[Neither of them promised forever, yet it hurt all the same.]
River Hamilton cannot afford to fall for just anyone. To continue the legacy of her family the only way she can, she must eventually marry someone she may not want to spend the rest of he...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
+ + +
R.HAMILTON
The rest of the weekend went perfect. Harry ceased to exist. He either left early—doubtful—or he knew where River would be at all times, and avoided all those locations around the circuit. Alden won the race. Dorian cleaned up his act. And no one questioned River's behaviour because they couldn't pinpoint anything different about her.
A couple of days later, and freshly turned twenty-eight, River was home, and amidst preparation for her attendance at the McAllister Fundraiser. There was no doubt in River's mind that Harry would appear at the event due to his connection to Juliette but she also knew that she wouldn't not go just because of that. It had been almost a week since they last spoke and with River's busy schedule, it was easy enough to get over that uncomfortable conversation.
Besides—
"River, are you quite finished?"
Besides. The very point River tried to make, her youngest brother, Jax, popped his head in her room. If his voice didn't catch her attention in time, the smell of his perfume did the job. It was all she could smell while she kept one hand in the air, holding the untwisted lip gloss mid-movement whilst he padded across to her from the doorway and threw himself in the cream armchair by the balcony.
Jax wore cream trousers and a blazer to match. The white shirt he tucked in his trousers was open on his chest, the first couple of buttons undone to reveal his gold chain necklace.
"Why the face, dear sister?"
River's eyes flicked up to meet her brother's gaze.
"Why the cream atrocity?"
The scoff was expected yet it still made River grin in victory as she turned back to the mirror and continued to apply the glossy sheen to her lips. It brought the already applied red lipstick to life and completed the look as the final touch. One pop of colour to go with her black dress—thin straps to secure the piece to her upper body, long enough to reach her ankles, with a feather detailing along the neckline.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Jax slammed his palm against his chest while he said, "You wound me, River," and she exhaled just as dramatically as he sounded. "Besides, this is new. Versace."
"They remember you're a Hamilton?"
"Har-har," he faked the reaction, then gave his sister a genuine laugh when their eyes met through the mirror. "You'd be surprised how much they missed me."
"I'm certain their lives took a turn for the better when they saw your face," she responded before she rolled her lips together, then wiped the excess gloss off of her cupid's bow with her ring finger. "Are you caught up on tonight's dealings?"
"I revised the five-page document I received, yes," he mocked her like he usually did and River wondered when Jax would buy his next one-way ticket to the other side of the world. "Relax, River. I know I need to kiss Juliette McAllister's ass, and appear shocked at the sound of Melissa Barl's affair with her personal trainer. Though, not more shocked than I would be if I heard about the disaster at Henriette Faucheux's grand opening—how terrible that her art got ruined by the sprinkles?"
