chapter-17: A Party To Remember

Aria Anastasia
I gasped at the beauty of the dress Zaiden had sent a few minutes ago. It was an off-shoulder red gown with a high slit at one side. It was a mystery how Zaiden knew my size.
I was in my apartment since Zaiden gave all the employees a day off because he was in a good mood today.
��Yana, just look at this dress,�� I called out Yana��s name because she was also in my apartment. I told her to come here and we would get ready for the party together since we had to go together. I even bought a dress for her which she was going to wear.
��Oh, my God,�� Yana mumbled, her eyes ogling at the red gown which was on the bed. ��Did the boss give this to you?��
I hummed in response.
I was afraid thinking what if I didn��t like the dress he would send for me. But how could I forget he was the CEO of a fashion industry? His taste in fashion would be the best of all. I shouldn��t have doubted in the first place.
Not only had he sent a dress, he also sent a pair of silver stilettos. He texted me a few hours ago asking whether I liked big earrings or studs. I knew why he was asking that, so I told him if he sent me any accessories, I would return it all to him including the dress.
��Yana, get ready while I shall get ready too,�� I told her and we decided to get ready now.
I did a light makeup but wore red lipstick, keeping my hair open. I wore my diamond studs and a diamond necklace which my mom forced me to buy when I got my first salary. I decided to wear a bracelet full of stars along with my watch.
Once I was ready, I got out of my room, only to find Yana coming out of the guest room. She looked beautiful with the purple gown, her hair tied into a bun, keeping a few loose curls on her face.
��You look so pretty, Yana,�� I commented, but her eyes were busy looking at me from head to toe.
��Wow, Ma��am, you look so stunning,�� Yana complimented, making me smile. ��You will make Boss speechless with your ravishing appearance.��
I raised my brows. ��Is that so?��
She nodded her head.
I glanced at the time from my wristwatch and said, ��If you are ready, then let��s go. Zaiden sent his car since I cannot drive wearing a gown.��
��Sure, I am ready,�� responded Yana.
We reached the venue and got inside.
The party was decorated in a classy way. Everyone was busy talking with each other with a glass of wine on their hand.
I spotted Zaiden and Daniel at one corner, and Zaiden had a glass of champagne on his hand. He was wearing a tux and damn, he looked handsome. ��Yana, there is Daniel. Let��s go,�� I told her and we walked to them.
��Good evening, Ms. Anastasia,�� Daniel greeted politely.
��Good evening,�� I said with a smile and watched Yana greet Zaiden before she left me alone with him by taking Daniel.
��So, what should we do now?�� I asked, standing in front of Zaiden, who was looking at me from head to toe.
��Aria, you look breathtaking. You look more beautiful in this dress than I imagined you to be.�� As soon as he said that, I was dumbstruck.
Did he imagine me in this dress? I should��ve felt creepy about this, but I liked that he imagined me, which meant that he often thought about me. Maybe I was even creepier than him to like it.
��Thank you,�� I mumbled. ��You look handsome too.��
He chuckled and handed me a glass of champagne. ��Here, have this.��
I took the glass in my hand and looked at the people gossiping until my eyes fell on the blond woman. ��Mrs. Harbor is the best friend of Mrs. Raymond,�� I started speaking. ��If I get to bond with Mrs. Harbor, there are high chances we will get a deal with the Harbor Fashion, because Mr. Harbor only follows Mrs. Harbor��s command.��
Zaiden took a sip of his drink and nodded. ��She is your target for today, so best of luck.��
I narrowed my eyes in his direction. ��This is not fair.��
��What is not fair?�� he questioned me.
��I thought we were supposed to stay together at the party, so you cannot push me alone to talk with Mrs. Harbor,�� I pointed out.
��What will I do by indulging in women talk?�� he deadpanned.
I smirked and locked my arms around his bicep. ��You are coming with me,�� I said sternly which made him groan and pulled him with me as I made my way to Mrs. Harbor and Mrs. Raymond.
��Good evening, Mrs. Raymond and Mrs. Harbor,�� I greeted with a smile. ��How are you?��
The blond woman returned to my smile. ��Good evening, Ms��?��
��Anastasia,�� Mrs. Raymond spoke on my behalf. ��And this handsome with her is Mr. Zaiden Storm, son of Kael.��
Mrs. Harbor raised an eyebrow in amusement as she stretched her hand to shake it with us. ��Nice to meet you, Ms. Anastasia and Mr. Storm. You do look like Kael a lot,�� she commented, pinched his cheeks and laughed.
��Thank you, Mrs. Harbor,�� Zaiden said, giving a tight-lipped smile. He hated talking to old women, especially if they knew Kael because they would just act friendly with him, making him feel awkward.
��By the way, are you both dating? You look cute together, totally couple goals,�� Mrs. Harbor commented and looked at my hand holding his, making me shake my head in denial at that instant.
��Yeah, I wanted to ask that too cause I saw an article stating you two were dating, but I don��t know whether it��s a rumor like the last time,�� said Mrs. Raymond.
Most of the time, people would assume that I was dating Zaiden, and the reporters would even publish articles on it. I decided to not talk about it anymore, but I didn��t want Mrs. Raymond and Mrs. Harbor to get the wrong idea.
I saw Zaiden was about to say something, but before he could say something, I said, ��No, no, we are not dating. This is still a rumor.��
I could feel Zaiden tightening his grip over my hand, which I decided to avoid. We were not dating, were we? I didn��t lie to them.
��Oh, I really wished it was true,�� Mrs. Raymond frowned and continued talking about other things.
We talked more for a while until Zaiden whispered in my ear, ��We need to talk.��
I glanced at him, asking, ��About what?��
He pulled me by my hand and took me to the backyard of the venue.
��What��s wrong, Zaiden?�� I inquired, feeling my heartbeat fastening.
He snaked an arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him, making my breath hitch. ��Why did you say we weren��t dating?��
��Are we?�� I breathed out, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion. I didn��t remember Zaiden asking me to go on a date, nor did we talk anything about being together.
��Are we not?�� he said sternly, his eyes darkening which made me gulp in fear.
��Zaiden, when I asked you what we were, you said we were just two different people with the same motive, working for the welfare of the company,�� I pointed out.
He let out a humorless chuckle. ��You really wanna know what we are, don��t you?�� He looked at my lips.
As soon as I nodded my head, Zaiden locked his lips with mine.