Roommaid

by Sariah Wilson

  Then everything seemed to be happening at once. The dog sitter arrived and then Tyler texted me he was in Houston heading in to work, saying he’d missed me and was counting down the minutes until he could see me again, and Julio was there to pick me up. I brought Kailen up to date on Pigeon’s situation, showing her where the dog food was, responded to Tyler that I was just leaving and would be back in a few hours, saying I’d missed him, too, and then went down to meet Julio.

  When I got to the mansion, the doors were open as guests trickled inside. Even though I was at their house, I felt giddy and buzzed. Tyler wanted to be with me. He wanted to kiss me. Not even my mom could kill this feeling.

  All the same, I was glad to be surrounded by people, as my mother would lean toward not making a scene that could embarrass her or my father.

  Although it made me wonder again if Violet was somehow setting me up. If my mother wanted me here solely to show their business associates and friends a united front. We always had to appear to be one big happy family to the outside world.

  There was a sign by the door welcoming everyone to the Huntington Victorian Christmas, where we would be edified and uplifted by the decorations and entertainment. I tried not to snort. Nobody was leaving this party smarter or better off. Just hungover and regretting their life decisions.

  Coughlin took my coat with a nod of his head as I walked toward the ballroom.

  For a second I thought I saw Frederica—there was a woman with her hair color wearing a bright-red dress going into the room. But why would she be here? Were she and my mom on speaking terms again? It was so hard to keep track of when they were friends and when they weren’t.

  But if Frederica was here, then that might be good for me. It took very little to make her get into a fight with my mother and all Mom’s hateful energy might be focused on her sister and not on me.

  When I got into the ballroom, I saw that it was my aunt. I waved to her, but she walked off in the opposite direction. As if she hadn’t seen me when I knew she had.

  What was that about? I thought about following her but surveyed the decor instead. There were thick garlands, the old-fashioned lampposts set up in the corners with wreaths on them, curtains of twinkling lights hanging down from the ceiling. The orchestra wore Victorian outfits, complete with bonnets and hats, and I wondered how long they’d be able to keep them on before they got too hot.

  As I was looking around I saw Brad, standing with his parents. I squared my shoulders, preparing a whole speech in my mind for what I’d say when he came over. Reiterating that we were through and were never getting married.

  But all he did was raise his glass to me, with one of those knowing looks on his face that made me want to punch him.

  Vanessa was the person who approached me. “You have a lot of nerve showing up here.”

  “Violet asked me to,” I told her, grabbing a flute of champagne from a passing waiter. If I was going to have to deal with my sister and my mother, I would need the liquid assist.

  “Interesting.”

  “Whatever. Are you just here to torture me?”

  “About how you were a fool to walk away from Brad and now you get to suffer our parents’ wrath? I’m always happy to fill in.”

  I sighed. “Sounds about right. You want me to be unhappy like you, right? You don’t have to be, you know. You could even run for Senate instead of your husband. We both know you’d do a much better job. It would give you something else to focus on besides me and my problems. It’s pretty great when you stop letting everyone else dictate your life and you get to make your own choices.”

  “That’s the price I pay for the life I want.” She shrugged, but I could see that my words had affected her. That she was thinking about what I had said. I’d meant it—I actually thought Vanessa would be a much better politician than she would a politician’s wife.

  “You don’t have to be married to . . .”—I almost said an idiot but thought better of it—“Gilbert to have the life you want.”

  She studied me, like I was a piece of art she was considering buying. “Remember what you said. The thing about making your own choices. And nice earrings.”

  What kind of weird mind manipulation was that supposed to be? I waited for her to say more, but she just gave me a catlike grin and walked away. But she didn’t go far.

  I was thinking about demanding that she explain herself but Violet found me first. She grabbed me by the arm and pulled me away from the crowd of people to my left.

  When she was certain we were far enough from everybody else, she whispered, “I can’t do it. I can’t tell them.”

  “You can. I’m here to help you and support you.”

  She shook her head, and I could see the tears in her eyes. “No. I thought it would be easier during the party with all these people here. That they couldn’t make a scene. But . . . what if they do? What if they fire me? Right here, right now? In front of everyone?”

  I grabbed her hands. “We already know what you’ll do. You will find a new job. And I’m proof that you can survive without them.”

  “Are you?”

  My mother.

  Turning around, I noted that she had on a pink Chanel gown covered in crystals that resembled tiny snowflakes. I wondered where my father was.

  “Madison, we didn’t know you would be here tonight.” Her voice was sickly sweet sounding and I knew something bad was about to happen. That she was lying and had in fact known I would be at the party. Which meant she’d figured out a way to hurt me.

  “Violet invited me.” I made big eyes at Violet, hoping that maybe my sister would take the opening I’d just offered her. Instead she looked down at the floor, unwilling to make eye contact.

  Then she mumbled, “Excuse me,” and left me there alone with my mom.

  So much for supporting each other.

  “And have you had the chance to say hello to many people? Did you talk with Frederica?” my mom asked.

