Chapter 6
Three days later, the Southbridge Young Entrepreneurs Gala.
When Ethan walked in with Claire on his arm, everyone in the room glanced my way.
I hadn't wanted to come.
My father had said it was an event the Grant Family attended every year. The more I hid, the guiltier I'd look.
Lucas was there too.
He sat in his wheelchair, pushed by Evelyn. The second he entered, he drew half the attention in the room.
Someone murmured,"Did the Bennetts really agree to talk marriage with the Grants?"
"Vivian dumped Ethan Shaw and latched onto the Bennetts right after. She's got some nerve."
"Poor Ethan, though. Ten years in the Grant house, and she tossed him aside like nothing."
The whispers weren't exactly quiet.
Ethan heard them, and said nothing to correct them.
Claire tugged at his sleeve instead.
"Ethan, don't let everyone misunderstand Vivian," she said.
Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried just far enough for everyone nearby to hear.
Sure enough, some people looked at me with even more contempt.
The host announced the most anticipated young entrepreneur project of the night.
Ethan's studio was called out.
When he stepped on stage, the applause was warm.
Claire stood below the stage, pride shining in her eyes.
Ethan held the microphone.
"I couldn't have gotten here without one special person," he said.
Everyone thought he would thank the Grant Family.
Even my father looked over.
Ethan turned to Claire.
"I want to thank Claire Hughes. She stayed up with me through countless nights when things were hardest. She helped me organize my proposals, and even encouraged me to stand on my own two feet, no strings attached," he said.
Claire covered her mouth, tears spilling down her face at once.
The room erupted applause.
My father's face darkened.
I picked up my water glass and took a sip.
It had been exactly the same in my previous life.
I had stayed up three straight nights rewriting Ethan's first business proposal for him.
When he had won the award, he had given all the credit to Claire.
Back then, I had stormed the stage and confronted him, making a huge scene.
Everyone had called me a jealous lunatic.
This time, I stayed seated.
Lucas to leaned over and asked,"You wrote that, didn't you?"
I looked at him.
"How did you know?"
"He could've written something that good," Lucas said flatly.
He said it so bluntly I almost laughed out loud.
On stage, Ethan kept talking.
"I also want to thank the Grant Family for all these years of support. But starting today, I won't rely on anyone else," he said.
The applause grew louder.
Someone raised their glass across the room.
"Mr. Shaw's got real backbone," someone remarked.
Claire was invited up on stage.
The host smiled and said,"Miss Hughes, would you like to say a few words?"
Claire took the microphone.
"I didn't do much. I was just there for him. I know some people think I don't belong here, but I believe true feelings shouldn't be looked down on because of someone's background," she said.
She might as well have said my name out loud.
The murmurs started up again around the room.
"Did you hear that? She's talking about Vivian."
"Some people have no shame, sitting there like nothing is wrong."
Evelyn set her cup down on the table with a sharp tap.
The sound was quiet, but it silenced the whole table.
She looked at me.
"Miss Grant, are you going to let that stand?"
I set my water glass down.
"No," I said.
I stood up and walked toward the stage.