THE NEXT DAYArlo’s POVAnyone would have thought I was a personal shopper for some spoilt princess in her castle. I leaped from one stall to the other looking for the perfect dress for Lori. “I’m losing my mind, I’m sure of it.” I muttered silently, taking one last look at the heap of clothes at the backseat of my car.It was enough to start a department store.For me, my custom-made Louis Vuitton suit had been delivered a night before. I knew I’d be dazzling in it, I just needed a haircut. So I stopped by for a quick makeover. While I was there, seeing the female section of the fashion parlor had me thinking about Lori. Four years ago, she had a neck length black hair, silk pressed to the shiniest degree. It made her look feisty but her look now— I loved it even more. The strawberry blonde made her more feminine, more fragile. I smirked. Lori indeed knew how to switch things up.Suddenly an idea occurred to me; perhaps I could make her remember a few moments of that time if s
Ivory’s POVFor a moment, Arlo just sat staring at me. His expression was blank but his eyes betrayed him. They widened with shock.After what seemed like an eternity, he stood up and headed for the door.“I bought you some clothes, I’ll have them bring everything you need.”“Are… are we still meeting your parents.”He nodded silently, his hand gripping the door knob. As soon as the door closed behind him, I let out a muffled chuckle.You should have seen the expression on his face. It was priceless. Unexpectedly, a knock sounded on my door making my heart skip. But now, I knew better than to hop out impulsively.“Who’s there?” “Willis,” his soft voice echoed.Quickly I ran to the door, and held it open. Willis was standing at the door with a half smile on his face. His eyes glowing with excitement that I couldn’t quite understand.“What’s going on?” I asked, unable to contain my curiosity.“Nothing,” he replied, “I just haven’t seen you all day.” “I fainted…” I admitted. Someh
Arlo’s POV cont’dI sighed about a hundred times. It was difficult not to. But no matter how much I sighed, it didn’t ease my heart nor my mind. If I was just a bit earlier in finding her. If I had made more efforts in finding her, I would have taken her with me before another man planted a seed in her. My father would be elated that she was pregnant. My father would be broken that the child isn’t mine. My father would not accept her. The Covelli family would not accept her.Suddenly, my phone buzzed, jolting me out of my train of thoughts. Father’s number displayed on screen as if on cue. “Hello father,” “I’ve made an extra reservation at the table just in case you don’t come with your fiancée.”“Dad, I said…”“I know what you said but it wouldn’t be the first time. So I’m just trying to be careful.”I let out a deep breath, and said okay.The last thing I wanted was to talk to anyone, let alone my dad.But he pressed on. “Are you good, son? You don’t sound like yourself.”“I’m
Ivory’s POVThis was my first thought when he opened the door:Beautiful. So damn beautiful. I was rendered blank for a few seconds. None of us said anything.Arlo held the door open, his gaze stuck on mine. We remained that way for a few seconds, until sudden intrusive thoughts began to set in. Did I choose the wrong dress?Do I look weird?Was Camille right? Could I never be attractive? I swallowed, my gaze drifted, I stepped back. Nervously fidgeting with my dress. “I… uh… I’ll go change.” I stuttered.Arlo looked away. His expression hardened.My heart sank. My mood fell. I got too excited. I thought he would be elated to see me in the dress he chose. I was wrong.“I’ll go change in a minute.” I said, my voice low from disappointment.“You had enough time, go wait in the car.” He bellowed, slamming the door to my face. I jumped, startled.As I made my way to the garage, I found Willis already waiting with a convoy of cars. He looked worse than I did.“You look like you’ve b
Arlo’s POVI fought back the urge to run after Lori. She had clearly mentioned the bathroom. I repeatedly glanced at my wristwatch, it was more than twenty minutes since she left. What was the emergency? Was it just an excuse? Unease set in as I unconsciously glanced at the doorway waiting for her to reappear. Unexpectedly, my phone buzzed in my inner pocket. I sighed with frustration, bringing it out to silence it, but as soon as I saw Willis’s number displayed on the screen, my expression softened. “Excuse me, dad.” I said, “I have to take this.”I walked out of the room as quickly as I could, pressing the phone to my ear.“Sovrano, sir…” he began. I paused, the voice sounded too loud, too real. I peered at the hallway, and there was Willis, standing with a bag in hand.“What are you doing here?” I asked, hiding my surprise. “Lori called sir,” Willis said, “She’s in a bit of a situation.” “What’s wrong?”Willis swallowed, looking uncomfortable as he handed me the bag in his
Ivory’s POVHe left, but I was still rooted to my spot, frozen. Unable to move. I made a joke and completely forgot about it. Could that be the reason he was grumpy all day? Because he thought I was pregnant? My hands weakened from the intensity of his voice— deep and piercing. I didn’t mean it, I promise. But now I realize that it was a mean joke. I cleaned up quickly, hoping to meet him and explain myself better. But by the time I was out of the bathroom, the hallway was empty. I heaved softly— a sigh to calm myself. I made a turn for the dining hall, hoping to see him there but just as I turned, I bumped into someone. The vanilla-scented figure apologized first, her voice just as refined as her looks. “My bad, I didn’t see you there.” She smiled. I nodded, returning her smile. “I’m alright, thank you.”She was at the table, I remember clearly. Arlo’s father introduced her as Crystal. “I’ll uh… I’ll head inside now.” I said, feeling a new wave of unease. “Congratulations o
Arlo’s POV“It will be the last time you ignore me, do you understand?” I growled, my gaze burning with anger.It was infuriating, at every level, what she did in front of Henry. She lied to me, she upset me, then ignored me?“Do you understand, Lori?““I don’t!” She retorted, “Stop yelling at me, I didn’t do anything wrong.” “You ignored me too, I don’t remember roaring at you.”I was taken aback. At this point, I couldn’t even tell if I was infuriated or impressed. I looked away, and my eyes caught Willis’s smile on the rear view mirror. We were now couples who argued in front of my friend. I sighed, massaging my forehead gently.Silence settled between us for a moment. Just when it was getting comfortable. Just when I had finally regained control of my mind, she said,“I met your ex-fiancée.” Shit! I groaned inwardly.“Apparently you’ve been engaged to her for three years. She threatened to displace me.”Willis stepped on the brakes, turning towards us as shocked as I was.
Arlo’s POV“Very well then,” she retorted, storming over to the contract on the table. As she penned down her name, it suddenly hit me, this was beyond the contract, beyond our past, it was a new phase— we were officially married. The corners of my mouth curved into a smile, and I was left stunned, wondering why I was feeling happy about this. Her voice snapped me back to reality, soft yet tainted with disappointment. “Goodnight” she said. My brows furrowed, a mix of confusion and irritation rising within me.“What you signed is a marriage certificate, Lori, pack up your bags, you’re moving to my room.”Lori gasped, her lips parted in surprise. “Another argument?” I cut in before she could speak, “Is that another argument you want to start?” She swallowed, looking away, her shoulders slumped in defeat.I watched her pack, slowly and reluctantly, one dress after another, until she was done. Together, we moved to my room. “You can take a bathe, while I get you something to eat.”