Page 556 of Filthy Elites

Dressed in a cream pleated wool skirt with opaque tights and a pale blue silk blouse, with an ivory headband and my hair in loose waves,I head to the kitchen and start baking. An hour later, I cross the grounds in my mother's cream flats, and plaster my best smile on my face as I ring the bell.

The Archer housekeeper isn’t working on the weekends, and Chase is at football practice—his Jeep’s gone. Mrs. Archer opens the door herself.

“Hi!" I'm downright peppy. "I'm Erica, Audrey’s daughter.” We’ve met once or twice and we come across each other occasionally, but I don’t think we’ve exchanged more than a couple of words here and there, so the introduction is necessary.

It's hilarious, but Lisa Archer's clothes match mine. Her skirt is pale gray, rather than cream, and longer than mine. Her silk shirt's white and she wears it with pearls.

“Erica, yes, of course.” She smiles easily. “It’s nice to see you again. You’re quite the vision.”

Lisa is a beautiful, elegant forty-something woman. She makes me think about vanilla: expensive, delicious, but also often overlooked and easy to get bored of. Men like Xavier Archer, or like Chase, tend to go for decadence—chocolate fondants with a raspberry sauce. But they marry vanilla cupcakes. Society demands it of them.

“I was baking this morning.” I lift the plate of blueberry muffins in my hands. “I ended up making way too much for just Audrey and me, so I figured I’d drop some off for you.”

Lisa half groans, half moans. “Oh my god, kiddo. I’m on a diet, but these smellsogood.” She opens the door wide. “Come in, come in. I’ll make us coffee. Unless you’re in a rush?”

Worming my way inside iseasier than I’d expected. “No, I guess I have a few minutes…”

The Archer house is nothing like ours. Everything is opulent, white, and bathed in light. "You have a beautiful home, Mrs. Archer." I mean it, though I also think it’s incredibly boring and impractical.

"Lisa, darling. Call me Lisa." She leads me to an open-plan kitchen that looks like it has never been used, and starts the coffee machine.

I place the muffins on the counter. "Can I help?"

"I'll be done in a second, darling. But you could start by telling me how I can help you with Chase.”

My mouth opens and closes.That's not how this was supposed to go.I assumed she'd guess I was cozying up to her because of her son. Why else would an eighteen-year-old girl turn up at her door? But in my mind, she wasn't supposed to be so direct. Given her husband's affair, I assumed she was a meek, reserved sort of woman.Lisa Archer was supposed to be a little slow, maybe, if not stupid. Why would she have let my mother move in across the grounds otherwise?

Lisa snorts at my expression. “I’m old, not stupid, darling. Now, come on. Chase never tells me anything. Are you guys dating?"

I shake my head. “No, he doesn’t like me much.”

One eyebrow inches up, and the corner of her mouth tilts upward. She doesn’t look much like him. He inherited her blonde hair, but other than that, he’s all his father. That smirk, though? It’s all Chase. "I sincerely doubt that, Erica."

I bite my lip, reassessing my approach. Lisa's too astute for me to play her. I will be best served by a degree of honesty. "Well, I think he doesn'twantto like me."

Lisa's laugh is boisterous and infectious. "Now that I can believe. Milk? Sugar?"

"Both, please."

She hands me my coffee in a thick, off-white cup that’s simple, yet looks expensive, then she sits on the other side of the breakfast table.

Lisa moans at the first bite of one of my muffins. "Oh, Erica. This is delicious." She takes another bite. "Go on, then. What's Chase been up to?"

I have to consider what I’m willing to tell her. I could mention the bullying. I could even tell her he’s blackmailing me. I don’t want to, though. He might have started it by taking one look at me and deciding I wasn’t fit to lick his boots, but I'm not an unwilling participant in our games. I push him. I tease him. He reacts, but I'm the one getting the ball rolling, knowing exactly where it’s likely to lead.

"I'll spare you the details. I can handle it. But…I was hoping you could let him know I came by today? I wouldn’tactuallyask you to intercede, or side against your own son. I just want to remind him that, well, I could.”

“Sneaky.” She nods appreciatively. “And wise. I think you might understand Chase rather well.”

I manage not to snort at that. I don’t know anything about the boy, other than the fact that I quite like the way he looks, but he has to ruin it by opening his mouth.

Over our coffee, sheasks me about school. “I do okay in science, but I’m not that great at languages," I admit. "I have to pass Spanish, somehow.” I wince at the thought.

“I could help with that if you’d like. I’m fluent.”

The offer surprises me. “You’d do that?”

“Of course. I should have some free time after the holiday.” Lisa crooks an eyebrow, reminding me of her son again. “Not for nothing, mind you. It’d cost you more muffins. And, bonus: I’ll let Chase know I’m tutoring you, to keep him in check, shall I?”

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