give her an apologetic smile and shrug. “That’s okay, dear. With
your figure, you will look beautiful in any dress.” She ushers
me forward and starts picking up several dresses. “The fitting
rooms are to the back.” She hands me the pile of dresses, which
I have to push down with my chin in order to make it to the
fitting rooms without falling over. I look at Jessica as I pass her
and mouth HELP!!! She starts laughing.
The first dress is red in a boob-tube style that goes out in a
poof from the waist down. When I come out of the fitting room,
Jessica is lounging on a black leather sofa. There are mirrors
around me and I can see myself from every angle, which is not
good, as I look like a big red cake. Jessica starts laughing and
can’t stop. The owner gives her a sharp look that shuts her up
quickly.
I walk straight back into the fitting room and try on four
more dresses. They are nice, but none of them really stand out.
The last dress is black, which is my favourite colour. I slip it
on over my head and tug it down, adjusting it until it falls to
the ground. The material is heavy and tight against my upper
body, showing off every curve. Then it swirls just at the thigh
and flows to the ground. It is stunning. I walk out of the fitting
room, and Jessica sits up straight.
“Sarajane, it’s amazing.”
I smile. “I think so too.”
The owner comes over with black high heels with a simple de
Monte design on the front of them. I slip my feet in. “Now you
look perfect, dear” she says.
I pay for the gown and shoes, three hundred euro for all, but
I have to say it’s worth every penny. I take Jessica out for food
afterwards to thank her for helping me. It’s after eleven o’clock
by the time we arrive home, and Dad is in bed already.
The next day at work goes by quickly, as Susan and I
talk about our dresses for the ball. Christine listens
enthusiastically, but I feel sorry for her. “Are you sure you
won’t come with us?”
Christine gives me a look. “Really, I prefer some wine and a
good romance novel. Not looking at all the couples hanging all
over each other.”
“Well, if you change your mind, you have my number.”
Christine gives me a hug. “Thanks.”
When three o’clock comes, I get my bag and jacket from the
back and say good-bye to Christine and Susan. Susan is staying
on until four so at least Christine only has an hour and a half
without us.
I drive home and start getting ready. First thing, I jump in
the shower and take my time with my hair, especially making
sure I condition it really well. Once I’m dried, I slip into my
nightgown and head downstairs to blow-dry my hair only
slightly, just to take the heaviness out of it. After that, I go back
upstairs and put on my dress and shoes. I check the time on
my phone. Still an hour left. So I take great care applying my
makeup, foundation, some simple lip-gloss and tint of a blusher
along my cheeks, eyeliner and finally, mascara. Done. I check
myself in my full-length mirror attached to my bedroom door.
I look beautiful.
Leaving the mirror, I go downstairs to the sitting room,
where Jessica and Dad are waiting on me. Walking in, I give
them a twirl, causing the bottom of my dress to spread out.
“You look like a princess,” Jessica says while rising off the
couch to come over and inspect me further.
My dad smiles, but it is a sad smile. He is thinking of Mum.
“You are beautiful, darling.” He lands a gentle kiss on my
forehead. Tears prickle my eyes. Mum should be here.
The doorbell rings and Dad volunteers to get it, anything to
distract him from this sad moment. I clear my throat to pull
myself together. Looking at Jessica, I can see the sadness on her
face. “I miss her too,” she whispers, barely audible. I hug her so
tightly she squeals slightly.
Josh walks in the door then and I have to say he looks so
handsome. He’s in an all-black suit with a white shirt, making
his tan stand out. His eyes are practically sparkling. “Wow, you
look stunning,” he says while leaning in and giving me a kiss
on the cheek.
“You don’t look too bad yourself.”
Jessica inhales a sharp breath. “Don’t be so mean, Sarajane.”
When I look at my little sister, she looks truly angry. I turn to
Josh and roll my eyes. “You look dashing, Prince Josh.” Jessica
is still angry, as she knows I am being sarcastic.
“Okay, kids, stand together for a photo.”
Josh places his hand around my waist and gives it a little
squeeze. I look at him with a smile, but his face is so serious that
my smile falters as it feels like his brown eyes are searing into
my very heart. I know Josh cares for me, but there is so much
more than care on his face right now. Then I hear the click of
the camera.
Dad lowers it. “Come on, kids, smile.” This time we both do,
but I know our smiles will be strained when we get the photo
developed.
I give Dad a kiss and he hugs me tightly. “I love you. Have a
great night. You deserve it.”
Tears fill my eyes. “I love you too.”
We reach the ball fifteen minutes later. We don’t speak on the
way, which leaves me feeling awkward.
The room that the ball is being held in is already full with
couples. The room is lit by hundreds of fairy lights. No overhead
lights are on, only the fairy lights and small tea lights on all the
tables light the room. The music is soft. It’s spectacular and everyone looks amazing.
