll all be turned into skyscrapers and malls. We don’t want that.”
"No, we don't want that," I agreed, laughing.
"So why do you support the preservation project? You're a nature lover as well?" The question caught me off guard and she noticed. "You don't know what tonight is about, do you?"
I shook my head, very much ashamed that I had come to an event without doing my homework. I had thought this was just a party. I never realized it was an actual event. "Not really," I said in a low tone.
"The short version is that Nick does a good job of extracting money from his rich friends to preserve a large forest for natural preservation."
"That's a great cause," I said. I would never have thought that someone who seemed so chauvinistic, and a self-confessed playboy, would have interest in doing anything selfless.
"It is. He used to bear the entire cost himself, but over the last three years, he started this extravagant fundraiser to help mitigate the rising costs of keeping the land safe from the government’s land development craze.”
Oh great! I was attending a fundraiser and had no money to my name.
"So the fundraiser is really a silent auction with large items for public bid at the end of the night,” Ms. Saunders explained.
I maintained my smile despite the anxiety in my head. "That must be exciting."
"It is fun to see how much people are willing to donate when they know they'll be publically acknowledged.”
"I’m sure," I said, my mind thinking of my purse with less than twenty dollars in it.
"Come on. We don't want to stand all night talking to ourselves. Let's introduce you to some guests."
"Okay," I said.
She must have heard the hesitation in my voice. She started laughing and sipping her drink. "You need a drink to relax. Why do you think I'm on my third glass of whatever this wine is?"
"Why?" I asked, smiling. I liked Ms. Saunders and wondered about her relationship to Nick, but I didn't want to sound nosy. Besides, I didn't want to explain how I knew Nick. Or rather, how I didn't know Nick.
"To relax, of course. I drink to relax. Are you here by yourself?""
"Yes," I said, then wished I had said I was waiting for someone. But who? Maybe waiting for someone that doesn't show up is better than waiting for no one.