“I’m sorry about her. She can be a little much,” I say to Ashley.
“Don’t be sorry. God Finn, she’s the first person I’ve spoken to all night who has a bit of personality.” Ashley giggles.
“I’ll try not to take that personally,” I joke.
“Obviously, I wasn’t including you in that assessment. In fact, you’ve been right on form tonight. You’ve really been getting into playing the role of the attentive bridegroom to be.”
“What if I told you it’s no longer a role I’m playing, but the way I actually feel?” I ask, seriously. It’s about time I fess up how I feel about her.
Ashley doesn’t let me take the conversation down a more serious path, “I’d tell you that you’d had far too much champagne and call a cab for you.”
“I’d better not say anything then.”
“If you want to tell me things like that there’s a whole tray of champagne over there with your name on it,” she teases.
We head off in the direction of the waiter with a tray of champagne glasses. He sees us coming and steps to meet us, holding the tray out for us. We thank him and grab a glass each.
I point to an empty table and raise an eyebrow in question.
Ashley nods.
I lead her to the table and we sit down.
We’ve just sat down and start to sip on our champagne when we’re approached by a couple of clients of mine. They sit down and after I make the introductions, they start talking to Ashley about her charity work.
I can feel the champagne starting to have an effect on me. I’m actually enjoying this party, and it’s the first one of these society parties I can ever say I’ve truly enjoyed. I know why. It has nothing to do with the party. It’s all because I’m here with Ashley. I catch something my clients say, and it sounds like they might be interested in making a donation to Ashley’s charity. It’s her turn to shine without me hanging on to her like a dead weight. I put my hand on Ashley’s arm to get her attention for a second.
“Excuse me,” she tells the men and turns to me. “Is everything okay?” Her eyes beg me to let her get back into this conversation.
“Everything’s fine. I’m just a little bit too hot, so I’m going to go out onto the balcony to grab some air,” I whisper in her ear. “I won’t be long.”
“Ok.” She nods. “I’ll be here.” She turns back to her conversation as I stand up and head for the large double doors leading outside. I look back at Ashley before I step outside. She’s making a point she’s passionate about; I can tell by the way her hands are moving. The two men she’s talking to are hanging on her every word and I feel a pang of jealousy, which I push away. I don’t need to be jealous. The most beautiful woman in the world is here with me.
I step out onto the balcony and move to stand against the railings. The cool air soon has me feeling refreshed and I’m just about ready to go back inside when my father joins me.
He stands beside me at the railings and lights a cigar. He smiles at me and then he looks out over the grounds of the house. “It’s hot in there, isn’t it?”
“Yes,” I agree.
He falls silent for a moment and I think that is all he is going to say, but he turns to me. “You haven’t told Ashley yet, have you?”
Shit. I didn’t see this one coming. “No,” I reply with a sigh.
“Are you in love with her?”
I haven’t even told her I love her yet. I’m not about to tell my father first. “I’m just doing what needs to be done. Nothing more, nothing less,” I inform levelly.
“But you and I both know it doesn’t need to be done, don’t we?”
“It’s too late, Dad. Everything is in place for the wedding.”
“I know you think you’re rising to your grandpa’s challenge or whatever nonsense you’ve cooked up in your head, but let me say this one thing and then I won’t say another thing about this. There’s nothing noble about marrying a girl you’re not in love with.”
“I didn’t say it was noble, Dad. I said it had to be done,” I point out. I turn to walk away and I freeze in my tracks.
Ashley is standing right behind us, and judging by the expression on her face, she’s heard every word of our conversation.
My father seems to note the atmosphere has become both charged and icy at the same time. He turns around and when he sees Ashley, he swallows hard. “Please excuse me,” he mumbles before he throws his almost full cigar, still lit, into the ashtray and practically runs back into the party.