Filed to story: Watch Out, I’m The Lady Boss (Eleanor & Sebastian) Book PDF Free
“All this trouble,” I grumbled as I climbed into the car.
“This party had better be worth it.”My dress was midnight blue, and Sebastian’s tuxedo matched.
I’m hungry,” I muttered, rubbing my stomach.
There’ll be plenty of food at the party,” he said.
“You don’t need to mingle much. A few glasses of wine, I’ll talk to some people, then we go home.”
“Good.”The car took us to Rochelle, about twenty minutes outside Skyline.
The banquet hall was already teeming with people dressed to the nines. I spotted industry leaders, a couple of big names from city hall, and someone from the mayor’s office.
“Who’s that with Sebastian Laurent?”
“His date? Girlfriend? Escort?”
“Wife?”
“No chance.”The whispers started the moment we stepped inside.
I was used to it by now. Wherever Sebastian went, eyes followed.
Me? I was the small fry. And despite his public announcement, plenty of people still didn’t know he was married, or that I was the wife in question.
Or perhaps, for some, the fact he was taken wasn’t a deterrent at all.
As Sebastian passed, women checked their compacts, reapplied lipstick, and I counted at least four who fluffed their hair.
One woman, though, stood out.
She was about my age, tall, statuesque, with striking blue eyes. She wore very little make-up, but her bone structure did all the work for her.
She hadn’t stopped staring at Sebastian since we walked in, and when his gaze finally landed on her, surprise flickered across his face.
The moment their eyes met, she broke into a radiant smile and glided over with the kind of grace you normally saw on the catwalk.
“Seb! It’s really you!” Her voice was honey-sweet, smooth, overjoyed.
In a few long strides, she was right in front of him, arms flung around his neck, her elbow conveniently shoving me out of the way.
I gawped.
I knew Sebastian had admirers, but I hadn’t expected to meet one quite so… brazen.
Didn’t she see me standing right here? Was I invisible?
Sebastian quickly prised her arms off him and stepped back, his face hard.
The woman frowned, glanced at me as if I were furniture, then turned back to him.
“Don’t you remember me? I’m Genevieve! Genevieve Crawford! We used to hide in the treehouse all day. Remember the treehouse? Our secret fort?”
“I remember you,” Sebastian said, his voice flat.
I studied her. So this was Sebastian’s childhood friend?
From the way she behaved, more like childhood sweetheart.
But childhood was a long time ago, and Sebastian wasn’t a fort-building boy anymore.
I hooked my arm through his, a silent declaration of ownership.
Genevieve noticed.
“Oops, sorry, didn’t realise you had a date.”She didn’t sound remotely sorry. The smile she tossed my way was more provocative than polite.
“Seb and I go way back,” she added, though no one had asked.
“We grew up together, we were inseparable.”
“Yes, I gathered,” I said drily.
“We even used to share a bed for naptime.” She winked at Sebastian, though the jab was aimed squarely at me.
“I haven’t seen him in ages. That hug was pure impulse. We were close like that. Hope you don’t mind.”I made a vague sound in my throat that even I couldn’t interpret.
“Anyway, Seb,” she turned back to him, apparently done with me, “I didn’t know you’d be here. What a lovely surprise. What’re you doing now? I heard you’re running LGH. That’s impressive. I also heard-“
“That he’s married,” I cut in.
“Surely you’ve heard that. He put out an announcement and everything.”Genevieve’s smile tightened.
“Really? I didn’t know.”
“That’s fine. You know now. Back then, Seb was just a kid, and however close you were, I wouldn’t hold it against you. But from now on, things are different. Seb is a married man. There are boundaries. I don’t care how long you two have known each other, or how close you were, but from this moment, he is my husband. You’ll need to keep your distance. After all, if you had a husband, you wouldn’t want some woman throwing herself at him, friend or not, would you?”I delivered every word with a pleasant smile and perfect poise.
Harsh, yes.
Rude, definitely.
But I’d rather lay things out clearly than go through another Lea-style fiasco.
Genevieve’s smile vanished.
“You and he are… married? You’re his wife?”
“I thought my meaning was clear.” I lifted my hand, fingers entwined with Sebastian’s.
“Here are our rings. If I’d brought the marriage certificate, I’d have shown you that too.”
Genevieve looked stricken.
She lunged for Sebastian’s arm.
“That’s impossible! How could you be married? You-“Sebastian pulled his arm free of her grasp.
“Yes, I’m married. And my wife,” he glanced at me with a smile in his eyes, “is the jealous type. Best if you keep your distance.
As if that weren’t enough of a blow, he added, “Miss Crawford.”
“You used to call me Vivi…” Genevieve’s face went pale.
I shuddered as goosebumps prickled across my skin. I arched a brow at Sebastian. Vivi, seriously?
Genevieve’s hand clenched into a fist, her long painted nails biting into her palm, though she didn’t seem to notice.
“Mr Laurent!” A tuxedoed man in his late twenties strolled over with the tallest, most willowy woman I’d ever seen hanging off his arm.
“What a pleasant surprise!”He gave me a quick once-over.
“I see you’ve brought a date. That’s rare for you. You usually show up alone, so I even prepared a date for you. Shame to let her go to waste.”The woman fluttered her lashes right on cue.
I scoffed inwardly. The man was dressed like a businessman but talked like a pimp.
“She’s my wife,” Sebastian said, his tone flat.
“Wife?” The man looked at me again, more closely this time.
“Legally married,” Sebastian added, as if there were any doubt.
Repeating my earlier move, he lifted our joined hands to show the rings.
Was he gloating?
“Oh, wow, congratulations. What a surprise.” The man managed, after faltering for half a minute. The news had clearly rattled him.
“I’m disappointed I wasn’t invited to the wedding.”He turned to me, his smile less oily now and almost genuine.
“Mrs Laurent, a pleasure to meet you. I’m Oscar Lindgren. My company does some business with your husband’s.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Eleanor Vance.” I would have shaken his hand, but my right arm was still linked with Sebastian’s and he showed no sign of letting go.
“Eleanor Laurent,” Sebastian corrected.
Oscar chuckled, then launched into business talk with Sebastian, while the willowy woman remained latched to his arm like an accessory. When neither man was looking, she waggled her brows at me, then rolled her eyes at the two of them.
I smiled back. I felt the same-bored out of my skull.
Genevieve hovered on the edges of the group the entire time and showed no signs of leaving.
When Sebastian finished chatting with Oscar, he strode off so quickly, Genevieve had no chance to catch He steered me into a quiet corner out of sight.
“Sit. I’ll get you something to eat. What do you want?”I wanted women to stop throwing themselves at him.
Out loud, I said, “I’ll come with you.”
“You’re in heels.” He pressed me into the chair.
“I’ll do it.” up.
Couldn’t he have phrased those caring words in a less icy, commanding tone? If I didn’t know him better, I’d have thought he was scolding me.
I shrugged.
“Fine. No preference. Just nothing that drips.”He nodded and left.
By the time I’d scrolled through my first short video, he was back with his arms full of plates.
“Help yourself. I need to talk to a few associates who’ve just arrived.”
“Go.”
“Want to come with?”