by Laura Gray
“We’re sharing a room, aren’t we?” Ellie asked him.
“Of course we are!” Archer snapped. “We’re supposed to be together, remember?”
“I’m not sharing a bed with you,” Ellie said, crossing her arms.
“I’m not sleeping on the couch,” Archer retorted.
“You said this would be strictly professional!”
“And it is! We’re adults, we can sleep in the same bed!” Archer said. “I’m not going to grope you.”
“Well…” Ellie mumbled. She knew he was right—there was no way they could live in different rooms and justify it to his family. “We get separate blankets then!”
“Agreed,” Archer said, turning away to stalk into the room. “You’re a total blanket hog.”
“What?” Ellie demanded, walking in after him.
“You take the entire blanket and keep it to yourself!” Archer said. “I was shivering the whole night at your place.”
“Why didn’t you just pull it back?”
“Because you twist and turn around with the blanket—it's impossible to pull it back.”
Ellie stuck her tongue out at him. “Whatever. Separate blankets with pillows in the middle.”
“Fine by me,” he said with a straight face.
“Fine.”
“Get ready now,” Archer said, turning away to pick up his suitcase. “We gotta bring it hard at dinner. My uncle’s going to be there and he is not an easy man to please.”
“Got it,” Ellie said with a nod.
“And don't unpack. We’ll be leaving for Paris in two days.”
“Two days?”
“Yep.”
Whoa.
***
After a hot shower in the luxurious bathroom of Bradford’s chateau, Ellie stepped back into her room, steam rising and escaping into the room alongside her. She hugged the incredibly soft and plush bathrobe she found in the bathroom closer to herself.
Archer sat waiting on their bed, dressed in a grey t-shirt, slacks, and a navy blazer. He turned around at the sound of Ellie’s footsteps emerging from the bathroom. His eyes seemed to widen slightly at the sight of her in nothing but a bathrobe.
“I’m going to go see if everything's set up for dinner,” Archer said, standing up suddenly. Ellie blushed under his gaze.
“Yeah, I’ll meet you down there,” Ellie said, clearing her throat.
“My mother’s sent a gift for you,” Archer motioned towards the bed. “You have to accept. Wear it and meet me downstairs in ten.”
Ellie walked over to the bed, curious to see what Mrs. Bradford had sent for her. Her eyes landed on a beautiful, long grey dress that lay on the bed. It was made of a soft heather material that seemed to melt at her touch.
“Wow,” Ellie said. “This is really nice. Why did she—”
Ellie turned around but Archer was already gone. The main door was ajar.
What a strange man, Ellie thought, walking over to pull the door shut.
Ten minutes later, Ellie was ready. She blew her hair just enough to let it dry. She let it hang loose around her in its natural curly glory. The dress Mrs. Bradford had sent for her was perfect; it hugged her curves in ways that highlighted her figure, but loosely enough to look like semi-formal attire, rather than formal. The skirt of the dress reached Ellie’s calves and was split down both sides, showing off her muscular legs. Pulling on her favorite peach-colored heels, Ellie strode out of the room, confident that she was dressed well enough to make a proper impression on Archer’s family.
When Ellie stepped into the hallway, she saw Arjun and Connie standing by the elevator, discussing something amongst themselves. Arjun was still wearing a black t-shirt and jeans. Connie wore a stunning charcoal-colored slip dress with her voluminous red hair pulled up into a bun. When her eyes landed on Ellie, her face brightened.
“El!” Connie cried, rushing towards her. “You look amazing!”
“You too!” Ellie said, giving her a hug. “Your dress, damn! Is it new?”
“Mrs. Bradley sent me this! Isn’t it amazing?” Connie twirled around on the spot to show off her attire. “She even sent Arjun a really nice blazer, but he refused to wear it.”
“I tried it,” Arjun said from behind her. “It felt wrong.”
“Wrong?” Ellie questioned warily.
“Yeah, I’m just not a blazer guy,” Arjun said with a shrug.
“Okay, then,” Ellie said, glancing at her cellphone. “Archer messaged me to come down, like, five minutes ago. Come on.”
When the elevator opened its doors to the ground floor, Ellie found Niles waiting outside, standing at attention.
