It worked. It really worked.
The next week was absolutely crazy. Thankfully, Laura did not pull any insane stunts. She was too busy planning her enormous holiday party. Grayson and I were given matching outfits, him with a silk green tie and me in a short silk green dress. I also had shimmering gold heels, something that drew much more attention than I would've liked but was stuck with. I was also instructed to wear my wedding ring, a thin diamond necklace, and diamond earrings.
It was a little too much sparkle.
"Gosh, Grayson, I feel like a walking billboard for rich snooty people who don't care about humanity," I groaned, staring at my reflection in the mirror.
He laughed. "Trust me, you're the least rich, snooty person who's here tonight."
"You're saying I'm broke," I said, grinning.
"I'm saying you've got a big heart," he corrected.
I snorted. "So a big, broke heart."
"Sorry, Jackie," he laughed, knowing I was teasing.
He came up behind me and hugged me around the waist, his chin resting on my shoulder. "You look really beautiful tonight, Jacks."
I smiled. "Thanks, you look very handsome."
"Come on, we both know you're stealing the show tonight," he said.
I rolled my eyes. "Grayson, there are girls who are pretty much princesses here. I'm not stealing the show of anything."
"I don't know, you're prettier than all of them." The way he says that shouldn't turn my heart to mush, but it did. This whole week, I'd done a good job of keeping away from him. Sure, we still shared a bed and fell asleep holding each other, but other than that, it had been pretty easy to avoid flirting with all the party preparations in full swing.
Still over my shoulder, he sighed, closing his eyes. "I am so ready for tonight."
"You are?" I couldn't help blurting out. We'd been dreading this party for almost a month, and he was excited?
"Oh, yeah," he said. "I am so ready to change into pajamas, eat an American snack, and pass out."
"We have American snacks?" I asked eagerly.
"Yes, I thought we needed to celebrate making it this far, so I ordered some," Grayson said, pecking my cheek before letting go of me. "Isn't it thrilling?"
"Very much so. Are we ready to breeze through this party to earn snacks?" I asked, grabbing my green clutch.
"I'm ready, darling." He extended his arm to me and off we went down the staircase.
I could hear the people talking well before we even reached the corridor outside the ballroom. My stomach churned; it sounded like hundreds. So many people, all of them so intimidating.
Right before we went in, Grayson leaned down and whispered something, so close that his lips brushed my ear.
"I've got you, Jacks."
That made it all bearable.
I exhaled slowly and walked in with him, painting on my lovely smile. Except it almost immediately was clenched, permanently painted on in an attempt to hide my horror.
"She did a dress code," I said through my teeth.
Spoiler alert: we didn't fit the dress code. The entire room was dressed in white–with three exceptions. Grayson and I wore green. Laura herself wore bright red. Everyone else blended in, creating a snowy effect.
"I've never been so uncomfortable in my life," I bemoaned under my breath.
"Of course she would put a spotlight on us," Grayson grumbled beside me.
Laura waltzed over to us, spreading her hands with her draped sleeves hanging down past her waist. "My children. You two look stunning."
"Thank you, mother, although I am surprised we didn't get the memo on all white," Grayson said with a pointed look.
She dismissed his concern. "Don't be ridiculous; you two look radiant. After all, I figured as honored guests of mine, you could stand out a bit."
Right. I smiled sweetly and said, "Well, don't let us keep you from your guests."
"I'll see you two later. Enjoy some food and music," she said, winking. That wink made me even more uncomfortable. Maybe I should've winked back.
All this winking was stressing me out.
"Are you okay? You look a little green," Grayson murmured.
I wrinkled my nose. "That was a terrible joke."
"Sorry. Had to be done."
"Fine, just feeling like everyone is waiting for me to trip," I said, taking the glass of eggnog he handed me.
"If you trip now, maybe the tension will go away and they'll forget about us," he suggested.
"I wish," I sighed. "But somehow I feel like Laura is going to make sure no one ever forgets us on this night."
He took a sip of his own eggnog. "I hate that you're right."
"Should we dance or get food?" he asked once I had nothing to say. Of course I was right. I was always right when it came to Laura humiliating us.
"Let's eat, is there anything normal or is it all caviar and asparagus?" I asked as we walked over to a table that wasn't very full.
"Excuse me, we had asparagus for dinner yesterday, mother wouldn't serve it at her party the very next night," Grayson said, mortified at my ignorance.
