Shay's POV
Oh boy.
Running into Jason's mom was so unexpected for me that my heart even jumped in surprise when she suddenly walked in. My body froze in shock, and the words were unable to form in my mouth as we stood staring at each other in confusion. She stood in front of me and squinted her eyes, assessing me from head to toe.
"You look vaguely familiar. We've met before, right?"
I finally forced myself to speak and plastered a smile on my face.
"Yes, we have. I'm Shay. It's so nice to see you again, Mrs. Cartwright."
I reached my hand out towards her, and she shook it, still staring at me with confusion.
"I helped return your necklace. The one you dropped in the elevator, and you invited me out for coffee after that?" I clarified.
Her eyes slowly widened in realization, and she beamed happily at me.
"Oh! Shay, right! Of course, how could I forget?" I chuckled and brushed a lock of hair behind my ear.
"It's so good to see you again, but, um, what are you doing in my son's penthouse?"
I racked my brain for a good answer. Should I go straight away and tell her that I'm dating her son? No, wait, just because she likes me doesn't mean she approves of me as her son's girlfriend.
So, should I lie? What could possibly be the best excuse?
She eyed the dress bag in my hands, and her gaze zeroed in on me. Before she had the chance to ask, the elevator dinged from behind us. We both looked at the same time and saw Jason walking in. I released a low sigh of relief and shot him a knowing smile before he approached us and stood by my side.
"I told you not to come. I can find the file on my own," Mrs. Cartwright exclaimed defensively.
"Sorry, but I can't let you turn my place upside down just to look for those documents. I'll get them for you," Jason replied.
She playfully narrowed her eyes at him and smiled.
"You think I can't find it in this big place? I even found that packet of condoms you hid in that secret compartment in your nightstand when you were eighteen. What could be so difficult about finding a file?"
Jason quickly glanced at me, and I suppressed a laugh.
"Mom, can we not go there right now? I'll go get the file for you."
He walked across the room and down the hall that led to his study, which he'd already shown me earlier that morning. She turned back to me and slowly shook her head while smiling.
"He can't hide anything from me. I only needed the file because it contains important information about some of his clients that I wanted to invite for my upcoming fashion show. I always like to get him involved with my work; it's how I try to help him out with business."
I nodded in understanding, and then Jason came back into the room and handed her a blue file. She received it with great enthusiasm and quickly shoved it inside her leather designer handbag.
"Thank you, darling. Now that you're here, we can finally go out for lunch."
Jason and I shared a quick glance, and she looked between us in confusion.
"Okay, but I would like it if Shay comes with us too," Jason said with a smile.
She frowned when he wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me closer to his side. I awkwardly smiled back at her and glanced at him in confusion.
"Since she's my girlfriend now."
My eyes snapped back at him in shock. He was openly stating our relationship out loud, and somehow a part of me felt glad that he did, while the other part felt a little worried about his mom's reaction.
She blinked a few times, then grinned excitedly at us.
"Girlfriend?!"
He nodded.
"Yes, girlfriend, Mom."
She clapped her hands together excitedly and hooked her arm around mine.
"Well, why didn't you tell me sooner? I almost assumed she was another hookup when I spotted the clothes on the couch."
I nervously laughed along with her, and we all got back in the elevator and went out.
OoO
Getting to know Mrs. Cartwright, who now wanted me to call her Lisa, was unexpectedly joyful compared to our last encounter. She was so much different from Jason, and I think the only thing he got from her was the looks.
The personality? Not so much.
She was fun to talk to and could easily turn anything into a great conversation. I couldn't stop laughing the whole time we were having lunch at a French restaurant that she insisted on taking us to, since it was their favorite place, as both mother and son.
Jason, on the other hand, didn't really talk much except to share a few details of how we first met and how we started seeing each other. I think it's safe to say that she definitely approves of our relationship.
"I still can't get over the fact that you're Shaden Falcon's daughter," she said to me while tapping my hand.
"Why?" I asked curiously.
"I've met your father once, and I've always been the type to consider first impressions a big deal. When I met your father, I could clearly tell that he's such a mean person. No offense."
I chuckled and involuntarily glanced at Jason sitting beside me, who shot his mother a warning look.
"None taken. You're actually right though, he is a mean person. Imagine living with him for the past 25 years, facing his stone-cold expression all the time, never knowing what he's thinking."
She chuckled lightly and sipped her white wine.
"Must be challenging for you."
"You have no idea."
Jason's phone suddenly vibrated loudly. He took it out of his suit pocket and stared at the screen. Then, he glanced at the two of us and nodded.
"I should take this. I'll be right back."
Jason's POV
I quickly excused myself from the table and headed down the empty hallway toward the restroom. Glancing at my phone screen one more time, I saw that Chase was calling, and I answered.
"Chase."
"Have you seen this?" he exclaimed in exasperation.
"Seen what?"
"Dude, the article in Echoview Magazine, page 1! It's all over the news, tabloids, and the internet. I'm pretty sure this will be all over the papers tomorrow as well."
I had no idea what he was talking about. I sighed and leaned back against the wall, making way for an elderly man walking past on his way to the restroom.
"What are you talking about?" I whisper-yelled.
"The news about Shay! Someone found out she was working for us and released an article about her. Now everyone knows who she really is! It's actually a good thing she quit, otherwise the press would be swarming outside the company just because of her."
I didn't question how he knew about Shay quitting today. All I could think about was how glad I was that the journalist had done his job and step one was finally done.
"When did this happen?" I asked, smiling to myself in satisfaction.
"The article was released an hour ago. How the hell are we gonna handle this? Everything is linked back to our company, man!"
"Relax, I'll figure it out. I can't let Shay find out about it now; she'll be devastated."
He scoffed on the line.
"Wait, are you two together right now?" I smirked and glanced at the floor.
"Yes, in fact, we're out having lunch with my mom right now." He suddenly went quiet.
I could practically hear the confusion and surprise in his silence.
"I... um... wait, what is going on right now?"
"We're together, Chase. She's my girlfriend."
"Say what now?!" he exclaimed loudly, and I pulled the phone away from my ear, wincing at how loud his voice was.
"We'll talk about it later. I've gotta go. I'll call you later, man."
I ended the call and quickly checked Echoview Magazine's website. The article about Shay was there too, and I smirked when I read the headline above a picture of her standing inside her office, holding a file and looking to the side.
'SAN FRANCISCO'S GOLDEN GIRL SECRETLY WORKING AT CARTWRIGHT & EVANS HOLDINGS'
This should be enough to put Shaden Falcon in a rage. At the very least, he'll feel humiliated that his youngest daughter had been secretly working behind his back, and now the entire population of San Francisco knows.
Given that they're already dealing with the press over the news about Shawn, this will only add fuel to the fire and stir up even more complications for their family. That should be good, but I'm not done yet.
Shay is just a pawn in my game.
But then, I frowned. Suddenly, thinking of Shay that way didn't feel right, like it did before. Why did it feel like I was just telling myself that to avoid admitting how I really feel about her?
The big question is...
Why have my feelings for her suddenly changed now?