Redemption (The Bet) (12 page)

Nicholas nodded, handing her the manila folder he'd been leafing through. "Before you leave for the weekend I want you to call Hughes and let him know that we're not settling. Reschedule my morning appointments on Monday for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Clear my Tuesday and see what you can do about arranging for that gift I ordered for Ethan." His little brother would no doubt get a kick out of the
very expensive telescope Nicholas had purchased just before leaving Japan.

The little tyke, Nicholas silently mused, would more than likely embark on the amazing process of taking it apart and discovering what made it work, it wouldn't be the first the time. Terran helped of course, but only when his son asked for it, and rarely was there a time that the little snot nosed genius asked for it. Ethan always managed to astonish his older brother and Nicholas adored him for it.

Looking up from her iPad, which she had taken out the moment Nicholas referred back to business, she smiled triumphantly before saying. "Actually I had it shipped to your mother's home yesterday while you were in meetings. It should've arrived by now."

Nicholas's cell phone rang just then and Samantha handed it back to him with a small blush on her cheeks. Nicholas took the phone with a grin and brought it to his ear. "Grayson."

"You bought him a telescope." Terran deadpanned from the other line.

Nicholas grinned.
"Hello to you too Terran and yes, I bought Ethan a telescope, I thought it fitting since he seems to be so intrigued by the constellations." Ethan's voice could be heard in the background, no doubt eager to speak to his brother.

"A simpler
telescope would've sufficed."

"And who said I ever did things with simplicity?"

"Your mother isn't pleased."

"When is she ever? Please put Ethan on the phone." There were a few ruffling noises of the phone being passed, before Ethan's voice was heard.

"Nick! Thank you so much! This is the coolest thing ever!" so very articulate for one so young, looking at him one would not be able to know the intelligence that lay dormant beneath charcoal grey eyes.

"We can set it up tonight if you'd like." Nicholas was never foolish enough to undermine his brother's intelligence and speak to him as though he were a simple child.

Nicholas could imagine Ethan's eyes widening. "You're back?"

"For the time being, yes, I just ne
ed to drop by my office and pick up a few things. I should be arriving at the manor in an hour or so."

"Will you be staying in the cabin?"

"Yes."

"Then I'll wait for you there, has Daddy told you that Mommy isn't happy?"

"Mother can be placated; one simply has to know how. I'll have Samantha order her some azaleas." Before Nicholas could make the request, Samantha held up her thumb as she brought her own mobile to her ear.

"Yeah, she'll love those."

"Which is exactly why I'm buying it for her. Tell your father I'll be there soon."

"Okay we'll see you soon." Nicholas hung up the phone once the other line went dead and smiled.

There were only a few things that kept him coming back to the states and Ethan was one of those things. Seeing him, talking to him, was like inhaling a cool breeze after a torrent of summer rain-refreshing and invigorating. His innocence helped Nicholas remember that the world hadn’t gone completely to hell.

Never had there been a time when Nicholas wasn't happy that his father was no longer on this earth. Charles's fucking up Ethan's life as badly as he had his own son, wouldn't have been something Nicholas would've enjoyed seeing. If there truly was a God who was judge, juror and executioner than the being that was once Charles Grayson would be eternally damned in the darkest corner of hell, suffering the worst of Satan's depravity. Nicholas desperately wanted to believe in a God who meted out justice.

"We’re here." the luxury car finally came to stop. Nicholas gathered files back into his briefcase, before waiting for Broderick to open the door, back to business as per usual. The jetlag hadn't caught up to him as of yet and he would take full advantage and get things done.

Like a
well-trained spaniel to its master, Samantha hurried after the Nicholas, eager and ready to do whatever he commanded.

Devlin arrived as scheduled, but that was probably the only thing that went according to plan in the course of the week
before their engagement party. There’d been problems from the start, beginning with the caterers on Monday, the band on Wednesday and finally the country club just yesterday, who’d called last minute to inform them that there was a minor problem with the electricity and that it wouldn’t be fixed until early morning Friday. Thankfully, Ellie hadn’t had to deal with any of it and Miranda, saint that she was, had tackled each issue with precision.

But Ellie was in a panic. In just a few hours she’d be presented to all of Devlin’s friends, family and associates as his fiancée and the stress of that inevitable introduction was weighing on her.

"I have a bad feeling.” She said out of the blue, chewing on her bottom lip. “Why does my engagement party have to be on Friday the 13th? Who does that? I mean who in their right mind plans one of the happiest days of their lives on such an unlucky day?"

"People who aren't
so superstitious?" Gabe's attempt to help presented him with three matching glares from the occupants of the room. They'd all arrived at the country club a few hours before and were now in Ellie's dressing room, her anxiety the reason for their appearance.

"Ellie you need to calm down or you'll give yourself an ulcer." Ronnie chided watching the
hairstylist Miranda had hired put a flat iron through Ellie’s curls.

"Ronnie's right sweetheart, everything will be fine. Miranda has taken care of the last minute details, so you don't need to worry about anything. This is supposed to be a fun event, just relax and enjoy yourself tonight." Dina soothed running her hand across Ellie's back.

"But what if I screw up? What if I say the wrong things to the wrong people? What if I embarrass, Devlin? He'll never forgive me!" She abruptly stood from the chair and the stylist sighed in exasperation, fed up with Ellie and her erratic moods. Ellie ignored her and began to pace. "I can't do this..." she was nearing hysteria.

"Ellie, dear you're being irrational. No one is expecting anything from you except your happiness, for heaven's sake it's far too early in your engagement to even be getting cold feet! This is supposed to happen
 on your wedding day, not on the night of your engagement party." Ronnie again, always the voice of reason came to stand in front of a tearful Ellie and pulled her in for a hug. "You'll be fine, just stay by Devlin's side and everything will be fine. You'll have us there too...the kids...you just have to relax and stop trying to psych yourself out."

