Chapter 56: A Good Match

Moana Just as Sophia was going to ask if I was going to dance, her eyes caught something behind me and her face lit up. “Kelly!” she exclaimed, waving over my shoulder. “How nice to see you!”

I felt myself tense, as did Ella, who was still holding my hand. I turned around slowly to see Kelly approaching. I hadn’t noticed before from where I stood and because she was standing behind the podium, but her dress was inappropriately tight and low cut for a charity gala, and she appeared to already be tipsy as she walked up to us. She brushed right past me, as if I wasn’t even there, and walked straight up to Sophia.

“Thank you so much for your donation,” Sophia said, smiling widely and holding her hand out for Kelly to shake.

Kelly gave Sophia’s hand a half-hearted — and almost disgusted — squeeze and swirled the bubbly champagne around in her glass. “It’s my pleasure,” she said.

I was still surprised that Kelly, of all people, would donate any money at all to a foundation for human orphanages, but perhaps she really wasn’t as bad as I had originally thought. “That’s very kind of you,” I said.

Kelly looked over at me as though I hadn’t been standing there at all, and as though she only noticed me when I finally spoke. “Oh, Moana,” she said, flicking a strand of blonde hair over her thin shoulder. “I didn’t know you were here… You know Sophia?”

excitedly, unaware of the implications of revealing something like that. Kelly’s eyes immediately narrowed, and as she looked at me, her gaze felt as sharp as a

looked at me, I sensed

hold of me as I pushed my shoulders

a long, uncomfortable moment. “It’s funny,” she said, licking her lips and taking a sip of her champagne, her eyes still fixed on me over the top of the glass, “I actually didn’t know that at all when

was why she donated so much; if she had known that Oceanside Orphanage was the orphanage that I grew up in, I was

saw Edrick walk across the dance floor ahead of us. “Well, I’m going to dance,” she said, her voice breathy. “It was a pleasure seeing you both.” I watched, unconvinced by her platitudes, as she sauntered over to

to the dance floor and pressed their bodies together closely. Knowing now that I was carrying Edrick’s child in my belly, I felt even more jealous than I had on the day that I first met

opinion of Kelly — one that was likely blinded

seem

an ache in my chest at Sophia’s words. Suddenly, as though she shared my mind, Ella spoke up again. “No way!” she said,

I couldn’t help but laugh a bit at the little

table. With a promise to say goodbye before we left, I finally

we heard a familiar voice calling Ella’s name and looked up to see Verona sitting at a table nearby, beckoning for Ella. Ella squealed excitedly and

said, kissing Ella on both cheeks as I approached. “My, look at your little green dress. You’re as cute as a

down in front of her. Verona gestured for me to take the open chair on the other side of Ella, which I did, and tucked a napkin into the front of Ella’s dress to keep

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