THE TRUTH

1989 Words
CARLOS "Did you have your interview with Chloe Grayson grayson?" Mom asks the moment she sees me entering the grand living room of our mansion. It's on a Wednesday evening, which marks another classic family dinner with my grandparents, Wilson and Alice Leonards, and George and Martha Stephens. All eyes turn to me, waiting for my answer. Damn, I have to beat around the bush. The supposed interview with the spinster happened a week ago. I thought it was long forgotten, but now it is back to haunt me. I can't tell her the truth yet-that I didn't succumb to that boring interview. Something tells me she would be upset if I do, and that could ruin the family dinner. I have to test the water first. "Was that really a big deal?" I question to save myself from lying. I head to the bar and pour myself a glass of sparkling red wine that everyone is drinking. "Of course. It's a good way to divert the media's attention away from the princess issue." She takes a sip of her wine, leaning closer to Dad, then adds, "Anyways, I'm glad you did the interview, Carlos. Chloe Grayson's blog is making an enormous wave in social media right now." "Oh really? Lucky for her." I sit next to my Grandpa George, who us the most chill of anyone in the room. "That's not luck, son. She works hard to get on the top." Dad raises his hand briefly. "She's quite impressive. Hardworking and good-natured. Ah-you should know better. You met her in person, right?" I do not answer, saving myself from lying again. Instead, I sip my wine slowly and wait for someone to rescue me. Grandma Alice does. "Is she the one who interviewed Bram Easton recently?" Her eyes gleam with interest. Well, she rescues me from answering about the spinster librarian, but she keeps the topic burning, drawing interest from everyone. "Yeah, the same girl," Mom responds. "You know her?" "Uh-huh. I followed her blog. A very sweet girl, just like her name. She's a farmer's daughter from Dansville," Grandpa Wilson answers, drawing attention from everyone. "Oh, wow. She's really interesting, coming from a humble beginning," Mom agrees. "She is," Grandma Alice continues. "I read her interview with Bram last night. I learned a lot about him as a man beyond just the young, handsome billionaire." "I heard she also interviewed Christian Anderson." "That was a week ago. It caught the attention of the press. You know how controversial Christian's life is, being connected with the Mafia. Chloe Grayson presented her article very well, and she has this kind of magic that keeps me reading her blogs." "That's passion. It shows in her writing that she's loving what she's doing," Grandpa Wilson butts in. Then he turns to me. "I'm glad she did an interview with you, Carlos. She'll definitely make a good article." "I can't wait to read it. Do you know when it will come out?" Grandma Martha asks me, making everyone's eyes focus on me again. "I-I don't have an idea." I shrug and divert the topic. "Aren't we going to eat yet? I'm starving." "We're waiting for Agatha," Mom answers. "She's still taking a shower. Have some of those first." She points at the charcuterie board on a tray cart. "It's still early for dinner." "Never mind. I'll wait." I swirl my glass of wine, then take a sip. Everyone looks up at the staircase. Finally, Agatha enters. No matter how solemn she wants it to be, she has failed. Everyone always turns to her. Agatha. My seventeen-year-old sister. Born in the wee hours of the morning. She's very introverted and thinks of herself as weird. She loves anything with the color black. She used to imagine herself as a witch or a vampire when she was younger. Thank God she has gotten over it! Dinner starts, and I feel more relaxed with my family. To my delight, their attention shifts to Agatha. They are all so concerned about why she has her room painted all black. I thought the topic of the spinster librarian had died, but after dinner, they bring it up again. Everyone is back in the living room drinking coffee when Grandma Martha starts it. "Oh wow, she's really pretty." Grandma Martha looks at her iPad. "Who?" everyone asks. She turns her iPad to us and shows an image of a beautiful brunette, smiling on camera. Curious, I ask, "Who is she?" "You don't know her?" Her eyebrows snap together. "I thought she interviewed you!" All eyes turned to me instantly, giving me an accusing stare. "Wait. Is that... Miss Grayson?" I ask them, shifting my eyes from one to another until I meet Mom's. "Right. That's Chloe Grayson." Her eyes glare at me. "How come you don't know her?" "Son"-Dad shifts his position-"you have a lot of explaining to do!" I've just been busted! ****** "For God's sake, Calvin, why didn't you tell me that she's not a spinster? She's 23 years old, single, and beautiful!" "You-you did not ask me, sir," he stammers. "The f**k!" I groan, very irritated, as I stare at Chloe Grayson's photo on my phone in my office the next day. "You did not tell me she's a brunette either. She's the type of girl I'd go for!" "I remember that you hate it every time I mention her name. You didn't want that interview. Your parents only forced you to accept it. But still, it never happened." "Dammit, Calvin. Do you have to remind me again? My parents are mad as hell that I did not sit with Miss Grayson for an interview. They've threatened to cut me off from the family business, as well as my trust money. I believe they're very serious this time." I put down my phone and stand up. "Call her. Tell her I'll do the interview. Anytime, anywhere. It's her call this time. I want to meet her!" He coughs, then says, "Also remember, sir, what she said