Natasha

"The AC should be blasting cool air in a couple minutes."

"And we don't have to call the electrician?"

"No, I got it handled."

"Thanks, Mike."

"Anytime." The worker gave me a small smile and walked away.

I took a deep breath. At least I got that settled, and without my mom worrying about it too.

Now, back to reality.

I walked over to Lydia and her very attractive businessman. They were in the middle of a conversation when they both saw my presence. He gave me a small smile.

"Hey, guys! I just came to say hello to you and the guy who's got all of my friend's attention."

"Devin. And I'm guessing you're the famous Natasha?"

I hid the groan from my smile. "It's Nat. And yes, that's me!"

"Sorry for stealing your friend. She just took my breath away, and I had to get it back." He looked at Lydia while her face turned a tad bit pink.

"Smooth, I like it. You kids have fun, don't want to mess up whatever this is." I waved my hand around at them. I walked over to Lydia and bent over to her ear.

"Go get the dick, sis." I whispered and she laughed out loud, playfully shoving me away.

"I hate you!" I heard her say behind me. I turned around and smirked.

"You know you love me. And save the yelling for later. You need all the strength that you will need." I winked at her and she gave me an embarrassed glare. Devin laughed and wrapped his arm around her body. I did a finger wave at them and left.

-

Who else to bother, who else to bother. Hmmm.

"You, ask the technician if the sound system is ready. We don't want have a fashion show with no music, do we? Now get going, or we all face Mrs. Carter's wrath." The short worker scurried away after hearing those words. The wrath is something that no one wants to face. Harrison sighed and rubbed his face with his hand.

"Hey, Harrison. Need any help?"

He turned around and his eyes lit up when he saw me. "Um, now that I think about it, we need to move the gift bags to the kitchen. The workers are going to pass them out before everyone leaves."

"Okay, got it." We both headed towards a storage room where the bags were kept.

"Sooo, how's high school life? Has the school been treating my Nattie well?" I scoffed as I picked up several bags.

"It's fine. Everyone is treating me like I'm Princess Meghan who just went to the store to buy juice. I'm not royalty or something."

"I mean, you're an international model, daughter of the Jackie Carter, and Lakefront's-"

"Lakefront's Princess. I know, I know. It's just, I don't know how to explain it. I wish...people would just look at me like I'm more than a model/rich daughter/princess. I'm just like the rest of them, with the same teenage problems they face everyday. But, I can't change the fact that no matter what I do, they would still see me as this person on the surface." We made it to the kitchen and put the first round of bags on the counter. Harrison turned to face me and put his hands on my shoulders.

"Nat, it shouldn't matter how people look at you. It matters how you look at you. The assumptions and rumors aren't gonna go away, and that's the hard truth. You don't need to prove anything to them, as long as you're at your best self. You love what you do, and you love that your the daughter of one of the most successful women in the nation. And, Meghan Markle is technically a duchess, which is totally not the point, but she's is an icon. And so are you." We left the kitchen to go back to storage.

"Everyone who cares about you knows you're amazing, and you should flaunt your amazingness. Particularly at that fine ass specimen with the red tie, who is totally checking you out, by the way."

I looked to the direction Harrison's face was turned. And he wasn't wrong. The guy had black hair combed back, and his blue eyes shining at me. His sleeves were rolled up, and he took a sip of his drink. He had a light stubble on his face, but he still looked young. When he saw that I was checking him out, he put his drink down and gave me a small smirk.

I turned my head away quickly. "No. I'm not getting involved with boys anymore. At least not right now."

"But that is a man. Who's very interested in you."

"He's also a man that can catch a case if he's not careful. He looks around Nick's age, maybe older. Besides the point, I'm done with guys in general, period."

"Oh, okay, Miss Independent! I see you!"

"They ain't shit." I shrugged as I got the the remaining bags from the room.

"Good for you! I am proud, by the way. You're turning into a badass woman and I'm really here for it."

I stopped in my tracks. "Thanks, Har. For what you said." I met his hazel eyes and gave a slow smile.

"No problem, girl. Come talk to me when you need to, I'm only a call away from your mom, since I take her calls."

I laughed and gave him a side hug. "Got it."

We finished putting the gift bags in the kitchen. I checked my phone.

