A Bossy Roommate (Next Door to a Billionaire #2)

18. Eden

18

EDEN

I go to the kitchen and put the kettle on for Aunt Eleanor and me. I’ve taken time over the last few days to get to know where things are in the apartment, that way it looks more believable that I spend all my time here. While the tea is going, I open the cabinet and pull out a box of rum balls Carter bought specially for his aunt, saying that they could come in handy as “her absolute favorite distraction.”

I arrange everything on a silver tray I find in one of the cabinets. When the Earl Grey is ready, I carry it into the living room. Eleanor isn’t on the couch where I left her. I’m about to get worried when I see her coming down the hall with a red box in her hands.

“You are an angel, dearie,” she says. “Now, before I forget, I have a little something for you.” She sits back on the couch, and after she gestures for me to sit next to her, she places the box on my lap. On top is an envelope graced with beautiful calligraphy that says, “Mr. & Mrs. Carter Bancroft.”

“This is for you, ma chère ,” she says. “Technically, it’s for you and Carter both, but I’m giving it to you as a wedding present.”

Without waiting, I pull out the card, smiling at the gorgeous gold trim and wording.

The card reads:

Congratulations Carter & Eden,

Your marriage made my heart the happiest it has been in a très, très long time.

Although I wasn’t able to be there in person to witness it, your wedding brought endless joy and light into my life. May your amour be like that beloved unbreakable teapot in my cupboard—comforting and eternally enduring.

Love, Auntie Eleanor

As I read the lines, I feel a wave of guilt and sadness wash over me. I can’t bear to look up, afraid my eyes will give me away. The words on the card feel like a weight on my chest. In the box I find a beautifully handcrafted sign that reads “The Bancroft Family.” The dark wood has a perfect glossy finish, and I can’t help running my fingers over the engraved letters. “Wow, I don’t know what to say.”

Aunt Eleanor beams at me. “Welcome to the family, my dearest Eden.”

“Thank you. It’s beautiful.”

“I had it made special,” Eleanor says proudly, picking up her teacup. “So, tell me how you and Cartie met.”

Gently putting the sign back in the box, I swallow my feelings away and launch into the story Carter and I discussed, trying to sound as lovestruck as I can. I tell her all about how we met four months ago when he was on a business trip on the coast. How I was having lunch at the same hotel where he was staying, and how we ran into each other several times.

Eleanor smiles and nods along with the story, calmly sipping her dark tea.

“He approached me first, alpha man that he is,” I continue to tell her, and she nods in agreement. “I was sitting alone at the bar, and he sat right next to me, asking if the seat was taken. Next thing I know he told me to have dinner with him.”

We both grin at that.

When I finish talking, I actually feel pretty proud of myself for keeping the whole thing straight. Not one detail did I forget or mess up. By the way she smiles at me, I’ve sold the loving part enough for her satisfaction.

“That sounds very romantic,” Eleanor declares, and inwardly, I sigh in relief.

Perfect. Carter will be proud of me.

She puts a rum ball into her mouth. “Now, tell me how you really met.”

My jaw drops.

I know I’m in trouble. If there was ever a competition for the worst poker face, I’d be the grand prize winner. Seriously, my face is more expressive than a toddler’s on Christmas morning. I couldn’t hide the shock if I tried.

“I don’t know what you mean,” I utter in the weakest of weak attempts, reaching for a rum ball.

“Come now, Eden.” Eleanor gives me a look that says she clearly isn’t buying it, and I need to stop BSing her. She swallows the chocolate. “I was not born yesterday, dearie. Let us not play coy. I love my nephew to death. But I have always had my suspicions about that story.”

I stuff the rum ball into my mouth. Internally, I’m trying desperately not to high-five her with a huge grin (I’ve had my suspicions about the story too!)— and not to panic (I have no idea what to tell her). Carter had been confident in his deception, and to sit with his aunt and have her tell me to my face she doesn’t believe him has me scrambling to respond.

She grabs another rum ball.

I grab another rum ball.

I place it into my mouth, feigning innocence and hoping to buy myself time to come up with a suitable response. Chewing, I busy myself by standing up and propping the new family sign on the mantel. These rum balls taste kind of…healthy, like they’ve forgotten the sweet stuff. Is there even any alcohol inside them? Feeling drunk might have calmed my nerves and stopped my cheeks from blushing.

