Chapter 579: Liked

Mina arrived at the venue early. As one of the main hosts, she had to make sure she was the one who greeted those who were polite enough to arrive on time. Willow also played a role as hostess, and she made sure to direct people, who just wanted to be nosey, to conversation pieces rather than to Mina or Miss Meagan.

The old woman was nervous, and she had been hiding with Olivia for most of the night, but she eventually came out and mingled with the guests. Zane was also at the event, but President Lee had not come yet. He did not want it to seem like he had an intimate relationship with the nonprofit, although he did, and apparently coming disrespectfully late was an effective way to do that.

Mina was standing in front of one of the pieces of art she liked when someone tapped her on the shoulder. She turned to see Paul, sans Miss Maggie, so she was happy to see him.

"You look beautiful." Mina's face turned red. Paul had only openly complemented her a few times in the past, and her feelings for him were very much still alive, although she had put to rest any thoughts of them being together.

"Where is your fiancé?" Mina asked tactfully. Paul made an annoyed face as if he did not want to talk about it, and Mina felt like she needed to take a step back from the man.

"She is around here somewhere," Paul finally replied, but Mina felt uncomfortable with the way he had answered. "You haven't been texting me lately." Mina tensed. She had not forgotten about her attempts at flirting with the man, but she had thought he had not noticed.

"Sorry, I have been a bit busy." Mina lifted the hand with her magical ring, hoping it would scare Paul away, but the man did not even look at it.

"You don't seem happy to see me." Paul made a face that reminded Mina of the emoticons he had used when they were texting.

"It's not that, it's just that your fiancé and I never really got along, and I would hate for her to think something is going on between us."

"What?" Paul questioned, making Mina feel like she had misread the situation. "Mina, you are my friend. Don't ever think that way." Paul reached out to lift her chin, but Mina stepped back again. "Do you really not trust me?" Mina's heart was racing, she did trust Paul, she just did not trust herself.

"I'm sorry, there are too many people here and I don't want the hassle of having to explain, especially considering that this entire nonprofit is mostly made possible by 'other' women."

"That is true." Paul scratched the back of his head and pointed to the back of the room. "Maggie is waiting for me, so I better go. Call me sometime, okay?" Mina did an awkward not head shake that made Paul laugh. "Still weird I see."

"Sorry," Mina replied.

"Don't be. I like it."

----

The evening was progressing well, and Mina watched staff members running back and forth between different works of art, hanging little 'sold' signs on them. She noticed that anything she looked at for an extended amount of time would miraculously be purchased, so she stared at some of the uglier pricier pieces for longer than she would have liked.

Many men approached her throughout the evening, and while some of them were subtle about their reasons for coming, others were bold about it. One man was boldly in the process of telling her that he cancelled his vacation to meet her, and although that might sound good to someone, to Mina it was wasteful.

"In the future sir, you can just donate to the organization using our online platform. All of this is just a formality, we don't expect anyone to buy anything, but it would be nice if they did." The man smirked at Mina in a way that made her feel dirty.

"You've got a sharp tongue. I wonder what else it can do…" Mina's face contorted into a look of bewilderment and the man in front of her laughed wickedly. "Don't play innocent now."

"Sir, please enjoy the rest of your evening." Mina tried to walk away but the man followed her.

"I still can't believe someone spent two million to f*ck you."

"And you shouldn't," Mina quipped. Her voice was stern, and it caught the attention of people nearby, which was fortunate, because someone Mina never thought she would be happy to see showed up and rescued her. Brayden did not exchange words with the man, he simply pulled her away, and made sure that she was okay as soon as they were out of earshot.

"That ring isn't going to fool anyone here." Mina looked at Brayden, who had lifted her hand to inspect her finger. "A woman like you deserves the best. The ring you are wearing is an embarrassment."

"I had this ring appraised. It is worth $1000.00." Brayden smiled at the woman and lifted his wrist to show her his watch. It was a plain design with a gold frame and black leather straps.

"How much do you think this watch cost?"

"Considering who you are; nothing." Brayden laughed and Mina's face turned red. The man was extremely attractive to her, from his pierced ear to his tousled hair. She really liked how strong his features were, and how dark his eyes were. His teeth were perfectly straight, and his lips had a tinge of pink to them that made them appear whiter and brighter.

"What is it?" Brayden asked. His smile had left his face and in its place was a burning gaze that made Mina feel flush.

"I should probably-" Mina did not get to finish her statement, because Brayden took a step closer to her and cut her off.

"Please don't leave yet. Every time I have gotten you alone, someone interrupts us. I have never really had a chance to get to know you. If it is okay with you, I would like to just talk until someone comes to steal you away from me again." Mina was pleased with Brayden's honesty, and so, she stayed.

Mina felt the whole room disappear as she and Brayden chatted with one another. The man was much more down to earth than other people at the event, and she did not feel like she needed to be mindful of her words while speaking with him. She was not at all surprised to find out that the man came from a common background, but she was shocked to find out that his mother was a divorcee.

"My father never really settled down, but my mother wasn't broken up over the divorce, she was glad for it." Mina found herself frowning. She had never considered the women who were happy to be divorced, and she wondered what kind of torment could make a woman see social ostracism as a better alternative to marriage.

"How old were you when they separated?"

"I was not born yet." Mina's eyebrows raised, and Brayden poked her forehead. "That will give you wrinkles."

"Sorry," Mina whispered.

"For? My father was barely a topic when I was younger. My mother had support from her family, which I'm guessing few relatives are willing to give." Mina tilted her head with a nod.

"Many of the women Miss Meagan has worked with do not have familial support. Especially those with children."

"It's a shame. I hadn't even known being a divorced woman was a social issue."

"We women face many problems that men do not."

"Oh?" Brayden said as a question. "How many men do you know have women throwing money at a cause they care nothing about?"

"I-" Brayden held up his hand with a smile on his face.

"I am not judging you, but there are gains and losses on both sides."

"I will have to disagree with you, but until you have lived as me, I will respect your opinion." Brayden chuckled and Mina stared at his face.

"Mina, I really like you."