CHAPTER 12

Allison

Rosalind looked like someone had just poured a bucket of ice on her.

She glared at me with so much hatred, I might as well have burned to the ground.

"Your guests might find it rude of you to keep your son's girlfriend waiting outside the party. Don't you think, Rosalind?" I knew she hated being called by her full name so I called her by her full name.

"It's Rose." She pronounced each word precisely which was a waste of precious time.

I will always refer to her as Rosalind.

"It's getting late, mom. We should return to the party." Unlike me, Christopher was very careful with his choice of words around his mother.

Without waiting for a response from her, Christopher wrapped his arm around me and walked into the party.

It was refreshing seeing her unable to react the way she wanted to because she couldn't ruin the evening for her son.

Safe to say I had Rosalind wrapped around my finger for the night.

"You said it was just dinner with your mother, Christopher. Who are all these people and why are they here?" I demanded an explanation from Christopher.

"My mother called late last night to inform me that she was organizing a small formal party with just a few old investors and business partners to introduce my girlfriend to them."

Apparently, she didn't think I would show up as the girlfriend.

I was sure she wouldn't have done the same if she had known that I would be the one showing up as her son's girlfriend.

"If we're going to properly pretend, you have to stop taking me by surprise." I made sure I had a smile on my face as I spoke.

"It was a mistake."

Was that his way of apologizing for keeping important information away from me?

"Christopher, if that's your way of apologizing then you have a lot to learn."

We had not spent up to a minute in the party before the guests began murmuring and glancing at me.

They either looked surprised, dazzled or irritated.

Rich people had problems.

"That's our oldest partner." Christopher pointed out to an old man who melt glancing our way.

"We're going to walk up to him first."

"Good evening, Mr Jonathan. It's a pleasure having you here." Christopher stretched out a hand which the old man took.

"It's a pleasure to be here. I can't remember the last time I attended a formal closed party." He looked around, admiring the very mild decorations and the other business associates scattered around.

"And who do we have here?" He finally noticed me.

"Mr Jonathan, this beautiful lady right here, is my girlfriend, Allison Davies." His introduction sounded so cheesy, I almost laughed.

In order to make up for his very poor introduction, he pulled me closer and placed a soft kiss on my cheek.

This act seemed to please Mr Jonathan a bit.

"Love, meet one of our oldest partners." He subtly gestured toward Mr Jonathan.

The other guests were begining to pay us even more attention, even Rosalind.

If Christopher didn't step up his acting game, even this small group of mostly old folks will see right through us.

Obviously, he didn't look like he had any better acting skills up his sleeves so I proceeded to do things my way.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr Jonathan. I've heard about your expansion project in Milan."

I felt the air in the garden go still. Even Christopher had stiffened beside me.

Apparently, they had all underestimated me.

The old man blinked and then chuckled, clearly taken off guard, "Well, yes."

He paused for a moment as if contemplating on what next to say.

When I saw his eyes lit up, I knew he had come up with a topic of discussion he believed was going to be difficult for me.

"Actually," he started.

"We're navigating some challenges."

He did not ask a question neither did he end the conversation.

This gave me to choices.

I could either assume the conversation was over and then disappoint Christopher.

Or I could take the bait and see that one sentence as an opening invitation to offer some suggestions I knew he was seeking.

I decided to go for the latter.

"Logistics?" I tilted my head in my most professional manner.

"Or regulatory delays."

The man's brows shut up, obviously impressed but still not entirely satisfied.

"Regulatory, mostly. The Italian council isn't moving as quickly as we'd hoped."

Another open invitation to offer some suggestions.

Again, I took the bait.

"I read that the new policy framework could actually work in your favor once it’s finalized,” I offered carefully. “If you adjust your timeline slightly, you might gain more leverage with suppliers."

Silence fell for a second, then the man's laughter broke through, genuine this time.

"Your woman is sharp, Mr Jacobs." He spoke to Christopher.

"I wouldn't mind partnering with her." He raised his glass to make a toast to me before walking away.

I didn't get a chance to breathe before another business associate approached us.

"That's...."

"London's biggest investor." I finished his sentence for him.

From my peripheral vision, I watched as Christopher stared at me with confusion.

"It's rare to see Mr Jonathan laugh so much. I had to see for myself." He looked between Christopher and I, waiting to be introduced.

After the introduction, he did the same thing Mr Jonathan had done.

I wasted no time taking his bait and humoring him.

"And what do you think of the Asian market, Miss Davies? Too volatile for entry now, or the right time?”

