My Life Is a Cliché

Men and women filed into the room, each holding a slip of paper that had a copy of the seating chart on it. I stood awkwardly at the table, not sure if I should greet them separately yet.

“You’ll do that after the meal,” Katie said when I asked. “For now, follow the guidance of the penguins from Madagascar: Smile and wave, beautiful. Smile and wave.”

I did as she said but I didn’t wave. The men seated at our table made their ways over slowly. There were five men in their late 50’s, early 60’s that I assumed were the investors. That or Katie had poor taste in men. The other three looked around my age and I did my best to look presentable.

“It’s such a pleasure to meet you,” the older men said in unison and grinned at each other awkwardly.

I laughed a little. “My name is Morana. Your names are?”

“Marcus,” one said. He had grey hair.

Heath had black with grey flakes. Bryan looked a little younger; at least his hair was still brown. Nathan had to be the oldest of the bunch with pure white hair. Thomas, to my surprise, had white hair but was incredibly cold in demeanor.

I then turned to the younger men, wincing inside.

“I am Ian,” the first said, shaking my hand firmly. He had blue eyes and short black hair. “It is such an honor to meet a beautiful woman such as yourself.”

I didn’t have time to answer as the second one pushed him aside. “Johnathan,” he supplied. “And, may I say, you’re the most gorgeous woman I have ever seen.”

I laughed a little. “Um… Thanks?”

The third man just stared at me for a second before accepting my extended hand. Unlike the other two, he brushed his lips on my knuckles.

“Thaddeus Hatch,” he said in a deep voice, smirking when he saw me staring at his eyes.

I cleared my throat. “It’s wonderful to meet you gentlemen,” I said, addressing the table at large. “Excuse me please.”

I went up to the sound system, accepting the microphone from D.J.

“Do you have a favorite artist, Miss Morana?” he asked and I thought for a minute.

“I guess Owl City,” I said. “They’d probably like that better than David Bowie.”

D.J. shrugged. “It’s your party, miss.”

He slipped his headphones back on and waited for me to speak. I looked at the room. People were still finding their seats and my mouth went dry. My palms were sweating as I tried to remember my speech. It was then that I remembered I had left my notecards in my purse. I considered going to get them but everyone was seated. I cleared my throat.

“Thank you for coming tonight,” I said into the microphone. “We at Auto Find are excited that the business has gotten where it is today. I’d go into the specifics but I know what you are really here for: the free food.” The crowd laughed. “So, please, enjoy your food and then we’ll talk about those checks after.”

They laughed again and I handed the microphone back to D.J. who turned it off and started his playlist. I walked back to the table on shaking legs and sighed in relief when I got to my chair. Waiters were walking around with notepads, taking everyone’s orders.

“I’ll have the grilled chicken salad,” I said, passing over my menu. “Instead of parmesan, cheddar cheese, and ranch on the side, please.”

The waiter nodded, writing it down and moving on to Katie. I felt eyes on me and looked up. Thaddeus was seated directly across from me at the circular table. He winked at me but I turned to Katie.

“How’d I do?” I asked, taking a piece of bread from the basket in the middle of the table.

“That wasn’t the speech you wrote,” she answered, “but you did great.”

“I forgot my notes,” I murmured, shifting in embarrassment.

She laughed, buttering her bread. “Where would you be without me?”

“In bed,” I said and she laughed again. “So, gentlemen,” I said, speaking up over the din. “Tell me about yourselves.”

In college, the most boring class was History for me. I would doze off during the lectures. Thank goodness I had food and Katie to keep me awake. The five investors were as dull as they come. All were retired from large corporate companies. At least the three younger men were more interesting.

“I work with Mr. Hamilton’s company,” Johnathan said around a mouthful of his food. I tried not to cringe and took a small bite of my chicken. “I’m two steps away from the CEO.”

“I have a string of slaughter houses,” Ian said proudly.

“Have you always wanted to do that?”

His smile faltered. “Well, I started off wanting to be a veterinarian.”

This time I choked on my lettuce. Katie thumped me on the back.

“Excuse me,” I said, my eyes watering. “I have a tendency to eat too quickly. What about you, Mr. Hatch?”

He was sitting lazily in his chair. “My family owns the horse track in the southern part of the city,” he said, sounding incredibly bored.

“Do you enjoy working with horses?”

“Do I look like I do?” he asked bluntly and I arched a brow.

“Now, now, Mr. Hatch,” Bryan said, patting him on the shoulder. “Be kind to our hostess.”

He just smiled and went back to his food.

“Where’d you find this one?” I asked Katie through clenched teeth.

I surveyed the rest of the room. As far as I could tell, Ian, Johnathan, and Thaddeus were the only young men there. So she put them at the table for a reason. The D.J. started playing music and the waiters had people stand so they could move tables.

“May I?” Ian asked smoothly, holding out his hand.

I tried to smile but it probably looked more like a grimace because Katie pinched my arm. I took his hand and let him drag me to the dance floor.

“This is a lovely party,” he said as we danced.

I nodded. “Katie did a very good job at planning it all.”

“Is she your assistant?”

“Best friend,” I corrected.

“May I cut in?”

Ian glared at Johnathan but stepped to the side. Unfortunately, it seemed like my new dance partner didn’t know how to dance. By the time the song was over, my toes were numb.

“You’re a lovely dancer,” he complimented.

“Thanks,” I said.

He looked at me expectantly but I had no idea what he was waiting for.

“I suppose it’s my turn,” Thaddeus said in his bored voice.

Johnathan bowed at me. I felt like we were at some kind of royal ball. Thaddeus shattered that immediately. He put his hands on my hips and pulled me so close our chests were touching.

I took a small step back so there was more space between us and put my hands around his neck.

“You look about as bored as I am,” he said as we swayed to the music.

I shrugged. “Parties are more Katie’s thing than mine.”

“So, Morana,” he said, moving my hips to the music, “what’s your last name?”

“I don’t have one,” I said curtly and he nodded, pursing his lips.

“Fair enough.”

“You keep moving your hands down and I’ll have to cut them off,” I said through clenched teeth.

He grinned and stopped trying to grope me. “Just thought I’d give it a try. You’re too beautiful not to.”

“How kind of you,” I said sarcastically.

His eyes were glinting in amusement. “How old are you?”

“Seventeen,” I said, rolling my eyes.

Before I could protest, he pulled me so our bodies were touching again.

“Well, I guess that would make you my jailbait,” he said into my ear.

His warm breath brushed against my neck, making me shiver. He chuckled and I squirmed out of his hands.

“Thanks for the dance,” I said and turned on my heels, grabbing the first glass of champagne I could find.