I'm such a coward. I had the perfect opportunity to tell him I am leaving tomorrow but I couldn't do it.
The drive is filled with gentle kisses and caresses until we finally pull up in front of a grand stately home with large windows and a heavy wooden door. There is a grand stone staircase with a red carpet leading from the door down the staircase to the gravel where our car is now sat.
"Wow. Yours doesn't seem so imposing now." I comment as the car stops, and Adam laughs nervously. "Are you ready?"
"As I'll ever be."
I gently squeeze his hand and we exit the car together. I link my arm with his to keep contact in a comforting gesture as we make our way up the carpeted steps towards the front door.
At the front door is a man in a suit with a red tie and black mask. "Bonjour monsieur, do you have your invitation?"
"Oui." Adam confirms, passing the invitation to the man to check.
To his credit, although his eyes widen slightly, he manages to supress his shock at seeing Adam at the event. "Welcome Mr Frost, Miss Dawson. Please enjoy your evening."
We enter the main foyer which has a cream marble floor with matching pillars, light blue walls and white ceiling decals, with two gold chandeliers. There are two open doors in the room, both with a waiter holding a tray of champagne. We make our way to the closest door and are handed a glass of champagne each.
"The auction items are in the grand library for perusal at your leisure."
We walk through to an impressive two storey library with light wood panelling and large windows overlooking the gardens. Easels have been placed in various positions around the room detailing different items available for auction.
We peruse the various items including the expected items such as spa treatments, wine tasting, gym memberships and show tickets but the further around the room we walk the more unique and extravagant the items become including champion horses, a Mercedes, a yacht and a holiday home in the Maldives.
But the area I am most interested in is the collection of art and photographs. Adam patiently waits by my side while I spend the best part of an hour examining each piece carefully. One piece in particular holds my attention; an oil painting of a woman looking lovingly at her partner while he is obliviously reading. Not only is the painting beautifully done from a skill point of view but the emotions the artist has managed to capture is heart-warming, and I can't help my lips curving into a small smile.
"You like this one." Adam comments.
"I love it."
"Why don't you put in a bid? After all this is an auction." He winks.
I look back around the room, watching as the various high society and wealthy individuals mingle amongst the elegant décor and extravagant items. "I can't afford to pay what this is worth. There's no way I'll win."
"But it will be exciting to be part of it." Adam shrugs.
Up above the lights flash, the same way they do at the theatre, and a woman wearing a simple black dress and mask enters the room. "Mesdames et messieurs. Please take your seats. Dinner is about to be served."
Adam passes our empty glasses to a passing waiter before taking my arm, guiding me back into the main foyer to follow the other couples along a glass corridor until we reach the gardens where a grand marque has been set up. As we are about to enter through the fabric doorway, the same woman steps out and holds out her hand to Adam to shake. To my surprise she similarly shakes my hand.
"Monsieur Frost, Mademoiselle Dawson, I am Marguerite, the organiser of this event. It is a pleasure to meet you both. Monsieur Frost, I am so happy you have been able to attend this year. I was wondering if I might possibly have a moment of your time to discuss the evening?"
"Of course." Adam nods. "Ellie why don't you find our seats and I will join you in just a minute."
"You're at table one my dear. I won't keep him long."
I leave Adam with Marguerite and walk through the curtains into the vast space before me of various draping fabrics, flowers and soft lighting. I am immediately greeted by the graceful sound of a string quartet and as I make my way to my seat, I recognise a few modern songs which both surprises and delights me.
Towards the front of the marque is a stage with a microphone and a large easel, and there is a large dance floor in the centre of the room. There are approximately forty tables in the room surrounding the dancefloor, all adorned in white tablecloths, crystal cut glasses and vases filled with white and lilac flowers. To the left is a large bar and waiters are swiftly darting between the bar and the tables serving drinks.
I take my seat and am immediately greeted by a waiter requesting my drink order. I order myself a glass of wine and a whiskey for Adam, before turning my attention to the other guests at the table. Everyone else is already seated and all eyes are now on the newcomer, waiting for me to say something.
