“Wow, they are totally buying it,” she said.
“What?”
“The fake boyfriend thing. Look at them.”
I lifted my eyes to the table, and found Bella’s family watching us. To be more accurate, they were staring at us in fascination.
“You underestimated me,” I said as we approached the table.
“Eh,” Bella said, pinching me on the wrist. “They can be super gullible. You have no idea.”
I laughed, but our private moment was over. I pulled out Bella’s chair again, and she gave me a slight eyebrow lift that seemed to say: now you’re overselling it.
“I do hope that Tucker sits down before the meal,” Julie said, scanning the crowd.
“Where is Prince Charming, anyway?” Bella asked, gulping her wine.
“He saw some of his associates across the way,” Julie replied. “You know how he is, always working.”
“Oh, I know how he is,” Bella muttered. “Always working something.”
“You two looked lovely out there,” their mother said, changing the subject. “Where did you learn to dance, Rafe?”
“In my mama’s kitchen,” I said. “Every good Dominican boy can merengue.” I let the Spanish roll off my tongue, the way it’s supposed to. “But I can do all the ballroom dances. I learned them at my public elementary school in Washington Heights.”
“Really,” Lydia enthused. “That is so charming.”
“That’s just Rafe,” Bella put in. “He’s the charming one in this relationship.”
A salad plate landed on the table in front of me then, and I realized how hungry I was.
“Is someone seated here?” the waiter asked, indicating the empty place next to Julie.
“Yes,” she said.
“Here I am!” a man’s voice boomed. He yanked back the chair beside Julie and kissed her before he sat down. “So sorry! But I saw the boys from State Street over there. You know…” He dropped his voice and turned to face Bella’s father. “They’re still sitting on that vacant piece of land in Red Hook. I think we can pry it away from them after the new year.”
Bella’s father, who hadn’t said ten words all night, nodded sagely. “Can we now? That sounds promising.”
The newcomer jerked his napkin off the table with a snap and dropped it in his lap. He had a way of moving which drew attention to everything he did.
I hated him on sight.
Julie gave her husband’s shoulder an affectionate rub. “Maybe you can spend some time with your family now? We’re almost never together like this.”
Beside me, Bella stabbed her lettuce with unnecessary force. She did not spare a glance at her brother-in-law, even though he was right across the table from her.
“You haven’t met Rafe,” Julie continued. “Bella’s boyfriend.”
I gave Bella a gentle kick under the table. See? It worked, I telegraphed.
She didn’t even look up.
“I’m Tucker Fanning,” Julie’s husband said. “Nice to meet you.” He gave me a salute in lieu of a handshake, since the table was so wide.
“Pleasure,” I said, reminding myself of Bickley. I wondered what he’d make of this party.
Julie carried the conversation after that. She did a lot of gushing about the night’s keynote speaker, but I was watching Bella eat her salad. I could feel waves of stress rolling off her, and I didn’t like it.
Tucker Fanning must have been indifferent to them, because eventually he asked her a direct question. “So, Bella. What do the undergraduates do for fun these days?”
Bella set down her fork. “Well, Tucker. We do whatever we can to broaden our little horizons. It isn’t all keg stands and bong hits anymore.”
If I wasn’t mistaken, Bella’s sister practically braced herself against whatever Bella was about to say.
“Truthfully, I’ve gotten a bit bored with my usual.”
“Is that so?” Tucker asked, holding his wine glass in a way that somehow managed to look pompous.
“Vanilla sex just doesn’t do it for me anymore. I’ve been dabbling in some kink and fetish play. Just the sort of thing you’d enjoy, actually.”
Her father dropped his fork onto his plate with a loud clatter. “Jesus, Isabelle!”
At that, Lydia laid a hand on his arm. “She’s just saying it to get a rise out of us. Must you always fall for it?”
Without a word, he rose from his chair. Taking his scotch glass in hand, he drained it, then marched off toward one of the bars.