Chapter 11

Allison

The stylist was still working on my makeup when I heard Christopher's voice from the living room.

I didn't expect him to come pick me up himself.

"Don't move," The stylist scolded me in his thick Italian accent, titling my chin back toward the mirror.

I had almost forgotten that he was still working on my face.

"You'll have your man all to yourself tonight. A little control for now won't hurt." He winked before moving to stand behind me.

Man?

I'm sorry, did he just refer to Christopher as my man?

"Gross." I muttered under my breath, irritated that in a few weeks, the whole world would see him as my man.

I had never felt so disgusted in my entire life.

"Did you say something?" His eyes shone with curiosity.

"No, ignore it." I smiled at him, hoping he really hadn't heard me.

He adjusted a final curl and pinned it perfectly into place.

Dramatically, he stepped back to adore his work, "Magnifica!"

Indeed, his work was magnificent.

I could barely recognize myself.

Gone was the ordinary looking woman.

The woman who stared right back at me, looked like she had been born into an elite family.

"You will be the centre of attention tonight."

Indeed I would and it wouldn't just be because I was hanging on Christopher's arm.

"You might want to use some protection tonight." He laughed like his joke was funny.

"What?" I knew exactly what he meant and I was five seconds away from throwing up.

Having to kiss Christopher was already worse than a chore.

I didn't even want to imagine having sex with him.

"Your man isn't going to take it so gently with you tonight, Cara. I hope you're ready for what's....."

Unable to take more of his disturbingly vivid speech, I stopped him,

"Thank you for tonight, Mr Francesco."

With a grand sweep of his arm, he bowed low, one hand pressed dramatically to his chest,

"Grazzie, bellisima. For allowing me the honor of creating perfection tonight."

He stepped out of my bedroom to inform Christopher that I was ready.

"Signore, she's ready. You will not believe your eyes."

I heard his proud announcement to Christopher.

If only he knew how little he cared.

Francesco knocked twice on my bedroom before opening the door widely for me.

"Go," he gestured toward the living room.

"Make him forget how to breathe."

I stepped forward, my heels clicking against the floor as I walked out.

Charles was the first person I saw.

Even he was surprised at my transformation,

"You look beautiful, Miss Davies."

"Thank you, Charles." I smiled at him.

When Charles stepped away, I saw Christopher sitting on the couch.

However, the moment he noticed my presence, he was on his feet, whatever he was doing on his phone, officially over.

I had expected a dismissive look or a rude comment but none of that came.

Christopher opened his mouth as though he was about to say something but no sound came.

His eyes lingered on me like he was seeing someone entirely new and he was searching for the Allison he knew.

The silence stretched, louder than our past arguments combined.

When he suddenly moved, it was like something or someone else had taken control of this mind.

He took one step, then another step.... until he was standing right in front of me.

I had seen Christopher angry and irritated by my presence but I had never seen him look at me like this.

He looked like........I couldn't even explain it.

That glint in his eyes was so foreign to me.

Despite his intense and quite frankly, uneasy stare, I held his gaze without faltering.

He opened his mouth again and this time, he spoke,

"You look....."

He spoke, only to lose track of his words.

"Dazzling, I know." I smirked, watching as the realization dawned on him.

He had been staring openly and I had caught him.

Charles and Francesco were witnesses too.

"Shit." He silently cussed, quickly averting his gaze to the Couch.

"I owe it all to Francesco." I gestured toward the stylist who only did his dramatic bow again.

"You were right," I told the man, watching as his eyes lit up in satisfaction, fulfilment and happiness.

"Gli ho fatto davvero dimenticare come respirare. Grazie." I smiled at him, genuinely.

When I returned my gaze to Christopher, the frown was back on his face.

He didn't understand a word I just said and that made him furious.

I heard Charles' light chuckle from the corner of the room.

Unlike his boss, he had understood.

Not even surprised, he was a butler, after all.

In a few minutes, I was seated at the passenger seat with Christopher next to me, actively making efforts not to look at me.

"It's not a crime if you stare, you know. I won't blame you. I do look ravishing." I smiled, looking at him.

"Don't get too ahead of yourself. I was only practicing for tonight." He scoffed.

"I must say, Mr Jacobs, that was quit a lot of practice for a closed door dinner with just your mother." I teased him further.

I was never going to stop talking about this night.

No response.

"Admit it, you liked what you saw, Mr Jacobs."

Still no response.

"We've arrived, Sir, Miss Davies." Charles announced from the driver seat.

He got out and then helped Christopher with his door before helping me with mine.

Still frowning, Christopher walked up to me and offered me his arm.

I gracefully linked my arm around his and plastered a smile on my face before we walked into the huge mansion.

Strangely, instead of walking us to the grand front entrance of the mansion, he began leading us down a gravel path.

"Not this way?" I pointed at the direction of the entrance when he suddenly stopped walking.

"There's something you need to know, Allison." When he came to stand in front of me, I noticed that the frown on his face had disappeared.

He panicked as he held my shoulders.

"What is wrong with...." I was about to begin an argument when I heard light laughters around the house.

What the hell was happening?

"Allison," he tried to stop me but I managed to push him away.

I walked further down the gravel path, past the manicured hedges toward the side of the estate.

I kept walking until I found a smaller terrace at the back of the house, where strings of white lights hung low between the trees.

A small group of guests gathered around linen-draped tables.

This was where the sounds of laughter had come from.

"I can explain." I felt him touch my arm but I was too still to even move.

"You said it was a meeting with your mother, not a fucking party, Christopher." I turned to him when I could finally move again.

Before he could say anything to defend himself, I heard a high pitched voice that I recognized all too well.

I looked ahead and saw the she devil walking towards us with a smile on her face that immediately dropped when she saw who her son had come with.

I quickly got over the shock and flashed her a smug grin.

I heard Christopher cuss beside me and simply ignored him.

"What is happening here, Chris?" She questioned her son, still refusing to believe that he had showed up with me and not an elite lady like she might have hoped.

"Allison, meet my mother, again. Mom, meet Allison, again." He introduced us and took a step back like a war was about to break out.

"Wonderful meeting you again, Mrs Jacobs." I stretched out my hand to her with a smile on my face.

From the look on her face, a war might actually break out.