Until Forever (ROYAL RIDERS SERIES BOOK #1)

17| Family

"If we get there later, we won't be there for as long," he explained. 

"No," I said slowly. "If we get there later, your parents will make us stay longer. And you know that." 

He sighed before hitting the gas harder. He honked at the steel gates and we were let into the estate by security. He drove around the water fountain in the middle and parked the car off to the side. 

"Remember you're not meeting my family tonight as my assistant," he said as he turned the car off. "You're meeting my family as my girlfriend. Act like it." 

"I will," I reassured him, "as long as you act like a boyfriend." The words sounded weird on my tongue as I said them. 

He sighed, "Let's go." He stepped out and I got myself out, rounding the car and meeting him on the other side. He stopped, jutting his elbow out. 

I eyed it for a moment but linked my arm with his nonetheless. We walked inside and were let in by a new housekeeper. 

I don't know this one, but last time, it was a woman named Natalia. From what I heard Ms. Blythe telling Vince, she was a single mom, early thirties. This one seems a lot younger. She led us to the dining room where Mr. Graham and Ms. Blythe were sitting in a tense silence. Mr. Graham sat at the head of the table and she sat to his right. She noticed us right away and stood up, confusion taking over her face when she saw me. "You're here... both of you," she mumbled. 

Vince didn't stop to hug her like he usually does, he walked around the table, taking me with him, and stopped at our seats. He pulled a chair for me as I looked at him. "Sit," he said quietly and sternly. He's already in a bad mood just being here. 

I sat down and he sat beside me, only addressing his mother like he always does. "Mom," he mumbled, nodding her way. 

I don't know what the tension is between him and his dad, he never told me, he never talks about his dad. 

"At least you're here this time," Mr. Graham scoffed softly before turning to me. "Hello, Demi." 

"Hello," I offered him a small smile. 

"Demi, how come you're here tonight?" Ms. Blythe asked, lifting her glass to her lips. 

"Um... I—" 

"She's my girlfriend." 

I froze, my eyes going wide while Ms. Blythe spit out her drink. I glanced at Vince who was sitting there, as cool as a cucumber. I checked his father's reaction but he didn't seem that surprised, or if he was, he didn't show it. He just raised his eyebrows with a small shrug and sipped his drink. 

Ms. Blythe patted her mouth with a napkin and turned her attention to Vince. "I'm sorry, what?" 

He stared at her blankly. "Is that surprising? Really? I didn't think it would be, considering the entire world knows we slept together." 

I cringed, fisting my hands under the table so hard that my nails dug into my skin, making it hurt. 

"As far as the world knew, you slept with your assistant," Mr. Graham said. 

Vince glanced at him, his jaw hard. 

"Why haven't you told people you're together? It would have saved her job and frankly, your little career." 

Little? That's an understatement. 

"I didn't want to," I found myself saying. "I didn't want to make it public, I wasn't ready for that." 

Mr. Graham watched me carefully. 

I felt like he was looking for a crack in my lie, so I kept going, making sure that I sounded believable. "It doesn't matter that I lost the job, I still have Vince. That's all I care about. And he put me first to make sure that the public didn't find out we were together, just because that's what I wanted." I could feel Vince watching me but I was too nervous to look at him. 

His father nodded quickly. "Seems fair. So... will you tell the public now?" 

"We're not sure," Vince answered. "We'll see." 

"You should, no?" Ms. Blythe said, "It would be better for you, Vince." 

"But maybe not for her," he replied, shaking his head softly. "I want to wait for her. When she's ready, we'll tell the public." 

I turned to look at him, which was a bad idea considering he was already staring at me. We stared at each other for a long minute and all I could think was: 

What the fucking hell are we doing? 

"How long have you two been seeing each other?" Ms. Blythe asked. 

We both turned to her and told her the time we decided to tell everybody. "We started seeing each other three months before the New York news. Nine months now." 

The time frame made more sense that way. We had a thing going, got caught in New York, and spent the last six months dating in secret. And now, it's time for a reveal. It made perfect sense. So much so, that his mother believed it. That's how we knew the world would too.

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Chapter 17

I'm kind of over studying for these dumb little tests, so I've studied ENOUGH

I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS BULLSHIT 

I've spent so many hours studying this weekend, I'm fucking over it

I think I've studied enough, so I'm just gonna keep writing like usual and updating a lot the way I always do

next chapter: show