“What’s so suspicious about the story?” I ask her, sliding the family sign down a bit, a bit more to the left, no, a bit more to the right again, no, back to where it was?—

“You are making me dizzy. Please sit back down. I will gladly tell you what is so suspicious about it. It is too vague. Neither you nor Carter mentioned why you visited the hotel in the first place. It is ridiculous that you kept running into each other and mostly,” she narrows her eyes on me, “why would you—all of a sudden—give up your life and move to a different state for him? In less than a month?” Her eyes are fixed on me, big and expectant, imploring me to provide an answer that will unravel the ultimate mystery.

I can’t help it. I laugh. I look back up to face her, and she smiles, watching me trying to pull myself together. “I told Carter the same thing.”

Eleanor laughs this time as she shakes her finger at me. “See, I knew it. I knew there was something up with that boy’s story.”

“We met in an ice cream shop here in New York City, late on a Sunday evening, and from there we went into a bar,” I explain, sitting back down. There’s no reason to double down on the other story since she clearly doesn’t believe it. “It was a chance encounter just not as…clean as Carter made it sound.” Technically, I’m not lying. It may have only happened a week ago, but it’s still the truth.

“Now, that sounds more believable,” Eleanor says with a chuckle. “I am sure my nephew thought I might balk at the idea of him dragging his wife from a cute ice cream parlor into some dingy bar. But the truth is, I could not care less where he met you. I am glad he did.”

She pats my knee with her bony hand, and I reach out to lay my hand over hers. “Carter thinks the world of you, Auntie,” I tell her. “I can tell that he loves you very much. He’s been talking about this visit all week. I’m happy that you’re here with us.”

“I’m happy Cartie found such a lovely woman to settle down with.” Eleanor smiles and squeezes my hand. “I know he’s consumed by work, work, work. I’m well aware of his relentless pursuit of becoming a partner at that firm. I am sure you know that he started from nothing—a young boy from a rough neighborhood—and tirelessly worked his way up the ladder, and now it is driving him mad that the CFO stands in his way. You see, coming from a background of limited means, he had to overcome immense challenges and work relentlessly to carve out his path, and his journey has been full of sacrifices and relentless perseverance.”

Carter had alluded to his humble upbringing, but hearing Auntie speak about it sheds a whole new light on his character and who he truly is.

“Oh, I am so proud of him,” she goes on. “The thought of not achieving his goal would devastate him, not only that, but it would shatter his aspiration, especially considering how close he is to attaining it. It is within his reach, just at his fingertips.” She gives my hand another squeeze. “I genuinely wish for him to succeed, but it’s refreshing to see something else finally capturing his attention. Indeed, a woman who supports his goal is exactly what he needs. So. Where did you first kiss?”

I knew she would ask, though I had no idea she was going to pop the question so soon. But after the turn of events, I can’t possibly tell her the made-up story Carter and I had agreed on—you know, the one where he heroically handed over his jacket due to the low temperatures and leaned in for a kiss. “Quite honestly, I managed to coax him into kissing me. I told him I was the world’s best kisser.”

“Well, well, well, looks like curiosity didn’t just kill the cat, it caught the man too! That was the perfect way to lure him in.” Eleanor laughs and so do I. She grabs another rum ball. “What do you think about children?”

Again, she’s not afraid to cut to the chase and ask the tough questions. Carter had warned me that she wouldn’t be shy.

I grab another rum ball. Quickly, I place it into my mouth, thinking.

Carter had been incredibly clear on the subject, and I’m not about to feed Eleanor some line about “playing things by ear” or “maybe someday.” She has already proven to be of sharp mind, and while she does look frail, I doubt this would be something she couldn’t handle. Eleanor strikes me as a woman who could handle anything. I swallow the sweet goodness.

“Well, in general, I like children…” I start confidently and truthfully, watching her sip down her chocolate with some tea. “In fact, I like them a lot…”

“Carter was never much interested in children, even when he was one.” She interrupts, gently placing her teacup back on the coffee table. “He always says he doesn’t want kids, but don’t you worry, dearie, with the right woman, he will. No doubt. I remember one time when he was in his early twenties, a distant cousin had a baby, and when we went to visit them, he practically melted and showered it with endless affection.”

My shoulders drop, and I release a happy snort. Not only is the visual of bossy, tough Carter melting downright hilarious, but the idea of him softening for a tiny baby is incredibly heartwarming. It dawns on me that Eleanor is the perfect resource for getting to know Carter. After all, she had raised him. She knows him better than anyone. “What was he like as a kid?”

