No Ordinary Love (A Modern Vintage Romance #5)

19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Amara

" S top fidgeting," Jax admonished. "You look stunning."

"I don't want to be here," I pouted.

Lucas had asked me to come as his date to a charity gala, where his grandmother was raising money for the College of Charleston in her capacity as the chairman of the board of LPC. Since many of my colleagues were going to attend the gala, it made sense that I come as well. But no way was I going as Lucas's date. I wasn't ready for that. It was humiliating when he dumped me like a hot potato, and no matter what he said, everyone assumed I'd been kicked to the curb to make room for Kath.

I was wearing a new dress, one I hadn't planned on buying. But Gemma had insisted on a shopping trip and dragged me along. She ended up in a figure-hugging emerald green dress that made her glow while I was ready to go with my usual black party dress ( for mourning ). But Gemma had convinced me— okay, fine, the dress was so pretty I didn't need much convincing—to buy a hand-painted raw silk number that looked like polished brass with a subtle shimmer. The fitted bodice hugged my boobs while the skirt flared gently at the hips, cascading down to just above my ankles. It had a generous but modest slit on the right side. Delicate brushstrokes in shades of gold and amber swirled across the fabric, giving the impression of molten metal in motion. The dress was elegant and bold, and I loved it, especially since it had been seventy percent off.

For the gala, we were at a grand historic mansion owned by the Covington family on the outskirts of Charleston, since LPC officially supported the event.

The city's elite, along with us academic types, were in attendance, mingling under glittering chandeliers, sipping champagne, and exchanging pleasantries, or in my case, trying to not lose my shit.

My eyes frantically wandered around the room, looking for Lucas. I was glad I'd turned down his request to come as his date when my eyes fell on him. He stood at the center of the room, looking delicious in his perfectly tailored tuxedo, with Kath next to him. She looked radiant in an emerald green silk dress that caught the light with every movement. My heart stopped, confusion and dread coiling in my stomach.

This wasn't what he had told me. This wasn't supposed to happen. He had told me that if I weren't going to be his date, he'd just go stag, but it now looked like he was here with her .

As soon as Lucas saw me, he disengaged from the people he was talking to and came up to Jax and me. He leaned down and brushed his lips against my cheek. "You look ravishing," he whispered in my ear.

I licked my lips and looked at Kath but didn't say anything.

Jax didn't have my reticence or a filter. "What the fuck, Lucas, you still with that bitch?" he hissed.

"What?" Lucas looked around, confused. "No. She's the CFO of LPC, so she manages the charity finances along with Grandma."

I put a hand on Lucas's shoulder and smiled. "It's fine."

I wasn't going to be a jealous shrew. Lucas wasn't mine. He could be with anyone he felt like, and it had nothing to do with me.

Look, look, a flying pig is doing the Macarena.

"Come on, let me walk you to your table." Lucas held out his arm, and I slid one hand into the crook of his elbow and another into Jax's. Yes, I was the cool chick who had two men escorting her.

Gemma and Basil were already seated at our table, as was Bobby Gantz with Rena Covington.

"I have to go handle a few things," Lucas said politely.

"You don't have to spend your time with me," I was snarkier than I intended to be, and when I heard myself, I didn't like it all. I softened, "I'm not going anywhere."

He smiled and then turned to my companion, his grandmother. "Take care of her."

Rena nodded, her gaze intent. "I will."

I wasn't sure if it sounded like a threat.

As Lucas walked away, I couldn't prevent feeling the tension knotting in my stomach. Being alone with Rena Covington was like being with a lioness—regal, poised, but also dangerous. The claws may be sheathed right now but she could pull them out at any minute.

I settled next to Lucas's grandmother, trying to maintain some semblance of composure even though my nerves were on edge.

I should never have come, I thought warily. Kath, Rena, all my colleagues, people who had seen Lucas pull that picnic stunt the other day and had been asking me non-stop what was going on between us—everyone was here. I couldn't stand the idea of being humiliated again as I had been the last time I'd seen Lucas right after our break up. That had led to interminable gossip that had hurt my heart.

