Chapter 2

I took a deep breath and stuffed the scandalously skimpy bunny suit back into the box.

Eleanor's face was still bright red, her chest heaving with anger.

"Not for you? Then why the hell did he bring this trash into my house? Does he think I'm some senile old fool, or does he just think our family is easy to walk over?"

Eleanor is a retired elementary school principal. She had lived a dignified life. She had never faced such an insulting situation.

On his very first official visit, my boyfriend had gifted her a sex toy of an outfit.

If word got out, our reputation in this quiet suburban town would be completely ruined. It would be total social suicide.

"Maybe... maybe he just grabbed the wrong box," I forced a smile, trying to calm her down.

"You know how Carter is. He's careless. He's a rich guy with too many friends. Maybe one of his buddies left it in his car."

Even as I said it, my knuckles turned white clutching the edge of the box.

Grabbed the wrong box?

The Hermès box was wrapped so perfectly.

If it wasn't prepared on purpose, how could he accidentally bring this specific box into our house?

My phone screen lit up again. Another text from Carter.

"Babe, why aren't you replying? Is your mom too thrilled to speak to me?"

He attached a cute "begging for praise" meme.

Looking at that stupid emoji, my stomach churned with disgust.

Too thrilled?

Eleanor wants to take a broom and beat you out of the neighborhood right now.

I grabbed my phone and walked out onto the balcony. "Let me call him. I'll make him apologize."

I slid the glass door shut, blocking out my mother's angry sighs.

I didn't text him back. Instead, I called Carter directly.

It rang once before he picked up. The background noise was deafening. It sounded like some high-end club, with girls giggling in the background.

"Hey, babe!" Carter's voice sounded smug and distracted. "So, what's the verdict? That bag is a limited-edition piece I had to pull serious strings to get. Your mom is going to look so classy carrying it..."

"Carter," I interrupted him, my voice freezing cold. "Who was the gift in that box actually meant for?"

There was a sudden pause on the other end. The giggling in the background grew faint. He must have walked to a quieter hallway.

"What do you mean? It was for your mom, of course!"

I stared down at the dry, winter lawn of our neighborhood, a mocking smile on my face. I decided to drop the bomb.

"Do you know what was actually inside that Hermès box, Carter? It wasn't a purse. It was a lace bunny-girl outfit with a crotchless thong. And the top size is a 36D."

Silence. Dead, suffocating silence for a solid five seconds.

"Fuck!" Carter cursed loudly. "Oh shit. I grabbed the wrong one! Babe, listen to me! I swear it's a massive misunderstanding! I went shopping with Mason this afternoon. You know Mason—he's a total frat boy. He wanted to buy this kinky stuff for his new girlfriend. I bought the bag, he bought the outfit. The two boxes looked exactly the same. Same size, same orange color. I was just so excited to see you that when I got out of the car, I grabbed the wrong box!"

Honestly, the logic was perfect. It sounded completely believable.

I kept my voice calm, pretending to buy it. "Really? Yeah, Mason has always been a bit wild."

Sensing I was softening, Carter immediately jumped on it. "Exactly! That guy has nothing but dirt in his brain! He made me look like a total creep in front of your mom!"

He promised over the phone, "Don't worry, babe. I'm calling Mason right now to scream at him. Tomorrow morning, I'll come over to apologize to your mom in person. The real bag is still with Mason. I'll go get it. To show how sorry I am, I'll buy another one! Two Hermès bags for your mom to make up for this mess, okay?"

Two Hermès bags. What a generous move.

If this were before, or if I were any other naive girl, I might have been blinded by his wealth. I might have even thought it was sweet how responsible my boyfriend was when he made a mistake.

But right now, the only thing in my mind was that 36D bunny suit. If he really grabbed the wrong box, why was the lingerie packed so beautifully inside a real Hermès box? Even if Mason bought it, what kind of guy puts cheap lingerie into a multi-thousand-dollar luxury purse box to take home?

Unless... this was done on purpose. Or, Carter had prepared two gifts from the start. One for his "36D" side chick. And one for his official girlfriend's mother. And in his rush—or perhaps right after climbing out of that 36D chick's bed—he got confused and mixed them up.