  “I saw she was here but no, I didn’t talk to her.” More bizarre questions. I wondered if Violet was okay and whether I should go check on her.

  “I’ve found her advice so sound,” she said with a smile. “Haven’t you?”

  “What is happening right now?” This was heading into alternate dimension territory.

  Vanessa had made her way over to us, and she stood next to my mother. She didn’t speak and it was her silence that was most disconcerting.

  My mother started to do enough talking for them both. “Did you really think you just lucked into your current life? That your uncanny ‘survival’ skills are what saved you? Your indomitable strength? That you’ve really stood on your own two feet?”

  Why did her words fill me with dread? “I have stood on my own two feet. I’ve had to be stronger than I knew I could be. I am strong.”

  My mother let out a fake tinkling laugh. “Darling, how would you know? You’ve never been strong. You’ve had two moments of defiance. That’s not strength. Even now you’re being cared for. Spoiled.”

  “What . . . what do you mean?”

  “Your job? Who do you think recommended that you be hired?”

  Shay had put in a good word for me. As soon as I thought it, I knew that wasn’t the only possibility. Given how competitive the school was, I had to admit that my mother and father would know enough influential people to pull some strings. It was a possibility I hadn’t even considered.

  And they obviously did know some powerful people at Millstone Academy, as evidenced by the fact that they had just tried to get me fired.

  “Or what about your car? Where did you buy it? From the dealership that your aunt recommended? Your aunt, who was in need of money? Who is here tonight as my guest, as we’ve repaired our so-often-fractured relationship? Who would do anything for her dearest sister? And tell me, did you buy the car from the manager at a reduced price?”

  “No . . .” My voice sounded shaky and I tried to shore up my reserves, but I felt sicker and sicker b
y the moment. “I negotiated that price. On my own.”

  She laughed again. “How naive.”

  Had they really been involved with that, too? Why? To show me that they were still in control of my life? After I thought I’d taken over the reins? I knew they wanted my gratitude. They wanted me on my knees, thanking them from the depths of my soul that they were wise enough to keep controlling my life. The job I had, the car I drove. I thought they had all been my decisions and my mother was telling me I was wrong.

  My chest constricted and I found it difficult to keep sucking in air. I wasn’t going to let them keep doing this to me. I’d had enough. “Look, I don’t know what you’re all up to but I’m not going to stand here and—”

  “Here’s your father. And speaking of meeting people here at the party, you absolutely must meet his guest. One of the up-and-coming stars at Weston Wilshire. Madison, I believe you know Tyler Roth?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  I couldn’t process what was happening. My dad was there, in a tux.

  And so was Tyler.

  They were together. And Tyler worked for my father’s company? Why hadn’t he told me? An unsteady pulse started throbbing against my right temple.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “Madison?” Tyler sounded confused. “What are you doing here?”

  My mother was in her element. “And then we come to the matter of your apartment. Frederica was more than happy to show you the worst possible places to stay so that when an opportunity became available with one of our most valued employees, well, we liked the comfort of knowing that you’d be looked after.”

  The apartment? Pigeon?

  Tyler?

  They’d had a hand in all that? Was I actually in control of any part of my life? I’d walked into all their traps, trusting and unknowing.

  Naive, as my mother had said. She had a cold, calculating grin on her face. Like a viper who’d been lying in wait for the perfect time to strike.

  And she’d found it.

  But Tyler? How could he have agreed to be part of this? My heart wrenched painfully.

  “Why?” I asked him.

  He opened his mouth to speak, but my mother was faster. “Why else? For the promotion we gave him.”

  A ringing started in my ears as blood rushed into my heart, making it beat faster and faster until I felt like my chest was going to explode. All that time, when I was trusting him and trying to respect him and his rules and be his friend, all that time he’d been deceiving me?

  For that stupid promotion?

  That he had lied to me, tricked me, was bad enough. That he’d made me think he might have feelings for me and wanted us to be in a relationship was terrible. But that he’d allied himself with my mother?

  That was a betrayal I would never be able to get over.

  She’d won. My mother had promised to make me regret my choices, and she had. She had ruined everything in my life that meant anything to me.

  It was all lies.

  I grabbed my skirts and I ran. I heard Tyler calling my name, but I ignored him. I had to get out. Get away from all the people in this room who thought they knew better than me. That I was too stupid to make my own decisions. That they needed to be in control of me, watching over me, deciding how I spent my time and who with.

  He caught up to me in the front hall, reaching for my wrist. “Madison, wait. I didn’t know the Huntingtons were your parents.”

  I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “It’s okay. You can stop lying to me now. I know everything.”

  “I’m telling you, it’s the truth. None of what she told you back there is real.”

  “Which part? That my desperate aunt arranged all this for money? Tricking me by taking me to horrible apartments I couldn’t bear to live in so that your place would seem like paradise? Or that you were willing to put me up in your place for free so that you could get your precious promotion? Did you have a good laugh with my mother over making me clean when I had no idea what I was doing? Was pretending to want me and kissing me part of the deal, too? So you could make sure I wouldn’t move out?”

