I was talking to Damien, and then you apparently had something urgent to tell him.”
Karina wasn’t sure how to respond to this woman. If she had disliked her at the party, that was nothing compared to what she was feeling now.
“I think I’ve decided on this dress,” she told Yvette.
“Excellent choice,” said Yvette.
“That is a gorgeous dress,” Tabitha chimed in. “What’s the occasion?”
“Some charity event this Saturday. I’m going with Damien,” she said, trying to gain the upper hand.
There was a flash of venom in Tabitha’s eyes, but it was gone so quickly that Karina couldn’t be sure she hadn’t imagined it.
“Ugh,” said Tabitha. “Is it that stupid museum fundraiser? I went with him last year and it was so boring. I’m glad he was smart enough not to ask me again this year. Better you than me,” she said with a forced smile.
Karina could feel the heat rising to her cheeks.
“Oh look, Miss Rose,” Yvette suddenly called out. “I’ve found your dress. Shall I get you a dressing room?”
Karina hadn’t even realized Yvette had left the room but was grateful for the interruption.
“Lilly, will you take care of Miss Watson while I help Miss Rose?”
“Absolutely,” the brunette said before turning to Karina. “If you want to change, I can bag the dress and ring you up.”
Karina nodded, not trusting herself to speak.
After changing back into her dingy jeans, Karina waited at the counter while Lilly found the right garment bag for the dress. She ran it through the register, but as Damien had promised, everything had been arranged and Karina didn’t even have to sign for anything. Lilly brought the bag around from behind the counter and handed it to Karina.
“Just between you and me,” Lilly said quietly, “Mr. Bishop has never bought Tabitha a five-thousand-dollar Jason Wu gown.”
The girl was trying to make Karina feel better, but her brain got stuck on the five grand part.
“Um, thank you,” she said, and made her way outside, where the driver was waiting to take her back to Damien’s home.
When Karina got home that afternoon, she fired up the laptop and did a search on Tabitha Rose. It didn’t take long to find her. Apparently she was a model, though it looked like it was mostly local stuff. Her parents were donors for various organizations, so they must have money.
Karina added Damien’s name in the search box with Tabitha’s, and the first thing that popped up was a photo of the two of them from an event. She read the caption and her heart sank. She’d been hoping that Tabitha was lying, that Damien had not actually taken her anywhere, but here was the proof. She slammed the computer shut, not wanting to see anything else.
By that evening, Tabitha’s words had replayed in Karina’s mind a million times, and it sounded uglier each time. Tabitha was jealous, Karina kept trying to tell herself. But the truth was that Tabitha and Damien must have dated on some level. He claimed that they never slept together, but what reason did she have to believe him?
“Miss Watson?”
Romi’s voice cut into Karina’s thoughts, and she looked up from where she was reading—or rather attempting to read—on the couch in the sitting room.
“I’m heading out for the evening,” she said. “Do you need anything else before I go?”
“No,” Karina said, shaking her head. “Of course not. Good night.” It was still so weird to have people waiting on her.
“I’ll set the alarm before I go.”
“Thanks, Romi.” Then she thought of something. “Wait.”
Romi turned around.
“May I ask you something?”
“Of course,” said Romi.
“Has there ever been a—a mistress of the house?”
“No, only you.”
“Me?” Karina frowned. “I hardly think I count.”
Romi shrugged. “I was instructed to make sure you felt at home and that we all did as you asked. Same thing as far as I’m concerned.”
“Did you think it was weird he was bringing