“Hey Niles,” Ellie said as she approached him.
“Good to see you again, Miss Wolfe,” Niles said with a congenial smile. “You look refreshed.”
“I am, thank you,” Ellie said politely.
“Yeah, our rooms were off the hook,” Arjun told him, greeting him with a warm handshake that Niles reciprocated with mild surprise. “Thanks for that.”
“Off the hook?” Niles asked, confused.
“Off the hook. As in amazing, fantastic,” Arjun explained.
“I see,” Niles said with a nod. “That expression is off the hook.”
Arjun chuckled, turning to Connie. “Seriously, I love this guy.”
“If you all will follow me to the dining room, I’ll show you to your seats,” Niles said, spinning on his heel. Ellie followed him into the corridor that lay behind the enormous staircase of the hall, straightening her dress nervously.
“These are all paintings of the previous masters in the Brandon household,” Niles said, waving his arm at the paintings decking the walls of the hallway. “After their demise, their portrait is put up here, amongst the rest.”
As Ellie neared the end of the corridor, she saw his portrait—Gordon Bradford. He looked nothing like his son. He had tufty blonde hair and small, grey eyes that stared through the portrait as though he knew Ellie was looking at him.
“His passing hasn’t been easy on Master Archer, though he wouldn’t care to admit it,” Niles said from behind Ellie. “We’re all very thankful that you’ve been around to support him through this time.”
Ellie felt a stab of guilt in her belly but she quickly shoved it aside. She didn’t want to respond to Niles with a lie, so she merely smiled, patting him on the shoulder.
“You’re a good butler,” she said.
Niles’s face brightened. “I try to be, Miss. Come on, we’re here. Right this way.”
The dining room of the chateau was smaller than the hall, but all the more extravagant for it.
“Okay, I see what Archer meant about prissy,” Ellie mumbled, gazing at the tall cream pillars, the gold piping along the walls and the enormous rosewood dining table that spanned the length of their room. Plush, wooden and leather chairs surrounded the shining table. Golden lamps shaped like droplets of water hung from the walls, throwing their delicate light onto the shimmering chandelier that hung above.
“Holy mother of crystal,” Arjun said, staring at the ceiling. The chandelier glimmered in his dark brown irises.
“Hello, kids.” Ellie heard Mrs. Bradford’s voice. She turned to see her walking towards them in a long beige dress and white gloves. She had a kind smile on her face. Archer followed behind her quietly.
“Hello, Mrs. Bradford,” Ellie said with a grin. She remembered Archer’s instructions about being mellow with his mother and softened her smile.
“Please, dear, call me Katharina,” she replied sincerely.
“Oh no, Mrs. Bradley, I—”
“Please, I’m no longer married and Mrs. Bradley does make me feel awfully old,” she responded with a chuckle. “I really prefer Katharina.”
“Alright, Katharina,” Ellie agreed.
“You all look lovely,” Katharina said as she glanced between Arjun, Connie, and Ellie. “Do you like the presents you were sent?”
“Oh, this dress is fa
bulous, Katharina,” Connie said gleefully. “I couldn’t have picked a better outfit for myself! How did you know my size?”
“Well, I used to work with my mother in her boutique a long while back,” Katharina explained. “I can tell your size by just looking at you.”
“Wow, that’s really cool, Mrs. K,” Arjun said, raising her hands. “Is it cool if I call you Mrs. K?”
“Actually...yes,” Katharina chortled, clearly delighted by Arjun’s impromptu nickname. Archer eyed his mother from beside her, his face contracting in a mixture of displeasure and surprise.
Tone down the bonding, Ellie reminded herself.
“Let’s get to dinner then, shall we?” Ellie asked Katharina.
“Sure, honey,” she replied. “But first, let me introduce you to Archer’s cousins—there they are—”
Ellie’s first impression of Bennet Bradford was that of the mean blonde kid in Slytherin from Harry Potter. With slick, platinum blonde hair parted to one side and high, proud cheekbones, Bennet Bradford looked like the epitome of wealth. His silken navy suit cloaked his skinny, wiry frame. He was as tall as his cousin, perhaps even taller, which made him look a bit like a rich skeleton.
