SEAN
"That tie doesn't go with your shirt." Lucas said as he looked in cupboard for a new tie. "Wear this."
"This is fine. I'm straight. Nobody is going to comment on my tie." I said and he showed me the middle finger.
"It's your engagement. You can try to look more enthusiastic." He said and forcefully took the grey tie from my hand. "For the show."
"I'm getting engaged... for the show. Isn't that enough?" I said as I looked at myself in the mirror.
The Italian tailor made black three piece hugged me perfectly and Lucas' stylist had done a good job on my hair. His dressing sense was the only tell that he was gay, because a straight gangster would shoot himself before putting that much efforts in his look.
"Perfect." He said before spraying an unfamiliar cologne on me.
"Yes, ready to get hitched to the love of my life." I said sarcastically.
"Stop scowling and get your ass downstairs. Hailey is arriving in few minutes." He said and left the room.
I sighed and sat down on the bed to wear my shoes. Despite trying hard, my thoughts once again went to Penelope and a muscle in my chest tightened. I liked her, a lot more than I would like to admit to myself. I was past the denial phase because there was no point denying the hold she had on me. Even back when I didn't know her, I was still charmed enough to take her under my protection.
And now, I had to commit myself to someone else, for whom I had zero feelings. As the eldest son of Alexander Miller, that was the life I inherited. I was cursed to always put myself last, for the betterment of the empire he had created.
If that meant hurting the one person I truly cared for, then so be it.
I braced myself and walked downstairs, on time to welcome the Connor family. I shook Senator Connor's hand and then passed a brief smile to his wife Genelia. Then I gave a quick look to Hailey, who was wearing the red gown she had ordered from Paris and she was studded with diamond jewelry from head to toe. She was a materialistic person and she made sure everyone knew that.
"Hi," I held out my hand for her and she gripped it.
"You look handsome." She whispered to me and we both walked inside.
It was a small gathering, mostly comprising of Hailey's friends and some of my closest acquaintances. I wanted it to be a small ceremony but Hailey wanted to invite everyone she knew. It took a lot of convincing to stop her from inviting all her ex classmates.
"Come on, let me introduce you to my friends." Hailey said and took me to her group of elite brats. They were all in their mid twenties, surviving on their trust funds and wasting all their fortune on clothes and fancy cars. All of them said hello to me in unison and then Hailey introduced them one by one.
"I must say, you're sexier than the photos she showed." A girl said flirtatiously.
"He is all mine." Hailey chuckled and possessively wrapped her hands around my arm.
"How come you get all the best things?" Another one chirped in and I cringed.
"Because I'm the best." Hailey said in an arrogant voice.
"Hey, who is she?" Her guy friend said as he looked towards his left. "Is she from our university?"
I angled my neck to look and my eyes widened in disbelief when I found Penelope standing there. What shocked me more was that her hand was clasped around Jason's arm and they were talking to each other.
I didn't know she would be coming to this party and I definitely didn't know she would be looking like that. She was wearing a slip dress that hugged all her delicate curves and went down to her feet, a large slit was giving a peak of her silky smooth leg. She had done something different to her hair, the bouncy curls were straight and sleek right now. All in all, she looked different... and absolutely breathtaking.
"What the fuck is she doing here? I didn't know she was coming." Hailey seethed beside me.
"Whoever she is, I am jealous of the blondie beside him. I mean, imagining those long legs wrapped around you." Hailey's friend commented and I gave him a hard glare that shut him up immediately.
"Come on, it's time. Everyone is here." Hailey, who was noticing the shift in my posture, said to divert my attention.
"Let me get a drink first. My throat is a little dry." I said and freed my arm from her hold. I walked towards the mini bar and ordered a glass of scotch while sitting on the stool.
My eyes inadvertently went to Penelope. She was talking to Jason, laughing at something he had said. He touched his arm when she was laughing and my blood started to boil. I forced my eyes back to the bar and ordered another glass. If drinking myself to oblivion was the only way to get through this night then so be it.
