JOAN’S POV
One night, I accompanied Derrick to a dinner with the governor. The governor’s mansion was breathtaking. Everything here was sophisticated – the paintings, the chandeliers, the high ceilings, the wide hallway and the house itself.
As we stepped through the entrance, the chandeliers sparkled above us on the marble floors. I tried not to gape but it was hard not to. I was in awe of thewhole place. It looked like something straight out a movie.
Beside me, Derrick walked with confidence. His posture was straight and his expression was unreadable as always. He hadn’t spoken much on the drive over. Not like he ever spoke to me anyway. But now, as we walked through the crowd of high-profile guests, he seemed even colder.
The dining room was already half-full by the time we reached our seats. As I took a look around, I couldn’t help but notice the familiar faces scattered around the room. The governor, several senators, and even the President of the United States who was seated at the far end of the table. It was surreal. I couldn’t believe I was in the same room as all these people.
“Stop it” Derrick said to me “You’re staring too much”
I swallowed “Sorry”
I looked down at my own dress, hoping I looked at least a bit acceptable among the elites here. The women were dressed in the finest gowns and their jewelry sparkled… literally. I didn’t fit in here. I didn’t need anyone to tell me that. Not even the finest make up artists and the best PR team could change this.
Derrick looked ahead as if the entire scene bored him. But for me, sitting beside him in this setting and being so close to him made the hairs on my arm rise. I felt his warmth so close. His arm brushed mine slightly, and it drove me crazy how my own body seemed to betray me. My body reacted to him even when I didn’t want it to.
Soon enough, dinner began. The room became filled with the clinking of silverware and polite conversation. I was content to stay quiet. I had nothing to say anyway. I didn’t know anyone here plus David already briefed me to just smile and look pretty.
I busied myself with observing the way these people talked. Across the table, the wives and fiances of several officials were dressed to perfection. They looked socomposed, so polished. I felt like an outsider among them. With their practiced smiles and perfectly chosen words, it made me feel more self-conscious by the second.
Just then, someone spoke to me “Joan, isn’t it?”
I looked up to see a woman across the table. She looked directly at me with a smile. I remembered her name was Trina. She was the wife of one of the ministers.
“Yes, that’s right,” I replied with a smile
“How lovely,” she said. For some reason, her smile made my skin prickle and not in a good way. “I was just telling my husband that it’s nice to see new faces at these dinners. I understand you’re engaged to Derrick here?”
I swallowed, looking sideways at Derrick, who hadn’t even looked up from his plate.
“Yes,” I answered “We’re getting married in a few months.”
“How exciting,” Trina replied, clapping her hands “Weddings are such wonderful affairs. Have you started the planning yet?”
“Yes, we have. But we haven’t gotten far. There’s been a lot to organize, so it’s still in the early stages.”
“Of course. And tell me, Joan, where did you go to school? What did you study anyway? We’re all dying to know much about you”
The question hit me. My cheeks grew hot and I looked down at my plate, unsure how to answer. I knew there was no way I could hide my background from these people. They could do a check on me if they wanted to. I had a feeling she already had but part of me had hoped to simply avoid the subject.
“I… I didn’t actually finish college,” I said, forcing myself to meet her gaze.
The murmurs in the room were almost immediate. Whispers moved down the table. I tried to steady my breathing, to calm myself. In that moment, I felt as if everyone’s eyes were fixed on me, judging me. Trina’s lips twisted into an evil smile as she glanced at the woman beside her. And that’s when I knew that Trina was aware all along. She just wanted to embarass me.
“Oh, I see,” Trina said, flipping her hair “Not everyone needs a degree, after all. Especially when you’re marrying a billionaire.”
The woman beside her laughed in agreement “She doesn’t need to do anything. How lucky”
My cheeks heated up and I felt embarrassed in a way I hadn’t in a long time. Tears burned at the back of my eyes. I didn’t know what to say, how to defend myself without making it worse. I didn’t want to mess things up for Derrick. David hadn’t taught me to deal with situations like this. Before I could even open my mouth, Derrick cleared his throat.
“Trina.” He said her name with a quiet authority that made the entire table fall silent. Slowly, he looked up. His dark eyes fixed on her with an intensity that made her go pale immediately. “Joan doesn’t need to justify her background to anyone, least of all you.”
Trina swallowed “Someone like me”
Derrick dropped his fork on his plate, making the sound echo throughout the entire room “Yes, someone like you. Or have you forgotten about your background too? Let’s not go there, shall we? I still have a tape in case anyone wants a reminder”
Trina’s face went as red as the wine in her glass. She looked as though she’d been slapped, and for a moment, I thought she might actually argue. But something in Derrick’s gaze held her in place. Derrick’s look silenced any retort she might have had. She lowered her gaze, swallowing hard, and nodded.
“Of course,” she mumbled, looking anywhere but at me or Derrick “I apologize”
“Don’t apologize to me” he said “Apologize to my future wife”
She looked at me. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears “I’m sorry”
My throat was tight “It’s okay”
Derrick picked up his fork and started eating again.
My heart hammered in my chest as I looked at Derrick. I didn’t expect him to defend me. In fact, I had assumed he would ignore the situation altogether. But there he was, angry on my behalf. I could feel the anger radiating off him in waves.
I felt grateful. I didn’t know what to say or what to do in this moment. Before I could think about it, my body seemed to move faster than my mind. I reached over, placing my hand on his knee beneath the table. His body tensed under my hand, but he didn’t move away. Instead, his hand found mine and held it in a way that sent a shiver down my spine.
Our first touch.
We sat like that for a long moment with our hands entwined. For a while, I found it hard to beat. Everything narrowed down to our hands and the way they held each other. The rest of the room faded into the background as he looked over at me. For once, there was no coldness in his eyes. There was just a kind of intensity that made it impossible to look away.
His fingers tightened a bit around mine. And in that instant, it didn’t matter that we were seated in a room full of people who thought they were better than me. It didn’t matter that Trina’s words had hurt me or that I didn’t belong here. All that mattered was this-this quiet connection that moved between us.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
His gaze almost softened… almost. He nodded and returned to his meal, releasing my hand.
But even as we continued the dinner, I could still feel the warmth of his hand on mine.