CHAPTER SIX: The Ball

CHAPTER SIX

"Sip that slowly, because that will be your last glass for the night." Roman says, interrupting my line of thought.

I glare at him and gulp down my drink at record speed, feeling lightheaded at my little act of defiance.

I smile again at yet another faceless stranger I know I will never see again.

After Roman had forcefully taken me for the primping required to attend an event of this magnitude, he took me back to his car and gave me a tablet which contained valid, strong and convincing reasons why I should attend his stupid ball without making any fuss.

I had seen tons of pictures of both my dad, my stepmother, and my step-siblings. In those pictures, they were doing the most mundane things, like walking to the park, hanging out with friends, and even sleeping.

There were also pictures of my friend Ashley, both in the dorm and at home. The message was very clear, and he didn't have to say anything more. It was clear that if he wanted to hurt them, he would've.

While I wish for my stepmother and my dad to leave me alone, I would never wish them to die, and even if they were to die, I wouldn't want their blood on my hands.

"Let's dance." Roman says while leaning forward, taking up all my space in order to whisper in my ear.

I look around at the people seated at our table and watch as they steal glances at us from below their lashes, too scared, I guess, to stare openly.

Not waiting for a response, Roman gets up while holding out his hand, probably for me to take, but I choose to ignore it.

"Do I have to remind you why you should dance with me?" He leans down to whisper in my ear.

I swallow down the bile in my throat and stand up stiffly while putting on the fakest smile in all of history.

"That's what I thought." Roman says with a smirk before placing a warm hand on my lower back.

I barely hold back a shiver as his fingers move in a circular motion on my bare back due to the style of the dress.

When we get to the centre of the ballroom, which had been carved out for those who choose to dance, he comes to an abrupt stop.

He turns me around carefully before pressing me into him with the hand at the small of my back.

As if in a trance, my hands move on their own accord until they are wound almost too tightly around his neck.

"It's nice having you by my side." Roman says while settling both hands on the low of my back.

I don't bother responding as I look at all the people dancing around us.

"Pay attention to only me." Roman says while pinching my chin with his thumb and forefinger.

He leans down towards me, breathing softly on the curve of my neck. He laughs lightly when I shiver a little from the sensation.

"Are you cold?" Roman asks in an amused tone.

"No." I bite out, not wanting him to know the kind of effect he has on me, but at the sight of his smirk and the tightening of his arms around my waist, I knew that it was all just wishful thinking on my part

We move carefully together in tandem. I allow him to lead me gently following the sway of the soft music.

I never wanted to be here, but it would be a cold day in hell before I refused to enjoy myself thoroughly. I close my eyes, imagining myself in an alternate universe with my very own horse-riding and sword-wielding Knight.

I imagine him whispering dirty nothings in my ear while peppering kisses down the trail of my jaw.

I open my eyes and jerk back as far as I can in Roman's embrace. He had leaned down very closely like he had been about to kiss me. Apparently, what seemed like a dream was happening to me in real life.

Our stare-off is broken, and our moment is disrupted by the boisterous sound of a man I presume is Roman's father, due to the uncanny resemblance. "Son, why didn't you tell me you were bringing a girl home?"

"I didn't realize I owed you an explanation or a warning," Roman says with a raised brow.

"What a charming partner you have here." Mr Montgomery says to me with a tight smile, and to Roman, he says, "Would you mind if I borrowed her for a dance?"

"Find your own partner." Roman says with a clenched jaw.

"Careful son, remember duty calls." Mr Montgomery says while nodding in the direction of a pale beefy-looking man.

Roman curses under his breath before letting go of my waist, giving into his father's wishes, "Be good, princess, this will only take a minute."

I stare at him numbly as he makes his way towards the pale man I had spotted earlier, not knowing how to feel about his easy acquiescence.

A soft hand on my back breaks my line of thought, not willing to cause a scene, I allow Roman's father to lead me gently on the dance floor, and I hold my hand loosely on his shoulder not caring about the undoubtedly ridiculous space between us.

I curse myself for choosing to remain here with his father just because he said, 'Be good' like I was a dog.

We turn in a way that gives me a direct view of Roman standing beside the man and a girl who is a replica of him and who, if I'm to bet, is probably his daughter.

I watch as Roman takes her hand, and soon they're dancing. I spot the cold look on Roman's face despite the chattering of the girl he was dancing with. I tell myself that maybe he's just doing it cause of work as his father had said, but I stop my line of thoughts and ask myself why I even care.

"They make a perfect couple, don't they?" Mr Montgomery asks me in a lilt tone.

"Huh?" I ask dumbly, not quite sure who he was referring to.

"Them." He says, nodding at Roman and his dance partner.

I mean to give an affirmative answer, but words refuse to come out of my mouth, they remain stuck in my throat. I avert my eyes, not willing to see the truth of my mistake in Mr Montgomery's eyes.

"That's what I thought." Mr Montgomery says in a sad tone. "Be careful, I wouldn't want to see you hurt."

"Is that a threat?" I ask defensively.

"Trust me, it's coming from a place of care." He says with a small smile.

I'm about to ask him why he would care, but we are interrupted by Roman and his dance partner.

"Mind if we switch?" Roman says to his father, but without waiting for a response, pulls me towards him, and we walk back to our seats.

"What did my dad say to you?" Roman asks me when we are seated.