Jax squeezed my hand after he greeted Rena. She was not rigid with him—she was just as affectionate as she was with Lucas. Since she had tried to set me up with Jax, maybe she didn't hate me, right?

Rena didn't speak right away; just studied me with her sharp, assessing eyes that seemed to see straight through all my defenses. For a moment, the silence stretched, and I wondered if she was waiting for me to crack first. But then she sighed, a sound so soft and unexpected that it caught me off guard.

"I've watched Lucas struggle," she began, "He's been pulled in every direction by the family, by expectations that were set long before he was even born. It's not an easy path, and it's certainly not one he chose for himself."

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak just yet. There was a hint of vulnerability in her tone, which I hadn't expected, and it made me listen more intently.

"Lucas has always been strong-willed," she continued, her gaze drifting across the table before settling back on me, "But even the strongest can be worn down by the pressure to follow a path that doesn't feel right to them. He's been fighting it more than I think anyone realizes. And he's been fighting his family's expectations, Amara, for you."

I blinked, surprised by the directness of her words. "For me?"

Before she could respond, a server came to ask us if we wanted red or white wine. Rena chose white for both of us and simply said in explanation, "The first course is scallops."

Since I'd read the menu that was placed on the table, I knew, but I simply smiled once my glass was filled.

I raised it in a toast.

"To raising money for the college." I decided not to be provocative.

"To new beginnings," Rena pressed, clinking her glass with mine. She took a sip and made a face. "It's decent. It could've been better, but Kath is managing the budget for this gala, and she's a stingy bitch, which is why we have the cheap stuff."

I was glad I swallowed the wine I had just drunk, or I'd have sprayed it all over Rena's well-made face. I couldn't believe she'd called Kath a stingy bitch!

She went back to what she was saying as if we were not interrupted. "You've been good for my grandson, Amara. You've shown him that there's more to life than duty and tradition."

"But has he been good for me?" I challenged.

"That's a question you must answer for yourself," Rena replied, unfazed, "But don't punish yourself and Lucas for what he's been expected to do all his life. Breaking away from living your life for your family isn't easy. When he first started dating you, I was shocked. When he asked you to move in, I applauded. When he fucked up, I was ready to rip him a new one."

This elegant woman cursing was so out of place that I chuckled.

She smiled at me, and I blinked. That was one hell of a genuine, captivating smile.

"Just remember that Lucas is a product of his circumstances, as are you. He's only thirty years old and has a lot of growing up to do, just like you."

Before I could fully process what I was hearing and respond, the room quieted as the evening's host, the Chancellor of the College of Charleston, stepped up to the podium, announcing how much money had been raised and how grateful she was to LPC and the Covington family; especially Rena.

The air buzzed with congratulatory murmurs, but all I could focus on was Lucas and Kath, standing side by side like a perfectly matched pair.

The Chancellor called Lucas to the stage, offering him the microphone to say a few words about LPC and to thank him and all the attendees for their generosity. I watched in horror as Kath stepped forward with Lucas, slipping her hand into his as they faced the crowd together.

He held her hand until he got in front of the microphone and then let it go, giving her a soft and intimate smile. My heart began to pound so hard that I thought it would leap out of my chest.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Lucas's voice carried through the room with authority and his consummate confidence, "thank you all for being here tonight to support this incredible cause. Your contributions make a real difference in preserving the history and culture of the College of Charleston."

Lucas moved a little, and Kath leaned over to the microphone. "As CFO of LPC, I'm thrilled to be here with Lucas, our CEO. We've been partners at work and in our lives, and I'm so grateful to have him by my side professionally and personally."

The words left me reeling. I struggled to reconcile the Lucas who had made love to me, swearing he wasn't getting back with Kath, with the man now letting her announce their relationship in front of the entire city.

"That little witch," Rena muttered angrily.

I felt sick! The room began to spin around me as the distant and hollow applause echoed in my ears. Kath beamed beside Lucas, leaning in to kiss his cheek, and the sight of it shattered the fragile hope I'd been clinging to.