  “No! I kissed you . . . because . . .” He ran his fingers through his hair, showing me his frustration. “Because I was falling in love with you. I’m in love with you. And I shouldn’t have kissed you, because you had a boyfriend that you’ve been with for eight years. The first time the two of you had just broken up and I was such a hypocrite to make a move, especially after I instituted that stupid rule that we couldn’t be together.”

  My breaking heart wanted to mend, to rejoice that he loved me, that he had been trying to be a gentleman and not make a move on someone he thought was vulnerable. Problem was, I didn’t believe him. I was so truly sick of being lied to and manipulated and, seriously, Tyler would choose this very moment to confess his undying love? “Did my dad put you up to that part? The rule? Because that sounds like him.”

  “How could you think me capable of any of this?”

  Now it was Oksana’s words that filled my head. That Tyler was ruthless and ambitious. That he wasn’t the good guy or the hero of my story. That I knew if this was Brad who’d been caught in the lie, he’d be doing the same exact things Tyler was trying to do right now. Distract me with protests of love. Claim he hadn’t known what was happening. Deny everything he’d done.

  “Look.” Now he sounded desperate. “I told you about my promotion. From the beginning. We celebrated it. Why would I do that if I’d gotten it in exchange for hurting you? If I were trying to trick you, I wouldn’t have said a word about it.”

  How did he expect me to believe that? How was I supposed to see him as anything but another lackey willing to do anything my parents wanted in order to achieve his goals? “Or you did that to throw me off the scent. How did you never tell me where you worked?”

  “It wasn’t intentional! Sometimes those things don’t come up. Like you never once said who your parents were. You never said their names.”

  Was that true? I couldn’t remember. “You know my last name!”

  “You aren’t the only family named Huntington!” His voice softened. “I didn’t make the connection. You’re just Madison to me. My Madison.”

  Again I felt my weak heart waver as my breath caught, but I wasn’t going to be taken in. Not again.

  As if he sensed my resolve slipping, he said, “I should have told you that I loved you when I first realized it.”

  Was this part of the plan? Where he’d only meant to lie to me about living in his apartment but, whoops, accidentally fell for me? Which, again, would be to his benefit?

  I could only imagine how much bigger and better his career would be if he were with me. Because that’s how things worked in my family. If Violet ever did tell my parents about her personal trainer, Tyler might just end up the new Weston Wilshire CEO.

  Or he would if I were by his side. Coughlin came to the front, carrying my coat. Tyler reached out, as if he wanted to help me, but I backed up. I didn’t want him to touch me.

  I didn’t want him near me.

  “I don’t believe you,” I told him. “But if you do care about me at all, don’t follow me or try to contact me.”

  My lungs started to constrict as I put on my coat and stepped outside. Hot, unshed tears blinded my vision but somehow I found Julio and asked him to drive me to Shay’s apartment, giving him the address. I rolled up the dividing window between the driver’s seat and the back. I needed the privacy.

  When we pulled away from the house it was then that I finally allowed the sobs to break free and shake my entire frame. I cried so hard I worried I might vomit.

  My mother had ruined everything. Tainted every memory I had of the things I’d accomplished.

  And all my memories of Tyler.

  The car dealership? That was where our friendship had started. Had my mother forced him to go with me?

  I ran through all my interactions with Tyler in my mind, wondering what I’d mis
sed. The signs that he was my parents’ employee this entire time. Were they all laughing at me? At how easily they’d continued to manipulate and control my life without me even knowing it?

  Julio got me to Shay’s and I somehow managed to climb the four flights of stairs to her apartment. I knocked on her door, hoping she was still up. I was about to call her when the door opened and she took in my mascara-stained appearance.

  “What happened?”

  She led me over to the couch and had me sit down. I started crying all over again and it took a while before I could stop and actually speak. I told her everything that had gone on that night, ending with Tyler’s betrayal. She stayed uncharacteristically silent as she listened, periodically handing me tissues so that I could dab at my eyes and blow my nose.

  “I’m going to quit the academy,” I announced, unnecessarily dramatic.

  “Why would you quit? You just signed a two-year contract.”

  “Because now that I know my parents are responsible for getting me my job, how can I stay there? They ruined it. I didn’t earn it on my own.”

  Shay shook her head. “I recommended you, too. Maybe it was a combination of both things, or neither one. It doesn’t really matter. You’re the one who interviewed. You earned that job. You got a contract because you’re good at what you do. Who cares how you got in the door? Now that you’re here, stay and prove Ms. Gladwell was right to have faith in you.”

  “I guess you’re going to tell me not to return my car, either.”

  “Well, you can’t return cars. You could sell it, but you’ll lose money. So I think you’re stuck with it, to be honest. And again, even if your parents are the ones who put that in motion, you’re the one making payments on it. It’s your car. Who cares how you got it in the first place?”

  “Now are you going to say the same thing about Tyler? Who cares how it started, only that we’ve fallen in love with each other?”