Chapter 3
Stanley, over fifty, was wearing a plain gray jacket.
He got up super early to come straight from his factory, sleeves still dusted with white chalk that wouldn't wash out.
I guessed that for Mary, one look at that dust was all it took to judge someone's worth.
Stanley calmly put down his napkin. "Are you Mrs. Carter?"
"If you know who we are, then why are you still sitting here?" Mary shot back.
Susan's face had gone stiff.
William Turner, the waterproofing supplier, next to Susan, flipped his place card over to show off the name. But Mary didn't glance at it.
She only saw the filet mignon, the lobster bisque, and an untouched plate of foie gras on the table.
Every dish, handpicked by her personally. She said the Carter family had to maintain appearances, so they couldn't have the main table looking shabby.
Now she pointed directly at the table. "All this expensive food, and you're letting them eat it? Julia, you know how to show off with someone else's cash, don't you?"
My chest felt like it was being squeezed. Yet beneath that pain, I actually felt a weird sense of relief.
The scariest thing wasn't that someone was rotten. It was that they were not bad enough to be obvious, so people kept making excuses for them.
Today, at least, they did the dirty work for me.
The hotel manager was Ryan Collins. I called him over. "Mr. Collins, is the party all paid for?"
"It was settled last night." He replied almost instantly. Then he turned to Mary. "Venue, drinks, service fees, all covered personally by Ms. Evans."
Mary was stunned. "But Henry said he'd pay. He did promise."
I folded up the process sheet. "But you know, because he promised doesn't mean he'll actually follow through."
A relative couldn't help it and let out a snort of laughter. Mary's face flushed bright red. "We're all family soon, so why keep drawing lines like this?"
"Weren't you the one accusing me of flaunting your money? Now you're mad I kept things clear?" I shot back.
She slammed the cup on the table, splashing coffee all over the cloth.
Stanley calmly wiped his hand with his napkin. "Miss Evans, I think I finally understand why you never agreed to be a guarantor for the Carter family."
Mary apparently didn't catch the weight behind his words. She'd already pulled out her phone and dialed Henry.
He picked up right away. Clearly, the new bride wasn't as important as his mom.
"Henry, get over here. Now," Mary said. "Your wife's lost it. She went against me in front of everyone, all because of a few poor relatives."
I glanced up at the clock on the wall. Ten minutes was up.
Mary set Henry's call to speaker and shoved the phone right up to my face.
"Julia, my mom's blunt. Don't take it to heart." He sounded so practiced that it sent a chill down my spine.
He kicked things off with what sounded like an apology, then spun it so I was the one being difficult. He always did this.
"She's your elder, and we're surrounded by guests. Give her some face," he continued. "Just stick the relatives who don't fit in at other tables for now. I'll figure out the main table when I show up. I'll be there in five."
The second I said his name, he hung up without hesitation.
He didn't bother to ask why I invited those eight to sit at the main table.
Mary let out a cold snort. "You heard him, didn't you?"
Laura rushed up, reaching for Susan's jacket draped over her chair. "Don't be mad, Mary. I'll sort it out."