Chapter 16
Dorothea kept running everything over in her head, trying to figure out where things had gone so wrong. How did she mess this up? The craziest part was she had already signed the marriage papers, and the man in front of her really was Mr. Stephens.
She took a deep breath and tried to sound calm. “Thank you, Mr. Stephens p>
Latham gave her a little smile that seemed to mean more than he was saying. “No need to thank me. It was nothing.” He turned his attention to Layton. “So, Layton, is this a family get-together p>
Layton gave a half-hearted laugh. “Something like that.” He definitely didn’t want to get into the whole arranged marriage thing, especially since to most people it would sound like he was just trying to marry off his stepdaughter. She wasn’t even his by blood-she was Elise’s daughter from a previous marriage.
Latham seemed to pick up on the awkwardness and let it go. “Well, I have dinner plans. I’ll leave you all to it p>
But before he left, he paused and looked at Dorothea for a long moment, as if trying to figure her out.
Dorothea tried to keep her cool, but she couldn’t help wondering if there was any point to this dinner anymore. Elise nudged her. “Come on, let’s go. The Stevens family must be getting impatient p>
Elise and Dorothea walked into the private dining room. Thankfully, the man they were supposed to meet hadn’t shown up.
Donna greeted them with a smile. “Sorry, Elise. My son couldn’t make it today, but his father and I are here. Honestly, it doesn’t matter if he’s here or not.” She turned to Dorothea. “So this is Dorothea? She’s gorgeous p>
Donna seemed pretty happy with Dorothea. Considering her son’s reputation, she figured it was already lucky enough to find a girl from a decent family. And this was Elise’s daughter, after all. Even if Dorothea was the child from Elise’s first marriage, she still had some connection to the Brown family, and that counted for something.
Layton started chatting with Magee, making small talk, while Dorothea just sat there, feeling out of it.
Her phone buzzed. It was a message from Latham: [Sorry about today. Can we talk when you’re done p>
Dorothea lowered her eyes, biting her lip as she typed back: [Okay p>
enet
They definitely needed to talk. Dorothea was so upset with herself she could almost cry. She had somehow married a complete stranger by mistake And Latham-he knew she wasn’this date, but he hadn’t said a word.
Right now, Dorothea’s opinion of Latham was in the negatives.
“Dorothea, what are you thinking about?” Elise gave her a sideways glance.
Dorothea forced a smile. “Oh, nothing. My office just called, so I might need to leave early. Sorry p>
Elise’s face darkened. She was
about to say something, but Layton stopped her with just a look. He smiled, gentle as ever. “Drive safe, Dorothea p>
She practically ran out of there. The moment she stepped outside the club’s
entrance, it was like she could finally breathe again.
She spotted a familiar Bugatti parked out front, hazard lights blinking. Her phone rang.
Latham’s voice was short and to the point. “Get in the car p>
Dorothea walked over, not even trying to hide her annoyance. “Mr. Stephens, let’s just get a divorce p>
Inside the car, Latham’s jaw tightened. “Just be quiet for now. We’ll talk when we get home p>
Dorothea swallowed back everything she wanted to say. He’d messed things up, and now he was telling her to keep quiet But when she
glanced at his hand grippin hoe
the steering wheel, the veins standing out, she decided not to push her luck. Her safety came first.
Latham drove her back to his place. He took off his jacket and tossed it onto the
sofa, then sat down and rolled up his sleeves. “Let’s talk p>
Dorothea sat at the far end of the couch, as far away from him as she could get, her mood as heavy as ever.