“On his part, perhaps, but I’m not sure about Rinata’s innocence,” her grandmother said. “She would have heard that his marriage contract had been approved.”
“Maybe it was her way of standing up for her sister,” Bryn said. “I’ve been worried that Rhianna would always come between Jaxon and I, but I think he’s made peace with the situation.”
“I don’t see any reason why you can’t have a good relationship with him.”
Since they were sharing, Bryn said, “Speaking of relationships, is it my imagination or do you seem to be getting along better with your significant other?”
Her grandmother smiled. “It’s not your imagination. We’ve decided to spend more time together socially. After the attacks I think we both realized how much we could have lost. Whatever the reason, I plan to enjoy it while it lasts.”
That made it sound like she didn’t expect it to continue.
“I see that look on your face. Heed my advice. Enjoy the time you have when Jaxon is being agreeable. His personality will change with the political climate. Don’t allow that to blindside you.”
Talk about conflicting advice. “So I should be pessimistically optimistic?”
“Yes.”
Bryn sighed. “Just when I think I understand how things might work, they change.”
“You’ve just summarized life in general,” her grandmother said. “We should talk about dinner tonight.”
“Why does it sound like you’re about to say something unexpected and possibly disturbing?”
“Because you’re perceptive.” Her grandmother grinned. “A few ground rules. No jeans allowed, and you should wear that hairpin again.”
“Why?” She was pretty sure she knew the answer to that question.
“I believe Lillith is trying to make up for Jaxon’s social blunder last night, so she’s invited us to Westgate Estate for Christmas dinner.”
“Oh.” She’d thought her grandmother was about to say that Jaxon and his family would be coming here. Going there added a whole other layer of anxiety.
“Care to elaborate?” her grandmother said.
“I’m not sure whether I should be excited or slightly terrified,” Bryn said. “Jaxon’s mood can change in a split second. Not to mention the fact that I’ll have to spend the evening with Ferrin.”
“You’ll become accustomed to Ferrin. Soon you won’t even notice when he’s in the room.”
Bryn laughed. “Right. He might have agreed to the marriage contract but that doesn’t mean he likes being around me any more than I like being around him. I always feel like I’m waiting for him to insult me.”
“It’s just his way,” her grandmother said. “Be grateful that Lillith tempered his influence on Jaxon.”
“I’m grateful for that every time I’m around Ferrin,” Bryn said.
“Do you want me to help you pick out a dress for this evening?”
“Yes, because I don’t want Ferrin to have any excuse to insult me.”
…
Bryn checked her reflection in the mirror. “Are you sure this dress isn’t too much?”
The black dress her grandmother had suggested Bryn wear was a little revealing. The V-neck plunged deeper than anything she’d ever worn. “I mean I want Jaxon to like me, but I hadn’t planned on flashing my cleavage at him or anyone else…ever.”
Her grandmother smiled. “That is a perfectly respectable neckline, but if it makes you feel awkward, we’ll go with something else.”
“Thank you.” She could do awkward all on her own without a revealing dress.
Her grandmother went to Bryn’s closet, which seemed to be magically stocked with new clothes on a regular basis. Maybe her grandmother belonged to a Fashion Finds-of-the-Month-Club where clothes were shipped to the house.
She returned with a navy off-the-shoulder dress that had three quarter sleeves. Bryn changed into the new dress. “Much better. I don’t mind showing my shoulders.”
“I have the perfect necklace to go with that neckline.”
Bryn followed her grandmother down the hall to a room that had a keypad rather than a doorknob. Her grandmother entered a long series of numbers and the door swung open. Even though she’d been inside the special room which was basically a jewelry vault, she was still amazed by the display cases full of jewelry made with every precious stone imaginable. Everything in the vault had been passed down through generations of Sinclairs and would put most jewelry stores to shame.
“Since Jaxon gave you the snowflake bracelet, I think you should wear this.” Her grandmother approached a case of diamond necklaces and retrieved one which had a diamond snowflake as the centerpiece.
“It’s beautiful.” She accepted the necklace and held it in place while her grandmother fastened the clasp. It was stunning. “I swear it still feels like I’m playing the part of a princess in a fairy tale and someone is going to announce I’m an imposter.”
“That’s ridiculous.” Her grandmother’s tone was a tad defensive. “You are my granddaughter and you’re exactly where you belong.”
“Thank you.” Bryn hugged her grandmother. “If Ferrin is mean can I stab him with my hairpin?”
“No.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
Her grandfather seemed overly cheerful on the ride to Westgate Estate. “What has you in such a good mood?” Bryn asked as the SUV bounced up and down on the forest roads.
“There are several answers to that question. It’s Christmas. Plus I always enjoy going to Westgate Estate because Ferrin goes above and beyond to try and impress his guests. After Jaxon’s social blunder last night, I’m sure he’ll pull out all the stops.”
A sense of uneasiness trickled down Bryn’s spine. It’s not like Ferrin would punish Jaxon for his mistake. Would he? That would make the evening loads of fun.
“No one is going to bring up the first dance issue tonight, right?”
“Not in so many words,” her grandmother said. “But I’d be surprised if Ferrin didn’t refer to it in some manner, since it reflected poorly on the Westgates in general.”
Great.
The foyer of Westgate Estate still had the obnoxious gold W inlaid in the center of the floor. Thank goodness Jaxon didn’t expect her to carry on that tradition. She leaned over to her grandmother and whispered, “Has anyone ever pointed out to Ferrin that if you’re standing on the other side of the room it looks like an M?”
Her grandmother grinned, but said, “Don’t even think about mentioning that this evening.”
“Fine,” Bryn said. “I’ll just file it away as ammunition to use at a later date.”
“Welcome and Merry Christmas,” Lillith said as she met them in the foyer with Asher on her hip.
“Merry Christmas to you, too,” Bryn’s grandmother said. “Thank you for inviting us.”
“You’re most welcome.” Lillith grinned. “I’m fairly out-numbered now, so it’s nice to have some other women in the house.”
They followed Lillith into the arbor-areum which had been transformed into a Christmas wonderland. Every single tree was covered in fairy lights. Some were white, some were blue. Some were a combination of both.
Bryn stared in awe. As obscene as it was to have a forest in the house, she had to give credit where credit was due. “This is magical.”
“Thank you.” Ferrin’s voice came from behind them, startling Bryn and causing her to turn around.
Ferrin had just thanked her? That had to be a sign of the apocalypse. Then again, she’d just complimented something he was proud of. The world had turned into a strange place.
“It is amazing,” Bryn’s grandmother added.
“This isn’t even the best part,” Lillith said. “Follow me.”
She’d taken a few steps when Jaxon appeared from behind a nearby tree. He was smiling, but he appeared tense, like he wasn’t happy to be here. “Sorry, I’m late. I was seeing to a few finishing touches.”
“Is everything in place?” Ferrin asked.
Jaxon nodded and fell into step beside Bryn.
She needed to break the tension. “Do you have Santa’s workshop hidden in here?”
“Something like that.”
She slowed her steps, allowing her grandparents and his parents to move ahead of them. Jaxon stayed by her side. “Everything all right?” she asked.
He glanced at her. “That will depend on how this evening goes.”