Livvie’s hand trembled as she held her raffle ticket. They had been calling out winners for the last hour, but so far, she hadn’t won. Hopefully, it’d stay that way. She hated these events, as they seemed to bring out the worst in her. And nothing could be worse than the day she’d had.
Today, she had been fired. She had to keep repeating that in her head for it to sink in, and so far, it hadn’t. Writing for Raven’s Edge had been the only sane thing she had in her life, and now it was gone. Like all of her ex boyfriends.
If it was up to her, she’d give her raffle ticket to Carly and then run out of the catering hall as fast as she could. If Livvie hadn’t promised her best friend that she would attend this event months ago, she would have cancelled. But this was for the autistic school for children that Carly worked for, and Livvie wanted to support her best friend.
She glanced around the room at all the men wearing tuxedos, and the women in long black dresses like the one she wore. She wondered which husbands were cheating on their wives. If she could guess, she’d say most of them. Rather like the producers at the meeting this morning, especially William Krasner, the executive producer of the show. How many times had he asked her a question and then subtly touched her boob? So many times, she couldn’t count. Each time he had said it was an accident. But that wasn’t true. The décor in William’s office gave the illusion everything was perfect. As she sat in the black leather chair, clutching her small severance package in her sweaty hands, her eyes scanned the bamboo flooring and the expensive artwork on the newly painted beige walls.
What she’d found most disturbing about William’s office were the pictures sitting on his glass table next to the beige leather couch: one large photograph of his two children with him and his wife dressed in matching white t-shirts and jeans, and an older picture of his wife in her wedding dress. The office made it seem as if William was a successful, happily married man. But rumors were flying around the set that he was cheating on his wife. He had even tried with Livvie. Luckily, she still had morals and turned him down flat. She never wanted to be the other woman. Every rich man she had ever known who held some type of power cheated because they could. They got away with it because no one dared to cross them.
“Stop looking so miserable, or your face is going to stay that way,” Carly said as Livvie rolled her eyes. “Besides, I think your number is going to be called soon. I can feel it.”
And that was why Livvie was trembling. She hated hearing her number called, as with it came a momentary sense of panic because she’d have to run up to the front of the room while her table cheered, all attention on her.
Carly nudged her in the arm. “Just pretend you’re happy. For me. I needed you to come here. The school needed you. If I wasn’t an employee, I’d have bought a raffle ticket, but I’m not allowed. And if it weren’t for this school, I wouldn’t have any money to go to the clubs or go shopping with you. You owe this school.”
“I don’t shop anymore,” Livvie responded. She was paid well writing for Raven’s Edge, but living in Los Angeles was expensive. Her savings account wasn’t large. Coming here tonight had been expensive, especially with forking out $100 for a raffle ticket.
“You’re doing a good deed, Livvie. And if the universe sees you doing a good deed, maybe it will help you out,” Carly said in a stern tone.
“Maybe,” she whispered under her breath. If only life worked that way. Her entire existence was a struggle. Most people either had career issues or love-life issues, but as of today, Livvie had both.
Carly grabbed her arm, which was already bruised from when she had nudged it.
“I have a feeling you’re going to win the next one. Every woman in this room will die from envy.”
Livvie squinted as she looked at the front of the room to see what the next raffle prize was. And then she stopped breathing. She didn’t want to win that one. She would be far happier if she won the prize after that—a basket filled with lottery tickets. Frantically, she scanned the catering hall for a place to hide. But she was stuck in an enormous-sized room with marble floors, crystal chandeliers, and an endless number of tables. She felt as if she couldn’t breathe.
The presenter resumed speaking.
“The next raffle prize is a one-week stay at Morganthal Winery owned by Mr. Drake Morganthal. He will personally give the lucky winner a tour of his vineyard, and you’ll have the opportunity to taste many of his highly acclaimed wines.”
Carly grabbed her arm again and spoke in a loud whisper. “Could you imagine spending a full week at Drake Morganthal’s house? You’d definitely have to find his bedroom and then sneak out of your room at night and surprise him.” Carly laughed. She really was breathtakingly beautiful. When she laughed, her entire face lit up. She and Livvie looked the exact opposite, and she seemed to attract men wherever they went. Even tonight, Carly was wearing a short, hot-pink silk dress with little spaghetti straps. It accentuated her long blonde hair, pale skin, and blue eyes. Livvie was wearing a long, strapless black dress, which matched her long dark hair. They both had ivory skin and blue eyes of different shades. Carly’s were sky blue while Livvie’s were darker.
“This has proven to be the most popular raffle prize offered. In fact, this was the first year we had to turn people away at the door because of fire regulations. Mainly women, from what I’ve heard.”
Everyone in the room laughed at the presenter’s words, which jarred Livvie out of her thoughts and back to reality. Drake Morganthal was gorgeous, successful, and powerful—a deadly combination in her eyes. Models, actresses, and every other female on this planet drooled either all over him or all over his picture. From what she’d read, he used to work on Wall Street, making millions or probably billions, and then he bought a winery in Napa. He was well known, rich, and sexy as hell. And these were the reasons she hoped not to win. Because she had recently decided to no longer live in an illusion. She had taken off her rose-colored glasses, stepped on them, and threw them away. Those types of men couldn’t be trusted, and she had to stay away from them. She had no intention of staying away from all men, only alpha-males. Her new dream man was humble, quiet, and treated her like a queen.
“The winner is ticket 89976.”
Apparently, the universe had a great sense of humor.