“Oh, très sérieux . Always so serious, but smart as a whip. He was never officially tested, but dearie, I was always sure that he was nothing short of a genius. He was always curious about everything, which made him a real pain to take on a museum tour. But it made him a good listener too, and mostly, a natural born problem solver. No challenge was too big for him to tackle. School was a breeze for him. College was a breeze for him. He graduated early. With honors.”

“Wow, really? That’s amazing …I mean yes, I knew that.”

“Right. That boy has a wonderful mind. He was determined to make something of himself, and lo and behold, he was able to do just that. He didn’t have it easy growing up, having lost his parents early, I admit that. But he never needed much discipline from me—well, at least not when it came to working. His love life, on the other hand, is a whole other matter entirely.”

“I bet he left a few broken hearts in his wake.” I prop my chin on my hand, wondering how much of Carter’s life she’s willing to share.

“More than a few,” Eleanor confirms laughingly. “He is handsome and smart—must have been my good genes. You know what they say? The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” She chuckles. “Looks like my sense of humor didn’t make it through the gene pool though. He’s got everything else, but no jokes. Poor kid. I guess I’ll just have to settle for being the funny one in the family. Anyway, as soon as he entered high school, all of the girls had their eyes on him, but nothing came of it other than a couple of dates. Of course, he would know better about his love life than I would. Still, I always felt like he was looking for something specific. Soon I understood that the girl he would choose as a girlfriend was a girl he would choose as a wife.”

That’s the greenest flag if there ever was one.

I stop my jaw from dropping, reminding myself to stay in character and mostly, not read anything into her statement.

Also, I’m still stuck at her “all of the girls had their eyes on him” comment. “Sounds like he was a very popular kid, huh?”

“Only with the ladies. He didn’t have much by way of friends, as far as I can tell, except for a handful of true friends he kept in touch with all those years, to this day. I suspect he prefers it that way. But let’s not dwell on that. For now, let’s celebrate that he has you. I’m grateful that he does. I can tell he loves you.”

“Oh, you can?” I can’t help it. My heart does a little flip-flop and butterflies sprout wings in my stomach.

“Oh, absolutely, dearie. You can tell that a mile off. Without a doubt.”

My heart melts a little at her words. If only she knew the truth and that all of it is nothing more than acting. I need to do a much better job of not letting her words get to me.

The more she talks, the more I realize how tired she looks. Her hands shake when she lifts her teacup again, nearly spilling it before I reach out to help. Despite what she said earlier, I’m sure the long plane ride has taken a lot out of her.

“Auntie, why don’t we get you settled into your room for a nap?” I suggest. “You’ve had a long day, and I think it would do you some good to get some rest.”

This time she doesn’t protest. “You’re right, dearie. That jet lag gets me every time. It has been a long trip, and I am positively fatiguée .” I make a move to help her, but she declines. “I can stand on my own. By the way, no need to fuss over me, ma chère . I’m not planning to meet our lord and savior quite yet. I still have plenty of good health in this body, so stop worrying. It’s true, I may not be able to do everything I used to, but I’m not completely helpless.”

“Of course you aren’t. We haven’t known each other long, but I get the feeling you’re a tough one.”

“Smart, beautiful, and an excellent judge of character.” She laughs. “And impeccable taste in husbands. Keep doing you, dearie. I can see why my nephew was so drawn to you.”

I feel relieved once I see her guest room door close. Things may not have gone exactly as planned, but thankfully I haven’t ruined the whole cover.

Buzzz .

I pull my vibrating phone out of my pocket.

Carter:

We’re almost done here. Everything okay?

Me:

Auntie is asleep. FYI, she didn’t believe the hotel bar story for a minute. Had to improvise.

The second I hit send I see the three dots appear, and I have the mental image of Carter somewhere between an angry heart attack and a furious rage. Before the three dots stop dancing, I quickly respond.

Me:

All good!

Told her we met at the ice cream shop and went to the bar, but still stuck to most of the story. She liked it.

Thumbs up emoji.

Carter:

Damn it. I’m on my way. Don’t say anything else.

I roll my eyes as I tuck my phone back into my pocket. He’s worrying about nothing. Aunt Eleanor adores me and doesn’t seem to care about anything other than the fact that we’re married.

Since she’s resting and Carter is at work, I figure I’ll take the time to get some rest myself and head up to Carter’s room for a well-deserved nap.