"Who was the girl you were dancing with?" I ask instead of answering, not willing to tell him that his dad threatened me, no matter what he said about caring.

He looks at me, totally unimpressed by my antics. We are interrupted by a squeal from our back.

"Roman!" A female voice says while throwing her arms around his neck.

I scoff inwardly, already counting down to the moment when Roman will undoubtedly explode at the unwelcome attention, but I'm shocked when he actually gets up and actually returns her hug.

"How are you doing, Georgia?" Roman asks warmly.

"I'm good, how about you?" Georgia says before turning to me, probably noticing me for the first time, "Hello."

"Hello." I respond with a small wave while taking a large sip of my water, not in the mood to hold any sort of conversation with anyone.

"This is Aella, my girlfriend, and she gets jealous easily. Don't take her cold nature to heart." Roman says with a smirk, which has me sputtering, the water having gone down the wrong pipe. I glare at him while trying to subtly wipe the water off my chin so as not to ruin my makeup.

"If I was your girlfriend, I would also be very territorial." Georgia says with a little laugh.

"How about you go on with your business for the night, and I will take care of your girlfriend here?" Georgia offers.

I fully expect Roman to refuse, seeing that he had isolated me from more than half of the people present at the ball, but I'm extremely shocked by his response.

He gets up from his seat, "That's a great idea, Georgie." Then to me, he merely says, "Behave."

I don't bother dignifying his command with a response. I rather keep my eyes glued to Georgia, who has a heated look in her eyes as she stares at Roman's retreating back.

"How about we head to the ladies' restroom for a quick stop?" Georgia asks brightly.

Grateful to just be out of the atmosphere of this room, I nod my head readily and allow her to lead me to the bathroom.

Just like the rest of the mansion, the bathroom is nothing less than elegant, with pristine white toilets and faux toilets, the wash sinks were nothing less than spotless.

I stop in front of the mirror, and I dab at my makeup a little, not knowing what to do while Georgia makes use of the facilities.

"You know….. he's never brought a girl with him to any of these events." Georgia's statement announces her arrival from one of the stalls in the room.

"That's very believable." I say sarcastically while wiping an imaginary stain off my cheek.

Georgia laughs softly while dabbing softly on her lips. "I know, right?"

"But that's the truth. He sure has his flings, but he never brings them home." She continues.

"I'm not his girlfriend, no need to lie to me." I say to Georgia peeved that she's trying to sell me the idea of me being special to Roman.

"Why would I lie to you? If Roman wants you, he will definitely treat you differently from his previous sexual companions, and Roman is more than capable of handling himself without my help." She says.

"Of course you would know." I say, a little upset at the way she sounded so experienced 'in the ways of Roman'.

She throws her head back and laughs so loudly, that I half expect the stall doors to start shaking from the impact. "I'm Roman's cousin or sister. However, you want to put it." She says after she gets herself under control.

"Oh," I say quietly as I flush red in embarrassment. Once again, I had jumped to the wrong conclusion. I had mistaken the look of adoration to be that of lust.

"No need to be embarrassed, it's kind of my fault for not saying anything." She says while packing up all her stuff from the counter.

"Even if you were his wife-to-be or something, it wouldn't concern me." I say, feeling the irresistible need to make it clear that I wasn't interested in Roman.

"You know what?" Georgia asks while linking her arms with mine, "We are going to be best friends."

On our way back, she chatters excitedly, telling me all about the effort she had put into making this event a success. Apparently, she was head of the planning committee for the ball.

At the last minute, she makes a U-turn and heads directly to the stairs, leading to the upper floor of the mansion, "How about we have our own little party in my room?"

"Won't they look for us?" I ask, already slowing down my steps. While I was not a coward, I never ever wanted to end up on the wrong side of Roman's temper, and he had clearly told me to behave.

"Don't worry about Roman, he is really just a big Teddy, he wouldn't be mad about this." She says while waving her hand nonchalantly in a dismissive manner.

I scoff, already running through all the times Roman had proved to me that he was more than just a 'Teddy'.

"I feel like there is a very interesting story there, and you, my dear, will tell me all about it but don't worry, I will tell Roman I took you with me." She says, and I eventually give in, allowing her to lead me up the stairs and into her room.

She pulls out a bottle of wine from her mini bar and grabs both glasses when we get to her room. She hands one to me and settles down on the floor in what looks like a very comfortable position.

"Sit, and tell me all about how you met my cousin." She says, patting the floor beside her.

I sit down beside her while she fills my glass to the brim and does the same with hers before settling back down.

"I need to get drunk for this conversation." I say while taking a large gulp of my drink.

"I should warn you though, Roman made it very clear I was not to get drunk." I say to her while hitching up my dress almost to my thigh level.

"Is he always this highhanded with you?" Georgia asks with a little frown, probably trying to reconcile the Roman she knows with the image he has shown and portrayed to me.

"You should know, I mean he's your brother, is he always like this with other girls?" I ask her not bothering myself with how that sounds.

"And I told you, he doesn't bring any girls home." Georgia responds while taking a steady sip of her drink.

"You know what, enough about Roman, tell me all about yourself and then if you feel like it, you can still tell me how you met him." Georgia says with a reassuring nod.

I smile genuinely at her already feeling the alcohol doing its job in getting me high, I know that sooner or later I won't even be able to talk without slurring.