How could he do this? How could he stand there, after everything he'd said to me, and act as if Kath was the one he wanted by his side? I wanted to run, to escape the suffocating pressure of the room, but my feet were rooted to the spot, my heart breaking all over again.

As the applause died down, Lucas stepped off the stage, and our eyes met across the room. I saw regret in his expression—but it didn't matter anymore. The damage was done. Whatever connection we'd once had, whatever chance I thought we might have had to rebuild it, was gone.

Jax leaned over. "This is all Kath and not Lucas."

I shook my head, unable to find the words to explain the devastation that was ripping through me. The humiliation, the betrayal—it was all too much. "I need to get out of here," I whispered, my voice trembling.

Rena grabbed my hand. "Listen to Jax. This is Kath's doing. She's trying to mess with you and Lucas; don't let her."

I clenched my jaw. "Kath can do whatever she wants to. All Lucas needed to do was stop her or make clear that their relationship was strictly professional, which he didn't do."

Rena didn't say anything for a long moment and then let out a breath. "You're right. Lucas has some more growing up to do and hopefully then he'll stop worrying about what people think or say, and focus on the people he loves."

I was surprised to have Rena take my side. "I can't stay here."

"Yes, you can. Show that bitch that this doesn't bother you," Jax stated.

Gemma leaned forward. "Amara?"

"Son of a bitch," Basil groaned. "This guy has the worst luck. Just as he's fixing it, his ex is…Amara, don't give that woman the pleasure of hurting you and Lucas."

"I'm not." I smiled to pretending that I was okay even though I wasn't. Damn, Lucas! Rena was right, her grandson needed to grow the hell up. "I don't have an issue with Kath—it's Lucas I'm upset with. Actually, I don't have a problem with either of them anymore, because I'm done."

I was, too. This was way too much drama for anyone. No matter how much I loved Lucas, this bullshit was not worth it.

"Jax, take her home, son," Rena ordered. "I think it's time Lucas got his ass kicked and hard ."

"Let's go," Jax said, his voice firm and protective. He guided me through the crowd, his arm around my shoulders.

As we stepped out into the cool night air, I felt a tear slip down my cheek. It wasn't just the end of whatever Lucas and I had left—it was the end of any hope I'd had for my life in Charleston. This city, with all its charm and history, had become a place of unbearable pain, and I knew, deep in my heart, that I couldn't stay here any longer. If I stayed, this nonsense would keep happening. I'd let Lucas into my bed. He'd let Kath humiliate me or his mother or Shelby. He'd never have the balls to be the man I needed him to be.

I turned to Jax as he drove us home, my voice not quavering any longer because I had made a decision—one that was to save myself. "I'm leaving Charleston. I'm going back to New York."

"Darlin', you just bought your place. You love—"

"It's too much, Jax, all of it. I'll sell the cottage. I'll stay with Dad for a while. Look for a job. If I stay in Charleston, this is going to keep happening. Enough is enough."

He looked at me with understanding, put his hand on mine, and squeezed. "If that's what you need to do, do it. But do not make any hasty decisions."

"I can't afford a mortgage if I'm not working, Jax."

"I'll rent your place."

"What?"

"I like it."

"But it's so…ordinary," I said, confused.

Jax laughed. "I thought I wanted fancy to show off to my family how well I was doing, but every time I'm with you, I realize that I want comfort. I want ease. I don't want to show off, don't need to."

I looked at Jax and wished Lucas felt as he did. I wished Lucas could step away from his family and just be himself. I couldn't say he was weak because he wasn't. Caring for your family and wanting to not hurt them wasn't a matter of strength; it was a matter of priorities, and he'd once again shown me that I was low on his list.

This was, as the cliché went, the last straw . I'd leave after Christmas. I'd finish the semester and then maybe take a few months off to recuperate from the hell I'd just been through at Dad's place. And then, slowly, I'd rebuild my life away from the temptation that was Lucas Covington.