Page 17 of The Enemy

My mother’s ambition was something I admired growing up. She was ruthless when it came to business. And I knew she was just trying to paint me in a better light because she hoped I would be in charge of Riviere Conglomerate one day.

“She didn’t use the company jet and said some of us already leave enough of a carbon footprint that she was fine flying business class.”

“Isn’t she modest,” my mother muttered after Richard was done speaking.

Gerald turned toward me.

“How are you liking the company, Neo? I know starting from the bottom is a bitch, but it’s the way we have always done it. To really run a company, you need to learn how it works from the bottom up. It’s how my grandfather, father, and son did it. It’s the Riviere way.”

His words touched me, and I hated that I made eye contact with my mother because something about the way she was beaming soured it.

Just then, heels could be heard tapping down the foyer. I sat up straighter and forced myself not to crane my neck since my seat had my back facing the entrance she would come in from.

“Sorry I’m late, Grandfather, the plane got delayed for over half an hour,” she greeted sweetly as she entered the room.

She went straight for Gerald when she walked in. She had on a pair of ridiculously high brown pointed boots and a cream wool coat that matched her designer purse wrapped around her. Her dark hair was tamed into soft waves that cascaded down her back. She leaned down to kiss Gerald on the cheek. She then turned to her father to do the same.

Lou had changed.

I noticed it at the wedding, but I thought it was a one-off since it was a party, and people always dressed up for those. Her lips, which were already big and pouty, were dark red, which most people in our circles wouldn’t do because that color was reserved for a night out. The same was true of her eyes. They were round and big, with black liner and dark curly lashes framing them, making them stand out.

Lourdes stopped trying to fit in—and now all she did was stand out.

“Hello, Father." She gave him a soft smile—a lot softer than I had seen her give him in years—and I knew it caught Richard by surprise because the poor sap looked like he wanted to cry.

“Pricilla, looking lovely as always,” she told my mother without looking at her.

She finally turned toward me, and I couldn’t help but smirk her way.

“Nathaniel,” she said while offering me a fake smile and effectively cutting mine off by calling me by a name I did not claim.

She then removed her coat before sitting down.Fuck me.I tried and failed not to look at her curves. Her brown boots reached just above her knees. She wore belted high-waist leather shorts that perfectly matched her boots, and a knitted brown sweater in the same color was tucked in at her waist. The gap of skin between her boots and the hem of her shorts was tantalizing. Her tanned, thick thighs seemed sun-kissed.

“I see California has emboldened you,” my mother told her, and I gritted my jaw because I knew it wasn’t a compliment.

Lou sat next to me. She was close enough that I could feel the heat she emitted, but I could not touch her.

“I’ll make sure to let the writers atVogueknow you thought their outfit was tacky since I did see a similar style on there.”

My mother didn’t miss a beat.

“Well, just because I can still fit into the dresses I wore in my twenties, it doesn’t mean it is appropriate. Graceful style varies by bodies and ages.”

“That is something I wished your first wife would have learned,” Gerald added his two cents.

Lou very much looked like her late mother.

My mother preened at the compliment while Richard looked murderous. I took a sip of my drink just as Lou spoke.

“Well, Pricilla, some of us actually grew a rack and a big fat ass after puberty, so it’s kind of hard to fit in a size two.”

I almost choked on my drink.

“Lourdes!” her father chastised her.

“This is what happens when you don’t listen to me,” a red-faced Gerald told his son while pointing at Lou.

“Sorry, Grandfather,” she mumbled.

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