“I think you look amazing,” Bran said, adding a wink to show he was teasing. “With a capital A.”
Carina gave a haughty laugh. “Bran, your opinion isn’t worth anything. What do you think, Finn?”
Bran felt like he’d been slapped in the face. He and Carina often jested in this manner, despite his lack of vision. He usually complimented her on the scent she was wearing or the softness of her skin, while throwing in a quip about how he’d never seen a more gorgeous woman. She’d never been so insulting in the past.
With a knot in his stomach, he realized their relationship was going to require a lot of work to make it last for three years. Though they agreed to marry for business reasons, they had to at least get along, or she would leave him anyway. Up until now, she’d always acted as if she were attracted to him, despite his appearance. But perhaps her attitude had been merely that… an act. He couldn’t fault her for it, since he was guilty of the same.
Finn responded with what Bran recognized as a sidestepping accolade. “You’ve seen yourself in the mirror, Carina. You don’t need me to tell you how beautiful you are.”
Carina cooed a thank you, apparently unaware of the slight.
“Let’s go. They’re waiting for us.” Finn moved down the hallway in the direction Branson remembered the elevator being. Bran counted his steps so he could easily find his room on his own if he returned by himself. On the ride down, Stephanie chatted about how nice her room was and the incredible view from her balcony, thanking Bran profusely.
“I’m glad you like it.” Bran basked in her appreciation.
“Of course, Finn paid for Stephanie’s room,” Carina sniped. “No reason you should be taking credit, Branson.”
It happened to be a true statement, though Branson intended to rectify the situation.
“I’m sorry, Finn.” Anxiety flooded Steph’s tone as she apologized. “I assumed Branson had paid, you know, since we worked the whole time we were on the plane. I should’ve realized—”
“No worries, Steph. Branson and I would never quibble over a few thousand dollars.” Finn followed up his declaration with a noisy kissing smack, so loud he undoubtedly wanted Bran to hear it. “We reserve our battles for more important matters.”
The gesture apparently rendered Stephanie speechless for the rest of the ride down, but Bran was so irritated he didn’t need her voice to allay his nerves. As the elevator doors opened to the boisterous lobby, Bran could only think he needed a moment to pull Finn aside and finish their earlier conversation.
Though people customarily gave him a wide berth when he was using his white cane, he didn’t attempt to navigate the bustling crowd alone. He hated hanging onto someone’s arm, but noise from every direction bombarded his ears, making it difficult to walk alongside a person and maintain a steady distance, utilizing only the sound of their voice.
Fortunately, Stephanie came to the rescue, murmuring directions through the receiver in his ear. “Wanna walk with me?” She tugged on his elbow, but released his arm as they started to move. “You’re doing great, Bran. Straight ahead. We’re probably twenty feet from the lobby exit. There. Did you hear the doors open ahead of us? Traffic outside?”
“Got it. Thanks.” He walked with more confidence.
“Are you going to wear sunglasses the whole time we’re here? Even inside the show and the casino?” she asked.
“That’s the plan. Strangers are more comfortable when I wear them.” He stepped outside, his eardrums battered by the din of car motors and horns, while the acrid exhaust fumes assaulted his nose.
“You shouldn’t wear them.”
“What?” he asked.
Resentment bubbled out in her words. “The sunglasses. You shouldn’t wear them. I like seeing your eyes.”
Her remark left him slack-jawed. “Why would you say that about these fake eyes?”
“Because it doesn’t matter what other people think. Cole’s wearing a bright green mechanical hand today. It looks like something from a science fiction movie. A few people stare, but most don’t even notice. Jarrett can’t hide his limp, but he doesn’t seem to care.”
“I’m not hiding my blindness,” he argued. “I’m wearing dark glasses and carrying a white cane. I’m sure plenty of people are staring.”
“I think you’re hiding behind your blindness. You use that cane and those glasses like a wall, to keep yourself from having to interact with sighted people. I’m pretty sure, if you didn’t have those dark glasses on, no one would even realize you’re blind.”
“But I am blind. That’s why I’m more comfortable at home, around things I’m familiar with.”
Their argument was interrupted when Jarrett tapped his elbow. “Hey, that’s our limo across the circle. There were too many cars for it to get any closer.”
“We’re coming,” Steph answered and grabbed Bran’s arm, walking him ahead. “I guess I should’ve let Carina do this. She’s waiting at the car, giving me the stink-eye.”
“I don’t think Carina cares about me one iota. She seems to want Finn’s attention, not mine.” He thought the same of Stephanie, though he didn’t say it.
“No. Carina’s in a huff because you ignored her on the plane. You need to be nice and give her some attention. I think she’s insecure, though I can’t imagine why. She’s got a perfect body. Perfect hair. Perfect teeth. Perfect everything.”
“I’m sure she’s no more beautiful than you.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment, though my body is far from perfect.” Of course Branson has no idea what I look like. “But you need to be saying those sweet things to your fiancée instead of me. I know you can’t pick up body language cues. Let me tell you, hers are screaming she feels neglected.”
“I didn’t realize she was going to be high maintenance,” he mumbled.
“Don’t give me that,” Stephanie snapped, her voice loud enough to make him flinch. “Requiring an occasional kind word and caring touch hardly qualifies as high maintenance.”
Hadn’t he done that for Carina? Had he been so caught up with anxiety he’d been thoughtless and rude to his fiancée? He wasn’t in love with her, but he hadn’t meant to treat her badly.
“The door’s open,” said Cole as they arrived. “Crawl in the back.”
Bran felt for the overhead opening and ducked inside. “Where’s Carina?”
“I’m back here, with Jarrett and Finn,” she replied.
“Well someone better move over and make room for me,” Bran edged his way toward her voice. “I’m sitting by my fiancée.”
Carina giggled. “Sorry, guys. One of you has to give up your seat.”
