A Christmas to Remember

2: Jack

I needed an escape. No, scratch that. I needed to flee. No, not that either. I needed a f*****g magician to get out of this mess. I needed to get out of this as fast as humanly possible, and the only possible solution in my head was to just disappear into thin air, but since I didn’t have any magical abilities and since my father’s falcon eye was planted firmly on me, all I could do was hope the waiter soon came with some more canapés and some more alcohol.

“I simply love winters in Vermont,” Charlotte gushed as she beamed up at me. “It’s so fortunate that you and your family have a house up there.”

“Oh yes, to just snuggle up by a fireplace and be the only two people in the entire world,” Suzanne cheered.

“It must be pure magic up there,” Lousie pushed in.

Yes, I was cornered, and not just by anyone, no, I was cornered by the daughters of high society. By the vultures who wanted to marry me and have all the children I wanted. Another party and another group. I was diminished to be a man who’s only purpose in life was to find a wife. No matter that I graduated summa c*m laude from Harward business, no matter that I received a Purple Heart from my time in the Navy, no matter that I rose to the ranks in my father’s firm and was practically ready to take over for him, no matter that I had specifically told him, that I would not marry before I saw fit, I was still to find a wife.

Being thirty-six in this kind of world and not to be either engaged or married was horrible, at least to my mother, who beamed at the different guests attending her Winter Wonderland party, always the perfect hostess. She had practically demanded grandchildren and the sooner I found a wife, the sooner she could have her wish. If I saw her wish list for this Christmas I was sure it would say: daughter-in-law and grandchildren. Not grandchild, no, that was not high enough set on her list, it had to be multiple, and they had to come from me. Possibly because my two younger sisters were already married and Carrie had already had two children while Maggie was pregnant with her first. I loved that for them, ‘go team!’ and everything, but it only put more pressure on me, and I didn’t want any of that. I wasn’t ready for that kind of commitment.

“It is,” I smiled at the young women salivating at my feet. “It’s nice to gather the whole family like that, and now with my sister pregnant and everything, I’m sure it’s going to be just magical.” Magical to hear her puking her guts out every few hours - I’m sorry Maggie.

“You must feel so alone up there,” Charlotte queued, “being the only one without a partner there.” Her hand landed on my bicep, and yes, I felt her squeeze.

My jaw clenched with the force of my smile. “Not really, I have my nephew and niece to keep me company, and I’m sure my sister loves the reprieve.”

That made them gush even further. “And you’re a family man too!” Suzanne almost squealed, and the others joined in momentarily.

“How are you still single, Jackson?” Charlotte asked, batting her eyelashes at me.

“It must be tedious always coming to these things alone,” Louise chimed in.

“It’s alright,” I smiled, hoping it came off as charming and not showing just how much I wanted to leave them all alone. “I mean, if I came with a date, I wouldn’t have time to chat with you ladies, now would I?”

That made them literally swoon.

I knew why I was doing this, why my father kept looking at me with his falcon eyes, even though Steven Houly was talking to him. I just needed to pick one. To pick a woman and take her home and claim her as mine. My father didn’t take over the company until he was married, and he had made sure my mother was pregnant. That was just how it worked in this world. Show you can lead a private life - which meant a wife or at the very least a very serious engagement - and then you can be trusted completely in the corporate world.

My eyes wandered away from my father, looking for some type of rescue. But all I could see was business associates who also wanted me to choose one of these fine ladies. Which they were, undoubtedly. They were just not for me, just not what I wanted from my life. I wanted someone with a spark in their eyes, and not just as financial security. Most of these women went from their father’s credit cards onto their husband’s, and that’s fine, but I wanted one to spoil not to maintain.

Then I saw him. Bradley Crain. He was as always - or at least for the last four months - with his steady girlfriend, Fiona Stevens, whom he had met on his last trip to visit his alma mater. She was perhaps a little young, or not young compared to Suzanne and Lousie, but compared to his thirty-nine years of age. He was my savior.