7:46 pm. Fourteen minutes until showtime.

"I'm sure my mom is looking for you or something, so I'm gonna leave you to it."

"Speak of the devil. I mean angel." Harrison stuttered as the Jackie Carter strutted in the kitchen. All the workers froze as she walked towards us. Her presence enough can still an audience, and it still amazes me how she does it.

"Harrison, I need you to let the Hollis family in the first row. They were last minute guests, but the most important ones. Find extra chairs for the people who were formally sitting in their spots. They'll still be in the first row, but their view will be shifted." My eyes widened as I heard the name.

"The Hollis' are here?" My mom met my gaze. Her face softened when she saw my angry face.

"Nat, they agreed to be our silent partner for the company. We need them, so can you please put aside your differences for tonight? Please?" She muttered as she held my forearm.

The Hollis' are a bunch of spawns of Satan that God forgot to put back into Hell.

Haha, did I say that? I meant to say that they're worse.

Henry Hollis is close friends with my dad, so you see why I don't really like him in the first place. His nose is always held high, not caring on who he steps on. Vivica Hollis always has something to say about everything. She would always complain to my mom on how girls who wear short dresses are a disgrace to women. And lastly, Garrett Hollis. Aka, the most annoying and arrogant bitch I've ever met. All he would talk about is doing business with his father, what car of the month he owned, and brag about getting all the ladies, which is a whole damn lie. But all in all, they are a bunch of high-class elites who think that they are better than anyone else. Good thing I haven't seen them since freshman year.

After a minute, I let out an angry breath and closed my eyes. "Fine. I'll put on my best fake smile that the world's yet to see." I grabbed my clutch and stormed off.

"That's the spirit...hun." She trailed off.

-

The main area was near packed as the last set of people were coming in. The room was buzzing with conversation and people were taking their seats. A server was coming my way, carrying a tray of champagne. I snatched one off and took a sip while my arms were crossed.

"Now, now. Don't want to be drinking too much at your mommy's little fashion show, do you, Red?"

I shuddered in disgust as I felt his warmth behind me and his breath on my neck.

"Back the fuck away from me, Garrett."

"Damn, and a dirty mouth, too. What else had I miss since the last time I saw you?" I turned around and my eyes widened the smallest bit when I saw the spawn.

He grew a foot taller as I stared up at him. His blonde hair was tousled, but it looked clean at the same time. The white button up shirt he was wearing clenched to his newly toned muscles as he held his coat.

Before, his taunting light blue eyes were the one and only thing I physically liked on him. But now...

Ugh, why do I find him attractive now, after everything? It's Garrett Hollis, for fuck's sake! Damn it, hormones, stop betraying me!

"Cat got your tongue?" He smirked in amusement as he acknowledged my dumbfounded silence.

"Just been a long time. Never thought I'd see you again."

"And why is that? Our fathers are like best friends. Now since he's partners with your mom, you'll see more of me." He started to look down at my body.

"Wow, you really grew up." He muttered. His thumb swiped his lower lip before he looked up and met my gaze.

No, stop staring at me like that! I crossed my arms and frowned at him.

"Um, shouldn't you be with your parents? I'm sure you'll find them somewhere, since you run back to them all the time when things didn't go your way."

He gave a cocky laugh. "Still feisty. I guess certain things never change, huh?"

"I could say the same about you. Aren't you gonna brag about your new Tesla you got last week?"

"And what about it? And no, I got an Aston Martin, just to let you know, and it's way better than a Tesla."

"There he is. I've been waiting for him to come out. You make us rich kids seem like a joke, no wonder why people can't stand us."

"Who cares about them? They can barely afford most of the things I own. What's the point of them being mad at me, when I am obviously better, financially."

"You're such an arrogant asshole, I can't even stand to be in the same presence as you. I'm leaving."

"But just so you know, Red, I always get what I want. And my eyes are set on a very tempting scarlet prize." His eyes darkened and he grazed my body again.

"You're gross."

"Hey, let's call it," he grabbed my champagne glass. "determination." He finished the drink and put the empty glass in my hands.

"You...!" He already left.

I really hate the fucking guy.

-

I found my seat next to Nick as the lights dimmed for the starting show.

"You wouldn't believe who I ran into."