Behind him, a vision in a knee-length black dress, Bennet Bradford's wife followed. For a moment, Ellie was taken aback by his wife’s features. She had the same platinum blonde hair as her husband, slicked back with the same insane amount of hair gel. She even shared his pale skin color and lofty cheekbones.
“Elizabeth Wolfe?” Bennet Bradford asked with a cocky grin as he approached her. “Is it really you? In the flesh?”
Ellie frowned in confusion. “Uh...yes?”
“Well, well, well.” Bennet’s voice was smarmy, it got onto Ellie’s nerves. “A woman that can actually tolerate Archer Bradford. We thought you were a mythical creature for a while there!” His wife broke into an annoying bout of laughter at her husband’s joke. Ellie resisted the urge to roll her eyes.
“Archer’s the rare find, I can assure you,” Ellie said pointedly. “You must be Mr. Louis’s son.”
“Bennet Bradford,” he replied coolly. “And this is my wife, Hannah.”
“Wife? I thought they were siblings,” Ellie heard Arjun whisper from behind. Then, she heard a snigger. To her shock, it wasn’t Connie that laughed in response to Arjun’s statement. It was Archer.
She stared at him as he hastily covered his mouth to hide his laughter, his green eyes crinkling at the corners. She turned back to face Bennet, trying to keep a straight face.
Bennet had clearly caught the comment and the following snigger but he showed no sign of it other than a twitch at the corner of his mouth.
“And you must be Elizabeth’s friends,” Bennet said, approaching Connie and Arjun for a handshake. While shaking hands with Arjun, he looked him up and down.
“What country are you from?” Bennet asked him. Arjun narrowed his eyes.
“United States of America.”
“I mean, where were you born?” Bennet corrected.
“New York City,” Arjun said really slowly. “Born and raised.” Ellie scowled at Bennet.
“I see,” Bennet said with a sickly sweet smile. “Why aren’t you wearing the blazer Katharina bought? Did you not like it?”
“I—” Arjun threw a half-guilty glance towards Katharina. “I’m just not a blazer guy, Mrs. K.”
“That’s really okay, honey,” Katharina said kindly, stepping between Bennet and Arjun. “I’m just glad you’re all here!”
“We’re glad to be here,” Ellie said with her narrowed eyes trained on Bennet.
I hate this guy.
“I’ll show you to your seats,” Niles said, motioning for them to follow him. Ellie hastily fell in step behind him, eager to get away from Bennet’s unpleasant conversation starters.
They quickly got seated on the plush leather chairs that surrounded the table. Several gold-colored cloches rested on the table with bottles of wine lining the centre of the dining table. The dinnerware was a gleaming silver and gold as well.
Jesus, every inch of this place screams ‘I’ve got money’, Ellie thought as she pulled her chair closer to the table.
“So, is your cousin, like, a total douche?” Arjun asked, leaning past Ellie to get in Archer’s face. Archer raised an eyebrow slowly as he surveyed Arjun’s question.
“Yeah, pretty much,” Archer finally replied after a moment.
“Good to know,” Arjun deadpanned, settling back into his seat. “I’ll keep my expectations low.”
“That’s kind of crucial when you’re dealing with Bennet,” Archer replied with a grin. Arjun snorted in response. Ellie glanced between the two of them, wondering what was happening.
“I think your uncle’s here,” Katharina said to Archer across the table. “Go and greet him before he sits down. Come on.”
Archer stood up with a sigh. Ellie watched him stand with a blank expression.
“What are you waiting for?” Archer asked her. His eyes met his mother’s and he fumbled. “I mean...let’s go.”
“Right,” Ellie said, standing up with him.
“You’ve got to get up with me at times like this, okay?” Archer mouthed to her as they walked towards the corridor at the far end of the dining room. “Real couples just know when they’re both being referred to, we’ve got to act that way—”
“Yeah, yeah, I got it,” Ellie whispered back. “It’s difficult to look like a real couple while trying to downplay me in front of your mother.”
“I know it’s difficult,” Archer replied. “Why do you think I’m paying you so much money?”