“You know, Jackson, the Nutcracker is soon opening up again, and I would just-”

I cut off Charlotte's attempt of underhandedly inviting me to invite her to the newest ballet. “Excuse me, ladies, but I see someone whom I must talk to,” I said with a nod, before extracting myself from the group of women and making my way across the living room.

Bradley was laughing at something Fiona had whispered in his ear, actually looking like he was having a good time. Lucky bastard. She was a dazzling kind of woman, so of course she had caught his eye. With her long auburn hair down in waves over her back. The formal and understated way her makeup was done, and the way she wore the royal blue dress, made her look every bit like the soon-to-be fiancé of Bradley Crain. Just like me, Bradley needed a woman at his side, someone to lure off the hungry women of high society, but he had found someone he actually cared for in Fiona, and it was clear as day whenever you talked to him, just how grateful he was for that.

“Bradley,” I sighed, holding out my hand and hoping for a reprieve from this tedious night.

“Jack,” he grinned back, grabbing my hand and giving it a tight shake.

Bradley was - just like many of us - working for his father. However, that father owned one of the best law firms in New York, making him a cutthroat lawyer himself. His future was set in stone, and none could do anything to just rattle that a little.

“You remember Fiona, right?” He held out his hand to the lovely woman at his side.

“Of course I do,” I smiled, taking her hand and leaving a kiss on her knuckles. “May I just say how lovely you look tonight.”

“Oh you flatter,” she chuckled, waving me off in the charming way Fiona knew how to.

According to the gossip around town, Fiona had come to quite the events with Bradley, making him look even better and was a fierceness in talking with the corporate wives across town, making Bradley gain more than a few new clients on his payroll.

“She is just lovely, isn’t she?” Bradley beamed down at her, pulling her closer to his body. Together they looked like they had just stepped out of a Hallmark movie, looking like they had lived through the ultimate rom-com movie still intact and going strong.

“Say, Fiona,” I cleared my throat, “you don’t have a doppelgänger, do you?”

Bradley laughed at that. “Did you not enjoy this night's selection, Jack?”

I groaned, and quickly grabbed a new flute of champagne from one of the waiters walking around. “It’s not that the selection is bad, it’s just about choosing one and sticking with that choice, I guess.”

“Would you prefer not to choose?” Fiona asked me, still smiling that charming smile that probably had every man in this entire world falling to his feet to accompany her every wish and wit.

“What do you mean?” I asked her, not quite following her question. I mean, I would have to choose a wife eventually, but not wanting to deal with trying to choose the right one. Most of these women here would say or do anything to just get with me, and then when the ring was on they could change their entire personality, and then I would be stuck. You do not get divorced in high society, you find a mistress or three.

Fiona looked up at Bradley, and I could clearly see that some type of conversation was happening between them. Their eyes saying the words that their mouths didn’t dare speak. It ended when Bradley nodded at her, essentially giving her permission to say or do whatever it was that she wanted to tell me.

“I know someone who specializes in that field,” she smiled at me. “Someone who can help you find what you need but what you don’t really want.”

My brow c****d at her words, and my gaze fell on Bradley, who was now pressing her even further into his body, as if he could somehow merge them into one being instead of two. His jaw was set in a straight line, and he clearly wasn’t thrilled about this.

“How do you know what I need?”

“You need someone to look like your girlfriend,” she answered as she shrugged her shoulders. “Someone to take the heat and pressure off of you, but not someone you lead on or someone who upholds certain demands of you or your behavior.”

Stunned, I took a step back, not knowing how she could possibly know this, how she could know just the right thing I needed. A woman who could take my parents off my back, while I realized just what I needed and what I wanted.

“And you know how to find that?” I asked her incredulously. Not really sure how a twenty-three year old could possibly know where that exact specimen of a woman came from.

She opened the clutch that hung on her side, drawing out a card from within. “Call me, and we can set up a meeting where I can tell you more.”

Looking down at the card, I saw her name, phone number, and an email address. When I turned the card around, I saw intricate letters swirling around each other in a cursive design, spelling out the name of a business. Disclosure.