I smiled and then gave my answer with ease.

"That depends. If you’re measuring short-term profit, volatile. But if you’re considering five-year growth potential…” I let the pause stretch, then smiled. “Now is when you plant seeds.”

The man's guarded gaze softened and became less dismissive.

Just like Mr Jonathan, I had impressed him.

As the night became darker, more and more of Christopher's business friends approached us to speak to me.

Soon, the party had become a lecture space.

I could hardly remember the last time people had been so interested in listening to what I had to say.

I hated to admit how being here made me feel seen....a feeling I hadn't experienced in a really long time.

Rosalind still didn't approve of me- not like I cared- but even she couldn't hide how shocked she was when I easily answered every question thrown at me.

It wasn't until Rosalind clinked her glass, that the involuntary lectures ended.

"Can I have your attention?" The venom in her tone every time she spoke to me, had suddenly disappeared.

"Tonight, we have gathered to celebrate our continuous success over the years and also appreciate our strengthened bond."

I drowned out her voice when she continued speaking.

However, a silent nudge from Christopher brought me back to reality.

"You handled it well." His eyes remained on his mother as he spoke to me.

"You pay me well, I should do my job well."

"Thank you for tonight," his mother was still speaking.

"Allow me to introduce my son's girlfriend, Allison Davies." She beckoned on me with the fakest smile I had ever seen.

It was surprising how none of the guests noticed her stiff attitude toward me.

I joined her in front of the guests, doing my best to make my smile look genuine.

"Thank you," Thei claps died down when I spoke.

"It's a great honor be in the midst of such great minds. I have read about your tremendous breakthroughs in business. It's a pleasure to be here."

They clapped again before Christopher joined us in front of the guests.

He wrapped his arm around my waist and placed a small kiss on my shoulder.

"Allison is a little shy....."

"But smart." One of the guests commended while the others agreed.

I blushed, ignoring how Rosalind was the only person here, not smiling.

"It took a lot of convincing to bring her here, you know? Thank you all for attending tonight. Indeed, it's been quite some time since we had a gathering like this. Tonight was lovely, of course, thanks to you all."

Christopher was still giving his own speech when I noticed someone join us.

I could recognize those beautiful grey eyes anywhere. They had plagued my dreams and haunted my thoughts for the past four days.

He squinted his eyes and stepped forward as if trying to remember where he had seen me.

He tilted his head, a knowing look forming on his face. He recognized me.

My entire face flared up in heat when he smiled at me.

He tipped his chin to show that he was enjoying my reaction to his presence.

But what was he even doing here?

He mouthed something to me but I didn't get it.

I slightly shook my head and he mouthed it again,

"You look stunning tonight, Mademoiselle."

"Allison?" Christopher gently shook me and called my name, taking my attention away from my savior.

I realized that he had just finished his speech and I wasn't even listening.

"Thank you." I smiled at the rest of the guests once again before walking away with Christopher.

"Listen, I know that my mother hasn't been entirely nice tonight but can we please reserve whatever you have in mind for her, for another time? There's too many very important people here tonight. Please."

I wasn't paying attention to any of the things Christopher said.

I couldn't pay attention, not when my savior was walking up to me with that beautiful smile on his face.

"Alli....." His sentence trailed off mid thought when he realized that I wasn't listening to him.

Frowning, he angled his head toward me and followed the invincible thread of my gaze until he found who had captured all of my attention.

When he turned back, his eyes were blazing with anger,

"You can't be serious." His voice was dangerously low but I still paid him no attention.

"Good evening, Christopher." My savior walked up to us and surprisingly, addressed Christopher by his first name, unlike everyone else here.

"Good evening, Matthieu." Christopher returned his greeting with a fake smile and a stiff tone.

"You're not going to introduce me?" My savior- Matthieu spoke to Christopher.

Not looking pleased, Christopher wrapped his arm around me possessively.

"Darling," he gently grabbed my chin and turned my face to his.

Without giving me a second to predict his next move, Christopher placed his lips on mine in a kiss.

His lips lingered on mine for a while before he decided he didn't just want it to be a quick kiss.

He spread his fingers from my jaw to my face and behind my ears and deepened the kiss.

Knowing people were watching, I had no choice but to kiss him back.

When he pulled away, I saw the satisfied grin on his face.

I was going to kill him once we were alone, where no one could save him from me.

"This," he gestured toward Matthieu, finally acknowledging his presence again.

".....is my cousin."

Wait, what?