Page 62 of A Bossy Roommate
EDEN
Igo 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. HowI 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 youreallymet.”
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!)—andnot to panic (I havenoidea 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.