Chapter 3
Madison inspected the table and gave a quiet laugh.
“Well, at least tonight it finally resembles a family dinner.”
Lauren nodded.
“It appears Emily has finally learned the Davenport standard.”
Emily did not respond.
At precisely 7:12, Nathan opened the front door.
He seemed agitated.
His hair was disordered.
He smelled strongly of expensive cologne.
Near his collar was a faint trace of pale lipstick.
Emily saw it.
Brooke saw it too.
Their eyes met for no more than a heartbeat.
Nathan started toward the dining room and then stopped when he saw the enormous covered frame beneath the chandelier.
“What the hell is that?”
“A surprise,” Emily said.
His forehead tightened.
“Emily, not tonight. I specifically told you not to do anything strange.”
Charles struck the dining table with his palm.
“That’s enough, Nathan.”
“Sit down.”
“For once, your wife has managed to prepare a respectable meal.”
“Don’t spoil the evening.”
They began dinner.
For nearly an hour, Emily listened to insults dressed in polished manners.
Charles spoke about loyalty.
Brooke lectured everyone about elegance.
Madison observed that certain women were born to stand beside powerful men, while others existed to manage their paperwork.
Lauren asked whether Emily ever became tired of being so “useful.”
Nathan never defended her.
He only smiled.
Beneath the table, Emily saw Brooke’s foot brush against her husband’s leg.
There.
Inside Emily’s own home.
In front of Brooke’s betrayed husband.
In front of Nathan’s sisters.
In front of Emily herself.
Then Charles lifted his wineglass.
“To the Davenport family,” he declared.
“To blood.”
“And to loyalty above all else.”
Emily placed her fork on the edge of her plate.
The sound was small.
May you like
Every person at the table heard it.
“How interesting,” she said, “that the people who speak most passionately about loyalty wouldn’t recognize it even if it were printed seven feet tall.”