"Apologies," I laughed.
Thankfully, there were options that I knew, like cheesy potatoes and rolls and smoked salmon. Grayson and I ate, thankfully alone and in peace. It was quiet. People didn't come up and talk to us. It was lovely.
"Shall we dance, Mrs. Answell?" he offered, standing up and offering me his hand.
"Of course, Mr. Answell," I said, letting him lead me to the crowded dance floor. Unfortunately, most of the guests had had the same idea as us. There were a good five hundred people here, all of them packed into the enormous ballroom.
"Gosh, what is this, the fourteenth century?" I muttered. "This music is slower than a sleeping tortoise."
"Jackie, you know very well that any faster and all these people would be sweating and huffing and puffing, which is very inappropriate for an elegant ball," Grayson scolded playfully.
I shook my head. "Silly me. I'm being rather stupid tonight, aren't I?"
"Yes. How can you forget these things?" he asked jokingly.
"Your mother would be ashamed to hear me," I confessed.
Grayson laughed again and pulled me close to his chest, his hand on the small of my back. I dipped my head, turning away from the many faces around me. "Do you think that it's okay?"
"What's okay?"
"Tonight," I murmured. "Think we'll get lucky? That we get to dance together and maybe we can have dessert, then go to bed?"
"I don't think we'll get that lucky," he sighed. "But if we do, I'll be thrilled."
I stayed quiet for a moment before saying, "You know, I hate these stupid parties of hers, but it's nice that we get to dance together."
"Yeah, it is nice," he said softly.
We danced three more songs, and the last one wasn't quite so dusty and boring. Afterwards, I even had a smile on my face as Grayson bowed, forever a gentleman. I was actually a little glad I'd come tonight. Not that I'd had a choice, but whatever.
A sharp clinking hit my ears. Everyone turned, facing Laura in the center of the room. My heart sank; of course it had been too good to be true. The smile on Grayson's face melted, instantly replaced with dread.
She held up a crystal glass, a bright smile on her face as she called, "May I have everyone's attention?"
The room fell quiet, and Grayson grabbed my hand and pulled me back, hiding us along the wall. Perhaps we could still make our escape. Except the doors were still so far away, buried in a sea of people.
"Firstly, may I say, Merry Christmas," Laura said, her voice floating over the crowd. It wasn't fair that she could sound so beautiful and peaceful when she was painted with evil.
Voices echoed, wishing her a merry Christmas. I could tell how much she adored the attention, drinking in her moment in the spotlight. Still holding up her glass, she said, "Thank you all, for coming out tonight. I know that during the holidays, it can get busy and it's hard to make time for everything. So I appreciate the effort. It's been lovely seeing all your faces and reconnecting with everyone."
"Here comes the bomb," Grayson muttered, gripping my arm.
Glowing, Laura continued. "I'm sure you're all aware that my son, Grayson, and his wife, Jackie, are having their wedding in a couple of weeks. While they have been married for months, we are happy to join them in celebrating this union."
"Oh, my gosh, it's going to be something horrible," I said queasily.
"So, it is with great honor, I am happy to make the following announcement," Laura said, her radiant smile never fading. "With the new year upon us, I am glad to say that they will be expecting their first child this coming spring."
As the room burst into applause, as thousands of eyes fell to us, the roaring in my ears became so loud that I heard nothing. It was worse than I thought.
What has she done?
I felt Grayson pull me away from the comfort of the wall, wading through the sea of guests who were congratulating us. He ignored them all, fighting his way to his mother, who looked pleased with herself as the music started back up. The noise. It was everywhere. I clung to his hand as he said something to her. What had he said? His voice had disappeared. Our direction shifted, and we followed Laura into the corridor.
The door slamming behind us activated my hearing. My own gasps swelled in my ears as I leaned into Grayson. Laura faced us, oblivious to our horror. "What have you done?" I rasped.
"Just announced your pregnancy, dear. You're welcome, by the way," she said, much too kindly.
"She's not pregnant, mother," Grayson snapped.
"Well, that's not my problem," she said with an elegant shrug.
"How are we going to explain when there's no baby in the next year?" he asked, clearly stressed.
She clucked her tongue, appearing sympathetic to our situation. "You two could always produce a child, fix the situation."
I dreaded the answer to my question. "Or?"
Laura smiled winningly. "Or I pass off Clay's child as yours. The choice is entirely up to you two."