"How does this look?" Victoria asks. "Does it look better with my hair up or down?"Brett sighs. "Just do whatever. Jesus.""Up," I tell her. "You've got a long and elegant neck. Show it off. There's no reason why you should keep your hair long."She starts pinning her hair up and I stare at my reflection for the twentieth time. I'm all dressed up, and my fear is that we'll show up to this masquerade looking utterly ridiculous. Victoria assured me that it's a formal event, but she's throwing this party without knowing if people will abide to the rules. People normally don't. It's quite possible that we'll see people dressed in cowboy suits. "I feel like I'm going to a wedding," Brett comments. He then turns to wink at me. "Maybe yours with the Italian stallion."I glare at him. "I didn't find that funny.""It wasn't meant to be funny.""Like this?" Victoria asks, turning so we have a view of the back of her head. I nod and tell her it looks perfect. Brett says nothing at all, just go
I don't figure out what it is either. Not anytime soon. "I need a break," I say to Brett. "I need a bathroom break."He doesn't hear me. Neither does Victoria. I give up trying to make them listen to me and find my own way to the bathroom. It's not hard to find. It's in the room across from the one we were in. I walk down a long and narrow corridor to get there, and on my way there I see a couple making out in the dark. They don't stop when they hear me approach. I'm more weirded out by the fact that they were making out with masks on than them not stopping when I neared them. The bathroom is cool and clean. It's also empty. I lock myself in one of the stalls and empty my bladder. I'm glad I stayed. I'm having a good time despite my hesitance earlier. The door to the bathroom opens and two or more women shuffle inside. One of them is crying hysterically, and I feel so out of place that I hold my breath so I don't interrupt what's happening. "I can't believe him!" one of them is s
Luca I watch Laura walk away and return to the party. She won't stay long now that she knows I'm here. To be frank, her hatred toward me intrigues me. I'm not sure what I've done to her to deserve this treatment. From what I've heard, she's an agreeable and friendly person, however, when it comes to me, her anger becomes palpable. I want to know why. I push myself off the wall and head in the opposite direction. If I walk past the toilets, I'll reach my office. It isn't exclusively mine, but I tend to use it sometimes. I open the door and find Gregory inside. He's just ended a phone call. I place the mask on the table and ask, "Is she gone?""Yeah, with all her friends," he answers. "I don't know how she got in here without an invitation. We didn't want to cause a scene by asking her to leave.""You did well," I tell him. "But I don't want this to repeat itself. I want to be informed as soon as she's at the door."Gregory has been my head of security for many years. The reason wh
"I can't believe this," I say, absolutely flabbergasted. Brett scoffs. "How the fuck does something like this even happen?"We're practically alone in the parking lot since everyone else is in the party. It doesn't look or sound like anyone in there is going home anytime soon. I can't see how something like this would have happened without any of us having noticed earlier. This is the odd part for me. I look around the parking lot. I don't see anyone. I don't see anything beneath the car either. "The car was fine," Victoria adds. "It was fine. I mean, I didn't feel like you drove over anything, Brett.""Neither did I!"I pat my sweaty forehead. This conversation isn't getting us anywhere and I'm honestly desperate to get home so I don't cross paths with Luca Ferrante again. I'm honestly bothered by everything that has happened tonight. I should've known that there was something wrong with the invitation. Who would have invited us to such a lavish party? I should have known. I'm both
I switch my phone on in the morning and just as expected, I get an almost immediate call from Brett and Victoria. I groan groggily and turn on my side in my bed. I answer with a weak, “Yeah?”I can hardly hear them. They’re already shouting. I roll my eyes and wait for them to quiet down. There’s no way that I can explain myself like this. I say to them, “I can’t even hear you, you know that?”“Why didn’t you tell us about Luca Ferrante!?” Brett says. “You willingly kept this information from us, you bitch!”“I told you everything there is to know about that man.”“You didn’t tell us he was a Greek god!” Victoria exclaims. “Well, a Roman god in this case. God, Laura. What were you thinking?”“Yeah, why would you keep this from us?”I can’t stand it. I sit up and tuck my hair behind my ears. “You two sound crazy, do you know that? Do you think that his appearance matters here? Do you think that I’d ever want to marry a man because of his good looks? He could have been an old man and I
After Vinnie left, I was given the most unexpected news. We have a dinner with the Ferrante family. Just when I thought things couldn't get worse, the universe piles this on top of me. I didn't want to hear more about that family, much less see them. I'm getting ready with tears of anger brimming in my eyes. I wish I could tell them that I don't wish to go anywhere, but that'll lead to some kind of fight with mom and that's even worse than dining with the Ferrantes. The despair I feel is palpable. I don’t know how I’m going to get rid of these people. I want to go back to my old life where I didn’t even know them. As I apply blush to my cheeks, I try not to cry. There’s nothing worse than to feel like your life is out of your control. I have no say in what I do. It’s like my life doesn’t belong to me. I have to sit through dinner and endure the man that has been stalking me for weeks, and nobody understands why I don’t want to. Not even my closest friends. Again, they’re not to b
Once the Ferrante family leave, things start to get heated. Mom is going on and on about my drinking habits. I ignore her as I finish my dessert. She thinks I embarrassed the family with my actions but if I have to be honest, I think her despair is more embarrassing than my drunkenness will ever be. Nobody says anything to contradict her. Not dad or Mary, or even me. It’s not that I don’t say anything because I’m afraid of starting an argument. It’s that I’m exhausted, mentally and physically. So while she screams about my lack of cooperation, I finish my chocolate malva cake. It’s delicious. “Answer me!” she exclaims. “You want your sister to be associated with your bad behavior? You want the Ferrantes to think that we’re all just like you!?”I can’t help myself. I scoff. “I couldn’t care less about what they think. I don’t have to act like someone I’m not just to please them. I’m sick of them. And I’m sick of this!”Mom glances at dad angrily. He sighs and says to me, “Laura, you
Luca picks the man up like he's picking up a child and begins dragging him out. People make way for them to pass and give them suspicious looks. Nobody says a word. On impulse, I follow him. I don't want to stay here alone. Technically, following him isn't the best choice because he didn't even talk to me, but it's better than being harassed again. Once we get outside, he doesn't stop there. He keeps walking down the sidewalk and then makes a sharp left. I don't even know how he's managing to drag this man behind him and look like he isn't putting any effort whatsoever. I hesitate before following him into the dark alleyway. There, he drops the man like a sack of potatoes. He groans and rubs the back of his head. As he does this, he attempts to sit up but Luca kicks him down. He groans and stays on the ground. I'm standing at the mouth of the alleyway and am watching them from what can be considered a safe distance. Luca reaches inside his pocket and retrieves his phone. He says i