Ellie sighed, sagging in Ronnie's arms. "Your right, I'm just being silly."

"You're entitled, believe me, if I had a mother-in-law like Miranda I'd be a little hysterical too."

Ellie chocked out a laugh. "She is a bit much."

Ronnie smiled and brought her index finger and thumb inches from each other. "Just a bit."

Pulling out of Ronnie's arms, Ellie walked over to his mother and enveloped her in a warm hug. "Sorry for worrying you."

"Worrying is what a parent does best, sweetheart. I'm just glad you’re okay." Dina looked at her as if to confirm that she really was okay now.

Ellie nodded. "I'm good," She took a deep breath before smiling at them all. "I'm ready for this."

"Good, then we'll see you downstairs in a little bit right? You won't pull a runaway bride on us?" Gabe joked and received a punch from his wife when he made to hug Ellie.

"You're not as funny as you think you are. Come on, we need to get ready too." Pulling him along, Ronnie smiled at Ellie one last time before closing the door behind them.

Dina kissed Ellie's cheek and squeezed her hand. "I have to go get ready too, but call me if you need me for anything before then okay?"

"Thank you Mom, I will." Ellie watched her go,
and then turned to her hairstylist with an apologetic smile. "I'll be good."

It took the stylist, Roxanne,
an hour to finish Ellie's hair. The end result was a chic, side-swept chignon with fresh white orchid pinned in for the final touch. Ellie excused herself to slip into the gown she and Ronnie had purchased a few weeks ago. It'd taken them hours to find this one dress, but when Ellie had laid eyes on it, with its intricate rose decal pattern and plunging back she'd fallen in love.

"You look amazing!" Roxanne brought her hands in front of her, staring at Ellie as she stood in front of the floor length mirror.

"Thank you." She said quietly, taking stock of the woman staring back at her. She did look good. The smoky eyes Roxanne had given her complimented the side-swept hair. The ivory color of the dress did wonders for her mocha skin, while accentuating every bit of her curves. It was sexy and elegant all at once and Ellie loved it.

"Are you ready?"
Was she? Ellie wondered, staring down at the ring on her finger. The diamond winked at her as if giving her its approval. She'd fretted for weeks and this was the end result. This was the beginning of her new life. There was no going back now.

Ellie drew in a deep breath, her heart hammering against her chest. The woman in the mirror looked beautiful, but ready to run.

"As I'll ever be." she murmured, stepping away from the mirror. "Yeah, I'm ready."

~*
~*~*~

Never had there been a time when the phrase, ‘arriving in style' epitomized a moment more than it did tonight. Arriving as fashionably late as the occasion permitted, the illustrious members of high society descended from their
luxurious lacquered vehicles and steadily made their way to the country club. The women, with their glittering diamond trinkets and fetching evening gowns walked on the arms of their equally attractive gentlemen escorts. The air was alive with intrigue and excitement. Awe emitted from the hushed murmurs of the guest as they ambled up the granite staircase.

Stepping through a concave archway just above the second entrance, the guests were transported to another world.
It was an enchanting world where the country club's grand ballroom was transformed into a dome of shimmering lights. The translucent crystals embedded in the chandeliers above their heads danced with the abandoned glee of fire sprites, spraying their gold pixie dusts upon their unexpected guests.

It was a world where the line between fantasy and reality blurred
. Where ladies became the belles of the ball and gentlemen became their gallant princes. It was a fairytale dream, where colors like gold, reds, oranges and cream exploded onto the senses like the opus of a master painter. This was not a run-of-the-mill fete thrown by another society mother wishing to draw attention to her plain Jane daughter in order to catch a husband. And it wasn't another fete thrown on a whim to alleviate the humdrum of the everyday, for the rich and beautiful.

No, this fete was in a stratosphere
of its own. It was what would probably end up being the celebration of the year, filled with enough pomp, glamour, and beauty to have them all talking for just as long. And it was all done for her son and the love of his life. Miranda gave without limitations, planned without inhibitions and the results had turned out exactly as she had imagined.

Standing in all her regal glory, like a monarch surveying her constituents from her position above the majestic grand staircase, Miranda smiled prettily to all who called her attention and descended with enough grace and poise to have many wondering how someone as far gone in age as she could manage it.
 Let them wonder, she silently acquiesced, the twittering fools always needed something to keep their tongues wagging. If it wasn't one thing, it would be another and she was more than happy to provide fodder for them.

"Miranda, darling, you've certainly outdone yourself this evening." Angelique DuPont, a woman who looked as though she had been bred from the finest horses this side of Langston, was all teeth, pinched face and large eyes as she reached out lanky arms to embrace Miranda. "Yours shall be the event to aspire to." False pleasantries were something these women excelled at, and Angelique, in her floor sweeping black chiffon gown, that did nothing to enhance her emaciated form, was without a doubt the top student of her class.

Gossip and jealousy were the fuel that ran through her veins, kept her going when her own less than perfect existence seemed incredibly dim by comparison. She was a covetous bitch who Miranda cared very little for, but as a member of their society, she had to learn to play along, pretend to be cordial so that she could guarantee her son business partners.

"I aim to please." Cheek to cheek they kissed, before Miranda pulled away and smiled, all plastic of course, at the prissy women who queued behind Angelique. One of them was Selene DuPont, Angelique's deb
utante daughter. The poor darling was as pretty as she was dim, lucky for her that she was bred from money. "A son's engagement is an event to celebrate to the fullest."