Seven Twenty-Eight

34.

Elisa rolled her eyes in an attempt to hide her fiery red cheeks, turning away from her. "He asked me to meet him when I was ready."

"Ooh la la," Mary giggled, following closely behind her, "He's going to pass out from excitement 'cause you look so damn good."

She rolled her eyes again, ignoring the comment as their heels clicked against the cherry oak floor in sync.

The two girls strut down into the foyer hand in hand, eager to get to the party. Elisa grinned up at the banner that hung over the balcony, grateful for the acknowledgement. This was her day too.

Suited up in a divine, navy blue Tom Ford, Jackson approached them with his arms out. "You look great," He told Elisa, latching onto her hand.

Mary took a step closer to her.

Elisa smiled softly, gently nudging Mary's shoulder with the back of her hand, "Thank you," She sighed dreamily before bowing her head at him, "Courtesy of Caroline Reynolds."

Jackson grinned back at her, pulling her into a soft hug, "Happy birthday, gorgeous."

People were slowly but surely flooding into the home around them, pausing to acknowledge the other name on the large colorful banner, and Jackson was clearly distracted by it.

"What's wrong?" Elisa questioned him, pushing him away from the hug but holding onto his forearm.

He shook his head, slowly peeling his eyes away from the distraction to look at her, "Nothing."

She turned around and instantly knew what he was distracted by. She grimaced at the sight of Jason lazily flirting with an unfamiliar girl, leaning himself against the stair railing with a smirk on his face.

"What happened?"

"Mm," He hummed, glancing uncomfortably at Mary, "Nothing."

Elisa frowned at him, patting his arm comfortingly, "Meet me later?"

He nodded his head, glancing around nervously, "Where?"

"Uhh— I don't actually know what Oliver's plan is," She admitted, poking her head around in an attempt to find him.

Mary sighed, chiming into their plans, "You'll have the time around seven, before cake."

Elisa thanked her with a smile, impulsively pushing Jackson's hair away from his forehead, "I can meet you in my room? I'm just across the hall from Mary," She told him, figuring he knew where Mary had stayed in the past.

"Alright," He agreed distractedly, before nudging his head behind them, "And here he comes."

The two girls turned around, following Jackson's gaze to the suit and tie approaching them.

He nodded his head at his guests, thanking them with his coffee brown eyes and a small smirk. Dressed head to toe in a sleek Dolce & Gabbana, jacquard suit, he tugged at his cuffs with a rather devious smirk, focusing his eyes on his mother's design.

"You're so fucking lucky," Jackson whispered, leaning into Elisa's ear.

"Fuck," Oliver said, rather loudly, though his voice was muffled by the distance between them, "You look beautiful."

Elisa blushed wildly at him, anxiously gripping onto the skirt of her dress. "Thank you— Happy birthday."

He grinned down at her, slipping his hands around her waist to pull her into a tight hug, kissing the top of her head as he glanced at Jackson. "Thank you," He retorted, "I can't believe this is going to be my view tonight."