We descend the stairs and enter the ballroom. Josh gets us
drinks, his mood picking back up a bit. I stand just by the stairs,
clutching my purse. A few ladies give me scowls as their partners
eye me up. I feel such relief when Josh returns and hands me a
glass of champagne. Now a lot of girls are giving looks, and it’s
not because their men are looking at me. It's because they’re
looking at Josh and wishing they were with him.
“To us. May we have a wonderful and magical night.” I click
my glass with his, causing his face to break into a smile. The
smile I return is genuine, as I feel happy that he’s back to himself
again. Maybe I misread the look he gave me in my house and he
feels awkward that he gave me the wrong impression.
The music picks up tempo and I’m eager to dance, but Josh
isn’t eager at all. “Come on. We’ll sit down and talk.” Josh takes
my free hand, moving me through the crowd until we come to
a small table and two chairs. We sit down, admiring all the
talented dancers.
Josh takes my hand in his, drawing my attention away from
the dance floor. “I need to tell you something.”
Just then a tall shadow looms over our table. “Excuse me,
would you like to dance?” asks a husky voice.
I look up and into the eyes of a gorgeous guy. He must be
in his mid-twenties. My stomach
gets all nervous. He’s tall
with broad shoulders and his eyes are a piercing green. He has
shoulder-length black hair tied at the nape of his neck. His
jawline is strong and defines his full lips.
Overall, I’m speechless so Josh speaks for me, with a serious
tone. “No, she would not. Can’t you see we’re talking or did
you miss that?”
The guy averts his eyes to Josh. “I was not speaking to you. I
was addressing the lady.”
I finally find my voice. “No, thank you…” I pause.
“Tristan. My name is Tristan.”
“Okay, no thank you, Tristan.” He tilts his head in a bowing
motion and cuts Josh a hard look before he walks away.
Josh is smirking at his back. “Fool,” he says in a sneery tone,
but when he looks at me, his face falls. He can see the anger on
my face.
“Josh, don’t ever speak for me again. I can answer for myself.”
“Oh, can you? You were doing a great job. Sitting there with
your mouth hanging open.” His own anger flares across his
face.
I grab my purse. “You’re a jerk sometimes. I’m getting
another drink.”
I walk off to the bar. Regret washes over me as soon as I
reach it. I shouldn’t have called him a jerk. I was sitting there
with my mouth hanging open. My stomach flutters thinking
of breath upon my shoulder makes me go still.
“May I get you a drink? Or should I consult with your jealous
escort?”
“He is my friend, and yes, a glass of champagne.” I look up
at Tristan, his green eyes studying my face. He turns towards
the barman and orders two champagnes. “Thank you.” I take a
sip, not too sure what to do now.
“What’s your name?” Tristan asks.
“Sarajane Anderson.” When I say my second name, it seems to surprise him. Don’t get me wrong; he’s not overly surprised,
but his eyebrows rise ever so slightly. It would take a lot to make
them go really high.
“Anderson? That is interesting.”
“Why?” I ask, but before he gets to answer me, Josh is there.
He hasn’t noticed Tristan or maybe he’s just ignoring him.
“Look, Sarajane, I’m really sorry. It’s just I really…” Then
he notices Tristan. “You again. Can you not take no for an
answer?”
Tristan places his untouched glass of champagne on the
counter and enters Josh’s personal space. “You are beginning
to annoy me, boy.”
I squeeze in between the two of them before it gets out of
hand. “Stop acting like two kids.” Two sets of eyes shoot down
at me, as both of them are taller. Josh looks annoyed while
Tristan’s face remains expressionless. So I take my fury out on
Tristan this time. I hand him back the champagne. “Thank you
for the drink.” I turn my back on him and take Josh’s hand.
“Dance with me,” I say. While I lead the way to the dance floor.
Josh steps on my toes several times. “I told you I couldn’t
dance.” I laugh.
Josh lays his hand on my face “You’re beautiful.”
“Oh, I know I am,” I say with a big smile and swat his hand
away.
“I’m serious.” He places his hand back on my face. “I’m in
love with you, Sarajane.”
It feels like time has frozen and only Josh and I exist. I can
see by the way he looks at me that he means it. God, how did I
not see this coming? I really care for Josh, but I don’t love him.
Josh speaks then, as if he knows how I feel. “I know you
don’t love me, but in time, you will grow to.” And then he kisses
me, gently at first, and then he deepens the kiss. When I pull
back, we are both a little breathless.
“Josh, I really had no idea.”
He laughs and it’s full of joy. “I know. You can be so blind
at times.” He pulls me into him and circles his arms around my
waist. “I have always loved you.”
