Chapter 26 – Safety Blanket

Eric tied his bowtie and tried to straighten it as he stood in front of the full-length mirror. "I feel weird in this. Shouldn't I use a regular tie?" Eric asked Timo, who dusted lint off his shoulder.

"Charlotte wants you to wear this, and so you shall," Timo gripped his shoulder. "Understood?"

"Yes, sir..." I look like a penguin.

"Also, let her do the talking unless directly asked a question. I'm not sure about her intentions, so I can't give you much advice, but try not to screw up."

"I'll try not to. I can't make any promises if Dean is there and causes trouble, though."

"I understand that one, but... please try. And don't leave her side. If she heads to the bathroom, guard the door. If she goes out on the balcony, go with her. If you're supposed to grab her a drink, bring her with you."

"Stay glued to her, got it. I agree with you on all that anyway, but won't she get annoyed? I mean, it sounds annoying to me, and I'm the one planning to do it."

"Contrary to what it appears you think, she wants to keep you close, too. You are somewhat of a safety blanket to her now, so I don't think she'd mind at all if you kept close."

"A safety blanket?" Eric frowned. "I'm not sure how to take that."

"In this case, it's a good thing. You represent a safe place to her; it's the highest compliment she can give, really. The only other people in that category are her parents and I."

Knock, knock. "Are you two going to keep chatting, or are you going to come out so we can go to this charity event?" Charlotte asked from the other side of his bedroom door. She tapped her foot and looked at her watch. "I don't like being late, and we're getting short on time."

"Yes, ma'am," they both said.

"Ugh, we're not at work; don't call me ma'am, Eric."

"Sorry, Char."

Timo drove them to the hall where they were holding the charity event. "If anything happens, I will be waiting right here, ready to take off at a moment's notice."

"Good to know," Eric nodded and got out of the limo. He turned around and held his hand out to her. "Milady," he winked at her.

"Thank you," she took his hand and wrapped her arm around his.

"Have a good evening, you two," Timo shut the door and sat back down in the driver's seat.

"Are you sure this is a charity event?" Eric whispered as they walked down a red carpet with people taking photos of those entering.

"Yes, though I admit it's an odd one." Charlotte held him back for a moment, turned to the crowd with a smile and gave them a wave before heading inside.

"These flashing lights are making me dizzy already. Why are they even here like that? You'd think it was a movie opening or something," Eric complained as Charlotte gave the attendant in the lobby her invitation.

"Welcome, Miss. Burne, and thank you for joining us," he handed her a stamp with a pad to use with a unique number.

"What's that for?" Eric asked.

"It's a silent auction. This way, no one will know who bid on anything." She held it out to him. "I can trust you with this, right?"

"Not sure you want me bidding on anything, but I'll follow your instructions," he took it from her and put it in his pocket.

They went inside, and Eric's eyes widened. Dressed up people and long tables with closed display cases, pictures, and papers filled the enormous room.

"I guess they don't want you touching any of the items," Eric approached one of the cases with a set of white gold, diamond jewellery in it. These would look good on Char... I wonder if she'd like'em.

"There was an incident a couple of years back with a thief, so they're more cautious now," Charlotte leaned in close to admire the jewellery. "Quite beautiful, isn't it?"

"I think so, but I don't know much about jewellery."

"Doesn't matter, really; as long as you like it, it's good."

"Even if it was fake?"

Charlotte shrugged. "If you like it, it's fine. Let's keep looking, and you can use the stamp on whatever you want. And with this silent auction, they have it a bit special. The prices are already listed, and you just have to dab your stamp next to the price you're willing to pay. If you want to skip the lower prices – this is for charity, after all – then just skip those lines and go for whatever amount you're okay with."

Eric leaned in to look at the price for the jewellery and his eyes widened. "Um... Have you looked at even the starting prices? That's insane... I can't do this," he tried to hand the stamp back, but she refused. "I can't spend your money on this stuff."

"It's okay, Eric; nothing here would be out of my range. If you like something, just go for it."

"Charlotte!" a woman in a sleek red dress called out to her. "It's been too long." She rushed up to Charlotte to give her a hug. "And who is this strapping young man?"

"My boyfriend, Eric. Eric, this is Isabelle Mercer."

"Nice to meet you," she held her hand out to Eric.

"Likewise," he awkwardly shook her hand instead of kissing the back of it.

"Um..." She pulled her hand back. "How about we chat for a moment?" Isabelle rested a hand on Charlotte's back to try to usher her away.

I can't let her go too far. Eric automatically reached for Charlotte's hand.

"Right here should be fine," she gripped his hand, but kept her attention on Isabelle.

"That close, are you?" Isabelle giggled. "Alright then. Fine, we can talk here."

Eric tuned them out and gazed down at the jewellery once more. Is it really okay to spend her money on a gift for her? He stared at in a daze for a while, and couldn't stop staring at the ring. A ring... An image of him putting the ring on her finger flashed through his mind, and he blushed.

Charlotte tugged on his hand slightly as she turned.

In a moment of panic, he stamped the paper for the jewellery low on the list and stepped up beside her, his back to it.

"Ready to look around more now?" Eric asked.

"Yes, thank you for waiting," she stood on the tip of her toes and kissed his cheek.

"C-Char? What are you doing?" Eric averted his gaze to find out others were staring at them and whispering. "You really are being open about this, aren't you?"

"Yes; I'm taken and I want the others to know."

They took their time walking around, looking at all the items up for auction. Items ranged from signed books and albums to tickets to sports games and even designer clothing.

A yacht? This auction must only be for rich people...

"Is there anything you want to go back around to?" Charlotte asked. "We have to bid on a few things at least, but nothing seems to be catching your eye. Well, you were looking at the yacht. Would you like it?"

"What? No... I don't know how to drive a boat, and I wouldn't feel safe on one. My swimming skills are sub-par at best," Eric ushered her away from the yacht. "I'm sure there must be something we can bid on. Do you have an interest in sports or concerts?"

"Not particularly, no. I don't mind classical music, though." She pointed at the tickets to a symphony. "It's for two tickets..."

"Then we'll go for that," Eric rushed over to stamp the paper for the tickets, her hand slipping from his. While on his way there, he stamped a few smaller things, figuring she wanted to do it more for the charity.

He froze when he noticed he was no longer holding Charlotte's hand. Crap, crap, crap. I got too excited! He looked around and spotted her off to the side. A man was talking to her, but Eric couldn't tell who he was from behind. How'd she wind up way over there?

The man stepped towards her, backing her into the wall, and placed his hand on the wall next to her head.

"Excuse me," Eric tried to push his way through the growing crowd. "Ugh," someone accidentally elbowed him. "Sorry, excuse me. Ha!" Eric huffed.