Petal [h.s.]

Chapter 45

Honestly I didn't really look forward to this meeting. All I wanted to do was have a bath and snuggle into bed with a good book and a cup of tea.

My eyes landed on Harry who was approaching me with a wide grin, looking handsome and dapper in his usual black suit. "Hey." He smiled, curling his hand around my waist and pulling me in for a kiss. 

I smiled back and tried my best to hide the yawn. "I'm going to get ready, I'll be down soon." I whispered in order to not attract any more attention to me.

I already stood out like a sore thumb, being horribly underdressed in the presence of these people. I saw Eleanor a few feet away, looking as if she was going to a gala with her fitted purple maxi dress. Harry nodded at me, nudging me towards the stairs and patting my ass gently as he went back to his mates.

I hurried up the stairs, smiling when I saw how Harry had laid out my dress for me on the bed. It was the black one I had picked up while shopping with Eleanor, and he even laid out some jewellery for me, the scale pendant resting on the mattress next to the dress.

My black heeled sandals that I had bought on my shopping trip with Eleanor were on the floor next to the door, waiting to be put on.

I took the dress and locked myself in the bathroom, washing up quickly to make sure I smelled fresh and reapplied a bit of make-up while I ran the straightener through my hair. It was about 10 minutes later I descended the stairs again, smiling at the waiter who handed me a glass of champagne.

I liked champagne, I did, but I was thirsty and yearning for a good, cold beer right now. These meetings were always so stuffy and slightly out of my comfort zone. Eleanor and Isobel smiled when I approached them and I realized all the men had gone to Gabriel's office to have the actual meeting.

It usually meant we had about an hour before they all got out again, we did the dance and then we just talked and drank a bit. This never turned into a full-on party like one that I would actually enjoy. The only reason I liked being here was because of Harry and his friends.

Eleanor and I talked about the lunch at the RSP for a bit, filling Isobel in on how the day had went. I scanned the room for Ian, suddenly realizing he was supposed to be here. "He's in the meeting." Eleanor muttered and my eyes widened.

"Does that mean his initiation process has begun?"

Her short nod made me want to faint. I had heard a little bit about the initiation process that allowed gang members to rise in rank. The tests were brutal and not for the faint-hearted. I didn't know the details, but it definitely involved murdering someone at one point.

I noticed my knuckles had turned white around the glass I was holding when I thought about young, innocent Ian doing something like that. Somehow I had gotten so protective over him, even though I was aware that I was in no position to change or even question the centuries-old traditions that were upheld by this gang.

I greedily drank from the champagne to calm myself down, instantly grabbing another glass of the tray that the waiter was bringing around. The tap that I felt on my shoulder snapped me out of my thoughts and I turned around, being met with crystal blue eyes that I had a hard time recognizing.

"Hi." I smiled at the girl in front of me. She had light brown hair that fell a bit longer than her shoulders and sharp cheekbones as she stood in front of me.

"You don't recognize me, do you, Violet?" She asked with a half-smile and I narrowed my eyes a bit at her question, studying her face intently and racking my brain for any memory of the girl. "I'm... No, I'm sorry." I chuckled, feeling slightly embarrassed that I couldn't place her.