I could threaten Jason to stay away from her but that would mean showing Penelope that I cared and that would ruin the whole thing. She couldn't know that.
"Go to your fiance. She is throwing daggers at you." I heard Lucas' voice beside me.
"Fuck you." I said and left the car but not before drinking another glass.
It was time to exchange the rings then. Hailey wanted me to go to my knees and propose to her in front of everyone but I had refused to do that as I found it childish. So we just gathered in the middle of the hall and exchanged the rings while everyone cheered on. My eyes were fleeting to Penelope in the drunken haze the whole time and she was standing stiffly, no emotions whatsoever on her face.
While Hailey got surrounded by her friends gushing over the huge diamond, I called Thomas and whispered to him, "Bring me a glass of something strong."
It was time for a dance then. The couples gathered in the middle and began dancing on the stupid romantic songs. Thomas handed me a glass and I devoured it before wrapping my arms around Hailey's waist for a dance.
"Babe, you should stop drinking now. Everyone is noticing." She whispered in my ears.
"You got the diamond now. Stop acting like you care." I said roughly and a frown appeared on her forehead. The alcohol had started to cloud my thinking.
"You're drunk. Just stay quiet and smile at me. I don't want people to gossip." She replied and faked a smile as I twirled her around.
As I rested my chin on her shoulder, my gaze landed on the couple dancing behind us. Jason's hands were on Penelope's waist and it filled me with anger. Who gave him the right to put his hands on her? And why is she letting him?
It was getting difficult to control my anger at both of them and the alcohol didn't help.
Penelope had also caught me looking at her but I was too drunk to care about getting caught. Our eyes met with burning passion and the staring competition continued while we danced with our respective partners.
Hailey, who was noticing all my attention focused on Penelope, took a glass of soft drink from a waiter passing-by and dumped it on Penelope's dress.
"Oh shit, I'm so sorry. I lost my balance." She said to her.
Penelope's eyes moistened as she looked at her ruined dress and her eyes switched between Hailey and me. Her lower lips trembled a little as she heaved a sigh and walked away towards the stairs.
"I'll go check on her." Jason said and attempted to go but I stopped him with my arm.
"You go check if the dinner is ready. I'll send someone else." I said and he begrudgingly obeyed me.
Giving a harsh look to Hailey who looked completely unapologetic, I followed Penelope upstairs. As I entered her room, I found her sitting on the bed in her undergarments while her dress was disposed off on the floor.
On seeing me, she stood up in anger and wiped the trail of tears on her cheeks. "You... You son of a bastard... Get the hell out."
"No." I said and locked the door behind me. "Listen to me." I said, trying my best to keep my eyes off her luscious body.
"No you listen, you and your fucking fiance deserve each other." She said as her face flushed in anger.
"And who do you deserve? That fucking pervert?" I snapped. "Why was he touching you?"
"Because he was my date. He didn't do anything wrong." She walked closer to me while glaring. "I allowed him to touch me."
"You don't have the fucking authority to allow anyone to touch you." I growled as my vision got blurred and I started seeing two of her.
"Oh... My... God!!! What the fuck is wrong with you? Go watch your fiance and leave me alone." She said and pushed me away.
"You...." My hands itched as I struggled to stop myself from picking her up and throwing her on the bed. Her half naked body was messing with my drunken head and I was this close to losing my control. "You are mine."
"I am not yours." She said slowly but sharply. "I can touch Jason. I can kiss him. I can have sex with him. You can't stop me." She said, chewing each word.
Something in me snapped as I heard her and I cornered her against the wall, putting my arms on both sides of her. Our bodies mushed together as we breathed heavily, our noses touching slightly. Her pupils were dilated and her lips were slightly parted, a look too inviting to be ignored.
"You are mine." I said before placing my lips on hers while my hands went around her legs and I picked her up. "All mine."
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Are they going to do it? 👀👀