“Sarajane.” I turn out of Josh’s arms and am faced with
Susan, who is in a flood of tears.
“Jesus, Susan, what happened?” But I already know. The
look of hurt on her face makes my stomach tighten.
“Susan, did he hit you?” Josh asks while scanning the crowd
for Max.
She gives a bitter laugh. “You warned me, but I wouldn’t
listen.” I hug her, feeling so sorry for her. “I have to go,” she
says, panicked.
“No, wait, I’ll come.” But she leaves straight away. I race
after her. Josh grabs my hand.
“I’m coming with you.”
I kiss his cheek. “Not this time.”
I follow Susan. She’s sitting on the curb outside the hall,
crying. Her shoulders shake with sobs. I sit down beside her.
“You have to forget about this guy.”
Susan cuts me a dirty look. “It’s easy for you to say. I love
him, Sarajane.”
I can’t believe I’m hearing this. “He hit you twice now, Susan.
He will never change.” I can see the conflict in her eyes, but then
they shadow over with anger.
“He didn’t mean it.” She storms off.
“Susan, wait up.” She starts to run, and I give chase after
her, but in high heels, it’s really hard. By the time I reach the
end of the street, she’s jumped into a taxi. When I stop to catch
my breath, I notice the streets are deserted. I wrap my bare
shoulder every few seconds. The noise of my high heels echoes
off the pavement. I start to walk faster. Someone grabs me
from behind, roughly. I swing my hands around, clawing at my
attacker’s face.
“Let me go,” I yell.
Adrenaline pumps through my body, along with fear. With all
my might I draw back my leg and kick with the heel of my shoe.
I can feel the spike make contact with flesh. I gag. My attacker
roars in pain, causing his hold to falter while allowing me to
twist out of his grasp, and I run blindly. My hair is whipping in
my face, unshed tears causing my eyes to blur. I push my body
until my lungs burn. A quick look behind confirms no one is
pursuing me.
Branches whip at my clothes and face, making me slow down.
When I stop to catch my breath, I take in my surroundings. I’m
in the woods, the opposite side of town, about five minutes from
the hall. I didn’t realise I ran that far.
“Shit.” How stupid could I be to run into the woods? But I
panicked and just ran.
It’s so quiet; the only noise is from the inhabitants of the
woods. I stand still. The only thing I can hear now is my
blood pounding in my ears. My breathing and heart rate
begin to slow. That’s when I hear a twig snap off to my right.
My head shoots in that direction, but I can’t see anything.
Quietly, I remove my heels and carry them. My black dress
is now dragging along the ground, but I can’t do anything
about it. Leaving my bag behind me on the bar counter leaves
me wit
h no cell phone to call for help. I’m not even sure if it
would work out in the woods anyway.
I slowly move around a large tree, keeping my back to it. A
hand clamps over my mouth and Tristan is standing in front of
me. I pull his hand off and relief washes through me.
“Oh, thank God. There is a man chasing me. Well, I don’t
know if he still is, but he was.” I want to throw myself into his
arms with relief.
“Sarajane.” I hear Josh’s voice. “Sarajane!”
I run towards his voice while calling his name. “Josh!” Then
I can see him.
“What are you doing?”
I throw myself into his arms. “Someone was chasing me, but
it’s okay. Tristan’s here.” I let go of Josh and turn around, but
he isn’t there. “Tristan?” I call. I hear a thud behind me, causing
me to jump nervously. Josh is on the ground and Tristan stands
over him.
I kneel down beside Josh. He’s breathing. “What the hell did
you do that for?” Was it because of what happened at the ball?
Before I can ask, I can see another man coming towards us, the
man who attacked me.
“Tristan, that’s him.” I can hear the fear in my voice, but
Tristan just stands there doing nothing.
The man approaches us. “You got her?” he says to Tristan. I
was so foolish to trust a stranger.
Looking down at Josh, I can see he’s still breathing, but he’s
unconscious. My anger flares. “You asshole.” I scream at him. I stand and push Tristan away from Josh. He doesn’t even blink an eye. My attacker walks up to me, visibly angry. “How dare you
put your hands on him!”
Tristan speaks then. “Legis, stop.” He turns to me. “You,
move.” The stiffness and coldness of his posture makes me
realise how stupid I was to fall for his charming act at the ball.
Anger bubbles up inside me. “Like hell I will.”
Tristan comes right up to me, his cold gaze intent on my face.
“If you don’t, I will carry you, princess.”
Chapter Seven
(Sarajane)
It’s so dark I can barely see two feet in front of me. Tristan
walks behind me, and Legis leads the way. I don’t know
where they’re taking me. Or what they want. Neither of
them has said anything since taking me.
Legis stops abruptly, causing me to smack into his back.
He swings around, grabbing my arm to steady me. These guys