Page 129 of Dr. Aster
“I have no idea who that is,” I smiled at Lydia’s giddiness. “But I’m here for the same event. I only wish I was Candace Anders so you could be styling me.”
“Are you serious? What the hell are you doing going to a wedding like this?” she sounded almost shocked. “Well, that came out wrong. I don’t mean it that way. Obviously, you’re gorgeous and glamorous, and you can be fancy when you’re not wearing scrubs. I just?—”
“I know what you mean, dude,” I said with a roll of my eyes. “But don’t sound so shocked. Trust me, I’m the same mud-pie-slinging, toad-catching, down-home Tennessee sister you’ve always known and loved.”
“So, give me some details. How did you score an invitation to this primetime event?”
“Remember the doctor that came to the table when we were eating dinner with Mom and Dad when you came to L.A.?”
“Um, do I remember? Hell yes, I remember. Who could forget Dr. Fucking Gorgeous?”
“Surely nobody,” I laughed.
“Are you two dating? So, wait—” she interrupted herself. “Did he invite you as his plus one to this wedding? How did he get an invitation?” she paused and sighed. “I’m sorry, I’m confused.”
“It’s his brother getting married,” I interrupted my chatty sister.
Anyone could see that my sister and I were polar opposites in all aspects of life, from our personalities down to our footwear. An event like this would perk Lydia right up, and she’d embrace all of it—the good, the bad, and the ugly. I, however, couldn’t get through a few hours at dinner before needing to get away from everyone and unwind in a hot bath.
“Okay. So, he’s an Aster?” she asked as if I’d told her he was an alien. “I just—no. I can’t wrap my head around that. Do you know who they are?”
“I got a taste of that introduction tonight,” I answered.
“Well, by the dry tone of your voice, it went about as well as I’d imagine. I don’t mean to go dashing any fantasies, but believe me when I tell you there’s no way in hell you’re dating a child of Sebastian and Margot Aster.”
“Huh?”
“You heard me,” she insisted. “He can’t be an Aster. There’s no way that family would allow their son to work at a hospital—be an average doctor—and live in California. Period. They’re way too high up on that social ladder for basic-bitch shit like that. That family is known to stare down their noses at anyone who dares to approach them. I’d be shocked if they didn’t expect all leaders of every damn country to pay their respects to them. They probably have more than half of them in their pockets anyway.”
“How the hell do you know any of this?” I asked, wishing my sister and I had had this conversation months ago, before I succumbed to John Aster’s advances and threw myself into a lion’s den.
“Like I said,” she answered, “I’m pretty good friends with Candace Anders. Her family and the Aster family are extremely close. She’s had a rough start to her marriage after marrying into high society. She and Cliff seem to being doing okay for now, but the last thing she said to me about her marriage, his family was fully involved in what was going to happen in their future.”
“Jesus,” I said.
“Jesus can’t help any of those people,” Lydia chuckled.
“Well, it seems I should’ve asked you about this a while ago.”
“How is John related to the groom?” she asked.
“I wasn’t kidding,” I said, my stomach churning in knots, knowing that things would probably only get increasingly ugly in the relationship John and I thought we had figured out. “He is his brother.”
Silence.
“And I’m fucked, it seems,” I said, breaking the silence. “Nothing more to say, I’m sure.”
“Please tell me you’re not serious with this guy.”
“I am serious! He’s the fucking brother of the guy who’s getting married, Mark?—”
“No. I mean, relationship-wise? Are you and—” she paused. “What’s his name again? Dr. Gorgeous?”
“John.”
“Are you a couple—like exclusive—or just good friends?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose; my sister was not a bitch by any means. She was a brilliant woman, who was deeply connected and well-informed, so I knew she wasn’t full of shit or trying to overstate things. She was my sister, and we always had each other’s backs. And if there was danger ahead for me, there was no way she’d let me walk into it unknowingly.
