CHAPTER SEVEN #2
“Oh, yes. My budget was in the high six figures, and we raised over twenty million to donate towards breast cancer research.” Karen gave me a condescending look. “How much was your budget, dear?”
“Um… twenty-five thousand dollars,” I said softly. I’d thought it was a lot, but Karen just loved making me look like a fool. I could see now that this whole thing was a set-up. Thatcher must’ve told her about the Orchid Ball, and she’d come over on purpose to remind me of just how inferior I was.
Olive’s friends erupted into laugher at how small my budget was. My face burned, but I kept the smile plastered on. I wouldn’t let them see just how much I wanted to grab a bottle of wine and go cry behind a bush.
“And how much did you hope to raise?” Bitsy asked.
I didn’t want to tell them, but there was no getting out of it now. “Five hundred thousand,” I admitted, saddened that something I’d been so proud of was being reduced to a joke.
Karen chuckled. “Well,” she said, patting my shoulder, “if you don’t reach the goal, let me know. I’d be happy to make up the difference with a personal donation. In fact, you could probably skip the whole thing and just let me write you a check. I don’t know why Thatcher hasn’t already done that.”
“Well, it’s one of the most anticipated social events of the year in Indigo Falls,” I blurted, again without thinking.
I was really not having a good night. I looked around for Thatch, but I didn’t see him anywhere.
Typical. It seemed like he was always conveniently absent when Karen’s claws came out.
“Really? The social event of the season?” If Karen’s face wasn’t still recovering from her latest Botox treatment, I’m sure she would’ve raised her eyebrows.
Instead, there was just a slight widening of her eyes.
“I guess that makes sense considering how limited your functions are in that little town. What’s your theme? ”
Oh. My. God. This was horrible. I looked around for any sort of escape to get out of this conversation but couldn’t find one.
“It’s taking place on Halloween night, so I’m taking advantage of that.
It’s going to be ‘A Haunting in New Orleans’ and I’m converting the country club to look like a slightly spooky version of the Garden District.
The gardens behind the country club will also be ‘haunted’ with a maze and lots of dry ice to give it a mysterious vibe. ”
They all stared at me as if I’d just spoken in Latin.
Karen blinked. “That’s… a choice, I suppose. Good luck with your little dance, dear. Ladies, it’s almost time to introduce tonight’s featured guest.” She turned and walked off with all of them following after her. As always, she was the queen bee.
I drained my glass of wine and hurried to the bar for another, my hand shaking as I took some fortifying sips.
My God. That had been brutal. I didn’t know why I expected any less from my witch of a mother-in-law.
She’d made it very clear from the first time she’d met me that she thought I was trash compared to the women she’d selected for her perfect son to date.
I knew I’d never be friends with Karen. I wasn’t that na?ve. Still, I’d tried hard over the last five years of marriage to develop a relationship where we could exist in peace. She wasn’t having it, though. She preferred to make me feel like a bug she’d squashed under her Louboutins.
I was drinking wine at an alarmingly fast rate, trying to steady my frayed nerves. God, I hated it here. I wondered how much longer I’d have to stay before I could politely make an exit. Thatcher could stay if he needed to network for business. But I was ditching out as soon as I could.
I sensed someone approaching and braced myself. I let out a relieved sigh when I saw that it was Celia and Bryce.
“Are you ready for tonight?” Celia asked, looking at me with what seemed like sympathy over her lowball glass.
“What do you mean? What’s tonight?”
She and Bryce exchanged a quick look. “It’s nothing,” Bryce said quickly. “Just that the spokesmodel for the new campaign will be introduced. That’s all.”
“Oh, that’s kind of exciting! I thought she wasn’t being introduced until the launch party.”
“So did we,” Celia said drily.
The tone of Celia’s voice gave me pause, but I ignored the comment. “Thatch told me a little about it, and he’s been very busy with the details. I can’t wait to meet her.” At least something good would come out of tonight’s horrific dinner party.
Bryce seemed upset. “Has Thatcher told you anything about the spokesmodel?”
I frowned. “The spokesmodel specifically?”
They both nodded, looking hopeful.
I looked between the two of them. “No,” I said slowly. “Why would he?”
Celia looked a little pale. “I’m going to get another drink.”