"Hollis, right? Yeah, he came to give me a long-time-no-see hello. Man, that guy has no filter."

"You can say that again. He hit on me not once, but twice."

"What?"

"It's no big deal, bro. Guys do it to me all the time."

Maybe I shouldn't have said that to him. Nick's face was full of disbelief and anger.

"He's not gonna touch my little sister, with his silver spoon ass self." I snorted at that comment.

"Silver spoon ass self. That's a very good insult. I applaud you." He rolled his eyes.

"Shut up, the show's about to start."

"Since when are you into fash-"

"Shhhh."

My mom started walking on the catwalk while people clapped.

"Hello, everyone. Thank you all for coming to this mini fashion show, hosted here, at my home. These fabulous models are here tonight to model my next line, and they're looking more gorgeous than ever!" She cheered happily and the crowd started to laugh.

"And now further ado, here's Carter and Co.'s 2019 winter fashion show!" The crowd cheered and loud music started to play.

The models strutted their stuff as they walked through the long stage. I started to daydream about me being up there, but at Luxury Line, wearing the upcoming clothing, and hundreds of spectators having their eyes on me. Photographers snapshotting every angle as I pose for them. Magazine editors look at me and thinking, 'Wow, I want her on my cover page!' And giving Taya Easton the biggest shit-eating grin as I look at the TV camera, knowing she's watching at home, punching the air.

Before you know it, the last model finished and brought out my mom and they held hands as they both walked down the catwalk. When they got at the end, the model let go of my mom's hand and gestured towards her as she took a bow. The crowd started cheering and whistling.

"Go, Mom!" Nick cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted through the noise.

She saw our faces and gave us the biggest smile. She blew us a kiss and Nick and I fake fought for it. I ended up winning, of course, and brought it towards my heart.

She looked around to find Dad, and I did too. After looking everywhere, she turned back to us. He was nowhere to be found. Her smile faltered a bit, until the model grabbed her hand and walked with her backstage, forgetting that her love of her life was not there to support her.

Where the hell was he?

"I'm gonna look for Dad. See you later."

I went back inside the house. The workers were getting the gift bags ready to be delivered.

How could he miss one of Mom's most important events? Does he still love her?

I was about to open his office door when I heard talking from inside. I pressed my ear on the door.

"...got it settled..." More muffled talk came through the door.

Don't be stupid, Nat. Don't open the door.

I grabbed the door knob and twisted it slowly. The door opened slightly, thankfully making no noise. I peeked through the slit, and what do you know, it's my father and Mr. Hollis. They were smoking cigars and drinking whiskey from the chairs they were sitting in.

"If we transfer the money to the trust, no one will be able to detect it."

"And you're sure it's going to work? Henry, I don't know about this."

Mr. Hollis took a long drag of his cigar before blowing out the smoke. "Relax, Leo, my associates are well trained and have done this before. This will earn us millions, billions, of dollars for ourselves and our families. The Carter name will be known for generations as one of the richest family in history. Don't you want that?"

My father poured more of the hard liquor in his glass. He swirled the glass around a few times before sipping.

A couple sips later, he finally answered. "Okay, let's do it."

"That's my man!" Mr. Hollis grinned and shook my dad's hand. They continued talking and I scurried up out of there.

I reached the end of the hallway and turned the corner. I leaned against the wall, panting, as my heart raced.

What are they planning? Is it even legal? Is it my place to tell Mom what they're doing?

I've never felt so out of place in my life before. I always had shit figured out, with no in-betweens. Now look at me, in-between some sketchy business from my father, and have no idea how to figure this out.

I need to tell someone about this. It's already killing me, processing this new information in my mind. But, if I keep this secret inside me any longer, I would explode.

I got out my phone and called the one person I could talk to about this.

-
A/N

After a two month hiatus, she's back!

Yes, finally.

Happy belated New Years! 2020 is gonna be an interesting year, just like 2019 was.

I like how I said part 2 was going to come out before the year ended...look where I am now haha.

So what do you think about the chapter?

The lead up to Nat's sketchy father was sort of obvious, in my opinion, but I don't know for the rest of y'all.

Who do you think she's gonna call?

Feel free to comment, vote, or share!

Also check out my cover page! megbrocovers

-the main hoe, mb