C20, PT. 2

Colette introduced her to the wife of a South Korean businessman and the daughter of the Ellis hotel chain. When the women moved on, Colette had less than thirty seconds to point out a few heads of state before several more women stepped forward. Colette knew some of them, but quite a few had to introduce themselves.

She touched perfumed cheeks with nearly a dozen women—heirs, entrepreneurs, and the wives of the wealthiest and most powerful men in the world. They showered her with compliments on her dance with Sullivan, her dress, jewelry and congratulated her on her recent nuptials. She was in a minor state of shock. She had never been the one people sought out at events like this. She was usually on the sidelines, smoothing things over or helping others make connections. Sullivan had put her on the map, and she wasn’t sure how to feel about it. She still felt that this was all some bizarre misunderstanding. Colette was a rock at her side and guided the conversation, cleverly extracting useful information while avoiding anything too personal or invasive.

It was no surprise that the heir to the De Vries diamond fortune, Zoe, was interested in her jewelry, but particularly, her necklace.

“Roth surprised me with it this evening.”

“A very generous gift,” Zoe said sagely. “This alone is worth fifty million.”

She felt as if she’d been doused with cold water. “Fifty?”

Zoe took in the way the color drained from her face and let out a tinkling laugh. “Don’t be distressed, lieve. Your husband is honoring you, as he should.” She tapped Jasmine’s bracelet. “I’m going to have mercy on you and keep the worth of this to myself.”

Before she could digest that, Zoe was nabbed by her husband, leaving her with Colette, who resumed her briefing. She tried to pay attention to the rapid fire stream of information, but it wasn’t long before they were interrupted again, this time by Lyle.

Colette gave her an encouraging smile. “You got this,” she mouthed before Lyle steered her sister into the crowd.

She quelled the initial burst of panic at being abandoned by her all-knowing sister. She glanced at Roth. During the wave of introductions, she’d drifted a little. He was speaking to two men. She wasn’t sure whether to keep her distance and allow him to conduct business, or stand by and be a silent support in case he needed her.

After a slight hesitation, she came up behind him. If he didn’t need her, she would excuse herself and socialize on her own, like many other wives. She touched his back to let him know she was there before she came up along his side. She smiled graciously at the men, whose gazes immediately fixed on her.

 “Sorry to interrupt,” she said, and wasn’t surprised when both men waved that away.

“We met a long time ago,” one of the men said. “I don’t know if you remember…?”

“Barry Pratt? We bumped into each other at that gala at the Waldorf Astoria. Your wife’s name is Renee?”

His eyes widened. “Yes, that’s right. You have an excellent memory.”

“I try. Is your wife here?”

“Yes, she’s up against the wall there with some of her friends.”

“Great. Maybe I’ll…” She started to excuse herself until Roth grasped her hand and squeezed. “I’ll catch up with her later,” she finished.

She settled at his side, content to people watch. It took her a couple of seconds to realize an awkward silence had fallen. Both men were looking to Roth to carry on the conversation, but he was mute.

“Roth recently made New York his base instead of London, so he won’t be traveling so much,” she said breezily. “What about you two? Are you still traveling throughout the year for business?”

It wasn’t the best save, but it did the job. Barry and the other man, Orlando, both traveled often—what billionaire didn’t? It took less than two minutes for them to hit on a mutual contact in London that all three of them knew well. When they moved on, they left with promises to get together after the new year.

There was no downtime. Just like it had with Colette, two or more people replaced the ones they’d been talking to. There seemed to be an invisible receiving line in front of them. The whole room wanted an introduction to her husband.

Small talk wasn’t Roth’s strong suit. It wasn’t hers either, but thanks to her upbringing and that brief refresher with Colette, her training kicked in. She kept the conversation rolling, steered clear of touchy subjects, and collected personal tidbits that would help her better remember them.

Several wives tried to separate her and Roth, so the men could discuss business. This was a normal occurrence, but Roth wasn’t having it. Like he had on the night they met, he refused to let her go. He had her welded to his left side so he could shake with his right.

When a sports mogul made a joke of it, Roth didn’t crack a smile or loosen his hold. She smoothed over the awkward pause that followed by admitting, “I had a little panic attack when I first got here, so he’s making sure I’m okay… and I don’t sneak away.”

The chuckles that followed told her there were no hard feelings. When she turned to the sports mogul’s wife, she was startled by the envy in her expression, before it was replaced by a polished smile that wasn’t dazzling enough to detract from her sad eyes.

They were talking to brothers who managed a brokerage firm when she sensed Roth’s rising tension. She didn’t know what was causing it, but when he squeezed her hip, she took a wild guess. She braced her hand on his abdomen and waved at no one in the crowd before giving the brothers an apologetic smile.

“I’m so sorry. I see someone Roth has to meet.”

“No, of course. That’s what we’re here for. It was great speaking with you. Roth, you have our number.”

Thirty seconds later, they parted ways.

**This is a raw draft of Bitter Confessions. Please do not share or distribute.

Copyright © 2024 Mia Knight. All Rights Reserved.