Page 100 of Rich Girl
Adeline giggles. “There is no expensive smut, Derek.”
They start teasing each other mercilessly, leaving me to just glare at them and wonder why the hell I’m here.
“We’re here,” Adeline claps her hands together. She steps out of the limousine first, leaving me to stare at Derek.
“What is her problem?”
He shrugs. “She’s happy.”
He gets out before me but makes sure to turn and give me a hand so I can get out as gracefully as possible. The two of them then walk inside, holding hands, beaming with smiles to the delight of all present.
I step to the side to look over the directory and find my table. I barely glance at it when Adeline yanks me away from it.
“I’ll walk you to it.”
“Seriously, what is going on with you today?”
She’s been acting weird from the moment I saw her earlier in the day. She’s been giddy and out of sorts, and it wasn’t just because of the wedding.
“You’re supposed to be sitting with us,” she tells me. “I re-arranged a few things.”
She drags me along while stopping to talk to people who want to congratulate her and Derek. When she finally stops in front of a table, I am tired and want to sit down. I don’t want to eat or drink. I’ll say a few words and leave.
“Hayden.”
Adeline gives me a soft shove when she notices that I’m not paying attention.
“I want you to meet your table mates.”
The next few seconds happen in slow motion. I lift my eyes only to come face to face with Ray Parker. My head starts spinning in an instant. I blink a few times, thinking I am hallucinating, just like during the ceremony when I thought I saw him in the group of guests.
“Hayden,” a feminine voice calls out to me. It sounds familiar, but I don’t recognize it until I look to the side. My eyes about fall out of my head.
“Evie?” Her boyfriend is also standing next to her.
I press a shaky hand to my stomach, ready to run out of here.
“What’s happening?” If I sound like I am about to cry, that is because I am very close to it.
“I invited them here,” Adeline tells me. She doesn’t sound as confident or excited as she’s been all day.
I look at her, then I look at Evie and Cal, before finally turning my eyes to Ray. I am so happy to see him, I want to run to him. But I know it’s all for nothing. I don’t know what games he’s playing with me now or how in the world he even managed to get a hold of Adeline and convince her to allow him and his friends to her wedding.
My chest hurts from the pressure I’m feeling as I try not to burst into tears. Adeline’s new husband, Derek, takes the reins of the situation.
“Let’s go to somewhere quiet.”
He directs us all toward a door that’s camouflaged into the wall. The second it closes behind us, I allow myself to break down. The sobs erupt from my chest and the tears are blinding me.
“Oh, my goodness, Hayden!”
I cry harder yet when Adeline pulls me into her arms while presumably Evie runs a gentle hand up and down my back.
“Please calm down,” Adeline begs. “I’m sorry I put you on the spot like this. I wanted to surprise you…”
I can’t acknowledge her words, nor do I know how.
“Can I have a minute with her?” Ray speaks up over the chaos in my head. “Just the two of us.”