Ellie pursed her lips at him but he merely turned away with a crooked grin on his face. Ellie turned back to the corridor. There was no sign of his uncle yet.
“So, as I told you, my uncle is old,” Archer whispered to her.
“I remember that.”
“Yeah, so he’s going to be a bit old-fashioned and weird, much like his son, only worse.”
“Jesus Christ, worse?” Ellie turned to stare at Archer with a slight alarm.
“Sorry,” Archer said to her. Ellie was slightly taken aback—Archer had never sincerely apologized to her before, for anything. He looked like he actually meant it. “There’s a reason I find it so hard to get the guy to like me. I’m everything he detests. Unmarried, uninterested, and—”
“—uninhibited,” Ellie interrupted him in a firm voice. “You are uninhibited in what you do and that is their only problem. The rest of it doesn’t matter.”
Archer turned to give her another one of his unfathomable looks, like he couldn’t quite tell if she was saying what she meant. Ellie tried hard not to break away from his stare. She looked back into his emerald orbs for what felt like several moments but she couldn’t take the intensity of the unnamed emotion behind his gaze. She had to look away.
Catch your breath, you noob, Ellie instructed herself, turning her eyes to the fluffy carpet.
“Brace yourself,” Archer whispered to her. Ellie looked up to see a man emerge from the corridor.
As Gordon Bradford was only in his late fifties when he passed, Ellie expected his elder brother to be no older than his late sixties. The man that emerged from the corridor, however, looked like he’d lived through a hundred years or more. Dressed in a deep maroon suit and a black tie, Louis Bradford hobbled towards them using the support of a black staff.
“Hello, Uncle,” Archer said as the weathered man approached them. Somehow, his hair was still alive with the same platinum blonde shade as his son and his brother. Ellie wondered if she could guess his age with any real confidence. She decided that she couldn’t.
“Archer.” Louise Bradford’s voice was gruff and gravelly from decades of use.
“How are you doing, sir?” Archer asked him, moving forward to greet him.
“I’m doing quite well,” Mr. Bradford said. “although the traffic on the way here from the city was just despicable.”
; “I told you you could stay here, sir,” Katharina said from behind them.
Louis waved a wiry hand. “And I told you the ocean air hurts my hip, Katharina. Would you rather I be in pain?”
“Of course not, sir, I just—”
“And who is this?” Louis asked, looking Ellie up and down with his beady grey eyes.
His gaze made Ellie feel very uncomfortable—she could tell he was judging every inch of her he laid eyes on. It took all her might not to cringe under his pointed gaze and to stand there, with her chin held high.
“Uncle, this is Elizabeth,” Archer said, motioning at her. “She’s my girlfriend.”
“You never told me she was black,” Mr. Bradford said flatly. Ellie felt herself stiffen. Beside her, Archer reached out and grabbed her fingers.
“Well, you know now,” Archer snapped. Katharina cast him a worried glance. “Sir,” Archer tacked on in the end.
“Are you liking the premises, young lady?” Mr. Bradford asked. His weathered skin hung loosely from his frame as he leaned forward.
“Yes…” Ellie trailed off stubbornly. She couldn’t bring herself to call him sir. “Everything is really lovely. Niles has been vastly helpful to us and Katharina has given us a loving welcome.”
“The pleasure is ours,” Mr. Bradford said monotonously. “It isn’t often that we get a visit from one of Archer’s...friends.”
“What’s even rarer is getting a visit from my girlfriend,” Archer said smoothly, placing an arm around her waist. Ellie sunk into his embrace willingly; it was almost easy.
“What do you do for a living, Elizabeth?” Bennet asked her from across the table, a fork held high in his hands. Ellie walked back to her seat on the table, trying not to sigh. She knew she would have to answer all sorts of questions on this vacation but she had hoped she’d have more energy in her before the interrogations began.
“I’m a writer,” Elli stated, settling back into her seat. “I write books.”
“What kind of books?” Hannah asked her in a chirpy voice, tucking back a strand of platinum blonde hair.
“Novels and such,” Ellie said. “Mostly sci-fi.”
“Have you ever published anything?”
“No, I haven’t,” Ellie began. “I’m planning to—”