“But your glass is full,” I said.
She tossed it back in one gulp. “Now I’m in need of another.”
Bryce made an excuse to leave, too, and I wondered why they were acting so strangely. I found myself standing alone yet again by the bar. There were worse spots to be, but I wanted to be with Thatcher. I looked around for him but didn’t spot him anywhere.
I was only half listening when a couple of women I recognized as Olive’s friends stood near the bar talking.
“Can you believe she doesn’t even know?”
“No,” the other woman sounded aghast. “I would kill my husband if he did something like that to me.”
“Do you think he warned her before they got here at least?”
“If he didn’t, he’s a damn fool.”
“Ooh, look, there’s Begonia Northam. Let’s see how bad her boob job is.”
With that, the women were gone. I wondered who they were talking about. I felt sorry for whatever hapless women at the party tonight was going to find out some scandalous secret about her husband.
I thought back over my relationship with Thatcher. Before he’d taken over as CEO, I’d been so happy. I’d really thought that we had what it took to last forever. Lately, though, I was starting to have doubts. And I hated that.
I had hoped and prayed for a relationship like ours used to be when I was growing up, and I was so glad we’d found each other at Carruther’s University.
I’d been finishing up my undergrad while he’d been about to graduate with his MBA.
He’d seen me cheer at a football game and had gotten a friend of his to set us up.
The rest was history. We’d dated for about a year before getting engaged.
It had been a whirlwind romance. I’d had no clue who Thatcher Caldwell even was back then.
It had been a huge surprise when his mom and dad, who’d still been living at the time, had thought I was a gold digger. Then I’d seen their home, figured out who they were, and had a better understanding of the world he’d grown up in.
My mom, who was the Karen Caldwell of Indigo Falls, was furious to be treated so shabbily by Thatcher’s family. I would have thought her pearl clutching was funny if I hadn’t been a very large part of the joke.
I sighed. I’d thought the love Thatcher and I felt for each other was enough to justify the time I had to spend around his mother. Now? I was starting to doubt that.
Still, I felt as if Thatcher and I could get our relationship back on solid ground. We’d been through a lot together over the years, and we’d built a strong foundation. I was hopeful we’d weather this rough patch brought on by how busy we both were.
At least, I hoped that was all that had brought it on.
I grabbed a glass of wine and took a moment to admire the Caldwell gardens.
The party décor looked like something out of a magazine, but that was normal around here.
There were thirty or so large, circular tables set up around the grounds, all covered with white tablecloths.
Each table held a large floral centerpiece.
Edison lights were strung everywhere, making it seem as if large fireflies had invaded the Caldwell back gardens.
There was a dance floor set up under a huge white event tent, and a jazz band was on a stage overlooking the floor.
Bars were spread around the garden so that no one would be too far from alcohol at any given time.
It was a nice, breezy night. It wasn’t very humid, which was a minor miracle in Atlanta, and the smells of fall filled the air.
It would have been a great party if I had more people to talk to than just Thatcher, Celia, and Bryce.
Especially since the three of them were missing.
I hadn’t seen Thatcher since we’d arrived.
Celia and Bryce appeared to have abandoned me as well.
So, I had no one. I just tried to enjoy my wine, the nice weather, and the excellent music. Karen suddenly got on the microphone to address the partygoers.
“Hello, everyone. Thank you for coming out to my birthday soiree this year. As you all know, I’m turning thirty yet again.
” She winked and struck a pose. There was polite laughter.
“As many of you know, my son Thatcher took over this year as CEO of Caldwell Financial. I only want to move forward thinking about the good things, so we won’t dwell on the fact that my dear husband Fletcher isn’t with us this year.
Just know that he’s looking down on us with a smile on his face.
There was nothing he loved more than a good party. ”
Several people laughed this time, and it seemed genuine. I even smiled. I’d only known him for a couple of years before illness kept him bedridden. But in those two years? I had witnessed him being the life of the party at every single event.
A woman near me said, “I can think of one thing he enjoyed more than a good party, and that was good pussy.”
Her friend almost spit out her drink, and she ended up choking on it. “Damn, Mary Ellen! You can’t say things like that when my mouth is full.” She dabbed at her perfectly applied lipstick with a cocktail napkin.