"Hi..." I squeak out, suddenly nervous.
"Good evening." The man to my left says with a knowing smile. "Shall I make the introductions?"
"Please."
"I am Henry, and this is my wife, Charlotte. George and his wife Beatrice, Thomas and his wife Noelle, and Jeremy and his sister Vivienne." Henry gestures to each couple as he makes his way around the table and they each smile and nod their head in greeting.
"It's lovely to meet you all. I'm..."
"Oh, we know who you are." Vivienne practically gushes at my side.
"You do?"
"You're Eleanor Dawson. Everyone has been wondering all about the notorious Monsieur Frost and his date. But we don't know anything else about you. What do you do?"
"I um..."
"She's an artist." Adam says from behind me, and I exhale with relief. "Sorry, that took so long. I'm all yours for the rest of the evening." He kisses my cheek as he takes his seat just as the waiter returns with our drinks. "Ah perfect timing."
"Will we have seen any of your work on display tonight?" Vivienne continues.
"Oh no. I'm not well known enough for anyone to pay for my work."
"That's a shame."
"But that's soon to change." Adam defends. "Ellie really is an amazing artist. In fact, she made our masks for this evening."
"Really? They're amazing!" Exclaims Charlotte. "I will have to get your number for next years event. I'm sure others here will jump at the chance for you to create one."
"Yes, we had to get ours made for us this year, but we had no idea what we wanted." Agrees Beatrice.
"I didn't know what I wanted either. Ellie made this for me based on my hobbies."
"A very talented young woman." George comments and I blush at their kind words. Apart from my aunt and Adam, I have never had this kind of interest in my art before. Even old boyfriends would just feign interest; they would say the right things but I knew they didn't mean them.
"You're a lucky man."
"Yes I am." Adam smiles at me.
Dinner has been served while we have been conversing and while we eat the conversation gently eases into idle chitchat about the towns upcoming events and business. It turns out that every man at the table is a businessman in the area, either in the culinary, tourist or wine industry. I mainly tune out the business talk, but I see another side to Adam than the shy gardener I have come to know. He holds his own in the conversation with the other businessmen at the table and I have to say I am impressed with the respect he commands in the midst of men who are his seniors.
After desert, a spotlight appears on the stage revealing Marguerite stood behind the microphone.
"Good evening mesdames et messieurs and thank you all for coming to the annual Frost Foundation masquerade ball. Before we get started with the auction, I would like to invite Monsieur Frost himself to the stage to say a word about the charity we are here to support tonight."
I turn to face Adam in absolute shock but to my surprise he is already stood making his way towards the stage as the spotlight moves to follow him around the room. While everyone else applauds I can only stare completely dumbfounded after him.
"Thank you all for coming this evening. I have not prepared a speech; however, tonight is too important for me not to share a few words with you all about what this event will mean for thousands of children. The Frost Foundation is a charity that I founded after I became an orphan myself, but I have never been to one of their events. It is something I am very ashamed of, and I hope to make amends starting with tonight. To my shame I have been in hiding from the world and tonight is the first time I have left my estate in many many years. The person I have to thank for this revelation is my date for the evening."
Adam now seems to be staring directly at me in the crowd, as if I am the only person in the room. "Eleanor although we have only known each other for a short time, you have inspired me and changed me for the better. I wouldn't be here tonight without you and if this generous crowd would oblige me, please can we have a round of applause for her."
The room erupts into applause and once it dies down Adam continues, looking back towards the audience. "But tonight is not about me. Tonight is about the thousands of scared children who have gone through an unimaginable loss and who need our help; to get them counselling, to find them loving homes and to help support their futures. The tragedy should not define them, something I am only now starting to realise, and if we can help get them through this then we should do everything we can. Again, thank you all for coming and without further delay, let's start this auction."
The crowd immediately explodes into a roar of applause, and I stand amongst them cheering as Adam makes his way back to his seat beside me. When he reaches the table, he is smiling widely and pulls me towards his body in a passionate kiss while the audience hoots and laughs.
"I am so proud of you. That was amazing." I say when we pull apart.
"I couldn't have done it without you."