to you -that she would not meet you in a million years. She was upset that you stood her up three times." "F**k. Give me her number. I'll call her myself." "Um, I don't have it, sir. But I have Brianna's-I mean her personal assistant's number." "Then call her now," I instruct. "If possible, I want to meet here as soon as possible. So book the earliest appointment and prioritize our meeting. Cancel if you find any conflict with my schedule." "I will, sir." Three days later. "I tried my very best, sir, but Miss Grayson would not meet you. She meant it when she said that she would not meet you ever again," Calvin says in an apologetic voice. "Now I'm busted." I sit down in my chair, feeling very exhausted suddenly. "My parents are really upset. They're very disappointed in me. I'm in danger of disinheriting the family business and missing the opportunity to meet Chloe Grayson, the prettiest girl that I've ever seen!" "I agree, sir. You-you missed the chance. Miss Grayson is quite charming, along with her assistant, Brianna." He clears his throat. "Let's find a way for me to meet her. She's from Dansville, right? Cancel all my appointments this afternoon. Get me a helicopter, and we'll visit her farm." "Now, sir?" "Of course. Now," I say, but before Calvin can move, the door opens. Mom enters, looking at me with murderous eyes. "Have you seen Good Morning USA?" She throws the question at me like a bomb. "Nope? You know I don't watch TV. I don't have the time." "I don't either," she admits, "but what the hell. You're over the news, Carlos! All over the internet! You created another scandal again, and this time, it's bigger than your ego! What the f**k have you done to that girl that made her hate you that much?!" "What are you talking about? Who is this girl?" She takes the remote control and opens YouTube to a replay of the morning show, Good Morning USA. Two hosts of the morning show interviewed Chloe Grayson live in Dansville. She talked about her journey as a blogger and how she attained success in a short period. "Miss Grayson, you interviewed two of the world's most sought-after eligible bachelors in this generation, the young billionaires Christian Anderson and Easton that created an uproar and made your blog the talk of the town. I'm so impressed that they accepted to be interviewed. We all know that they're very elusive men. We can't even have them in the show," the female host chuckled. "Exactly. How did you do that?" The male host turned to Chloe Grayson. "I emailed them and conveyed my sincere intention, requesting an interview. I'm honored that they put their trust in me." Chloe Grayson looks so beautiful-fresh looking, articulate, and intelligent. Exactly the girl that I'm looking for. "Unlike someone," Miss Grayson continued, "who treated me and my interview as a joke!" My forehead furrows, and I turn to Mom, who glares at me. "Oh, that's awful." The female host looks surprised. "So you're saying you had an unpleasant experience with someone lately who treated you and your blog as a joke?" "Yes, that's right. This man agreed to have an interview, so I went to New York-" "So, it was a man!" the male host interrupted, and she nodded. "So you drove all the way from Dansville to New York to see him? That's a five-hour drive." "Exactly. But then he stood me up. Three times, because he had an emergency." "Three times!" the female host exclaimed. "What kind of emergency?" "Same emergency. Every time we were scheduled to meet, a female friend of his would arrive for a visit to his penthouse feeling hot and feverish. He could not leave her, so he kept on postponing the interview. I later found out that he was only fooling me." It was a throwaway accusation, but it hit home. "That sucks! He shouldn't have agreed to an interview, then. I feel for you, Miss Grayson. He's a time waster and a playboy," the female host sympathized. "Indeed, very unprofessional. To think that he was your first choice to interview," the male host said. "And I assume he's also a young billionaire? Just like Bram Easton and Christian Anderson?" "Correct. He's one of the most eligible bachelors on the planet, but the truth has blinded women. He's a player. He treats us women like objects because he doesn't see us fully as humans. So he has no loyalty and respect for us." "You're right, Miss Grayson. Just like what you said in your blog, women are first-class human beings. Men must treat us with love, care, loyalty, and respect. Therefore, gender equality is important," the female host continued. "This obnoxious playboy young billionaire should learn from your blog." "He should." Chloe Grayson lifted her chin. "This man is the worst boyfriend or husband that a woman could ever have. All fathers should warn their daughters not to date this man. He changes women with just a snap of his fingers." "Wait, ladies, sorry for the interruption," the male host interrupted, "but we've just been informed from the key station that our viewers flooded Twitter with thousands of tweets, asking for Miss Grayson to name the young billionaire. Oh, my... we're going viral, going to the number one spot!" "Are they asking me to name the obnoxious playboy billionaire?" Chloe Grayson asked. "Well, that's what they want." The male host shrugged. "But..." The camera gave a close-up of Chloe Grayson. She put on a beautiful angelic smile, then looked directly at the camera. "It's Carlos Leonards," she said bitingly, emphasizing my name. My jaw clenches tightly as my eyes lock with hers through the monitor screen. Damn! She has just made a declaration of war between us!
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