Chapter 22 Lose his mind.
CHAPTER 22
Lose his mind.
SCARLETT – POINT OF VIEW
Roman has a burgundy Porsche, and it is so fast.
For a moment, I wonder if I should get one. I love cars so much. One of the many behaviour my mom tried and failed to pull out of me. My love for cars is transcendent.
“How much did you get it?” I ask as we drive over the bridge.
He grins, “A lot of money. You can drive mine if you want.”
“I want mine.” I clarify calmly.
He glances at me for a second, then nods, “We’ll get you yours. It should be around a hundred grand.”
“Thanks to you, I can afford it.” I grin, and he chuckles, filling the air with warmth.
The warmth remains and lingers even when he pulls into a condo.
I frown, “Is this her office?”
“No, her office is in LA. This is a special service for you.” He gets out of the car and opens the door for me.
He wraps his arm around my waist possessively and leads me to the elevator. Rick and Eve arrive moments later and join us. We are quiet as we step out of the elevator. Roman is still holding my hand possessively.
Then, he leans in, “We have to sell it.”
I understand what he means, so I relax in his hold. He knocks on the door, and we walk in.
I look around in surprise because the room is filled with dresses, just more and more dresses. There’s a middle-aged woman at the centre of the room, with a teenage girl beside her. I blink in confusion.
“Welcome,” She says, then glances at Roman, “I’m sorry it was so abrupt. I have to fly to Saudi Arabia in the morning.”
“I understand. This is my fiancée, Scarlett.” He announces and pushes me forward softly.
Gingerly, I walk to her.
“Lovely to meet you, Scarlett. I’m Aurora. I am happy to see the woman who brought him to his knees. Step closer, my dear.” She urges warmly.
I step closer to her. She runs her hand over my waist, then my arms, and my thigh. She tsks in disapproval, “You’re little skin and bones, my darling. I know you can be busy, but you need muscle, you need to be strong, so eat.”
I nod, my cheeks flushed. Food has been a luxury ever since I left Mexico, but now, everything is about to change.
“Bring out the dress, Darcy.” She speaks, and the teenage girl drags forward rows of dresses.
She picks the first dress and presents it. I narrow my gaze in disgust. It is a long dress with an even longer slit.
“You disapprove?”
“Of course, I do. I’m not wearing that. I have a very full chest, and it will spill out of it.” I say bluntly with a shrug.
Rick whispers something to Roman, then leaves. I don’t have to worry. I know he’s not far gone.
Aurora nods, and Darcy brings out another dress.
I stare at it in reverence. It is beautiful, different from the nonsense she brought out. It is a Crinkle silk chiffon draped gown with degrande tassels and thread work floral embroidery. The need to wear it consumes me.
“You have beautiful taste.” Aurora praises.
Darcy hands me the dress with caution and points to the dressing room. I carefully put on the dress. It is easy to wear, and it clings to my body as though it is made for me. I walk out of the dressing room barefoot.
“Perfection,” Aurora states.
“It’s stunning, Scar.” Eve gushes.
I wait for Roman’s response, but he says nothing. He burns me with his look, though, and that is enough.
The next dress I try on is from the same collection. It is a layered tulle petal gown with an embellished bodice. I don’t particularly like it, but I know it will come in handy. Then, a corseted tassel gown with lattice detailing and floral embellishment. I try on more dresses than a wedding dress. It is beautiful, but I have grown bored with the collection, so we move on.
The next collection is filled with tightly fitted body-con dresses embellished with gems. The dresses are all undoubtedly beautiful. One is strapless, and cups my bosom firmly like a hand. I watch Roman glance away from his phone multiple times, obviously allured by my perfectly sculpted body.
Almost all the dresses come with a shawl and a scarf. I eat it up, enamoured.
“This next collection is sexy dresses for you and your husband. Dresses to make him lose his mind.” Aurora informs me with a wink, and my cheeks flame up.
“Bring it all,” Eve giggles, relishing in my awkwardness.
The first is a silk pink dress that sticks to my body. It is a halter neck and has a high slit. I feel so pretty in it.
Roman thinks otherwise because he turns away and walks to the window. I clench my jaw and tailor my reaction.
I get it in different variations, then we move to shorter ones. The first is a short red dress that seems to be dripping in jewels, then I get a red embellished two-piece, then a sculpted organza dress, a short beaded flower dress, and more.
We move to the formal collection. I get a stunning yellow dress, and more. I get casual dresses too, and everything I can need.
Roman finally gets off his phone and returns.
“We have bags and shoes left, but before we move to that, I believe we should work on lingerie.” Aurora smiles widely.
My eyes widen in shock, and my cheeks flame. “Do we really?” I murmur, heart racing.
“Don’t act so coy. You are getting married after all.” Aurora chuckles, and I nod, realising I’ve not been playing my part well.
Roman smiles and says, “Scar wants to keep the novelty alive. Right, baby?”
He leans in and presses his lips to my forehead. I am stunned, but nod, flushing.
Darcy brings out the panties, thongs, and lingerie. I am silent as Roman surfs through it and chooses for me. He has wonderful tastes because he picks a Brandy Melville two-piece, more of cottons, satin and silk. Eve and I share a look of shared mortification as he ignores bras and picks bralettes instead. How does he know I hate bras?
He picks a lot of nightgowns made of cotton. We are all silent as he picks the best for me.
“I guess that should do.” He glances at me, eyes filled with warmth.
I lean into him and graze my lips against his softly. His hand tightens on my hips.
I pull away and get back to trying things on. I make easy decisions about the shoes and the bags.
Soon, we will be done. It is a lot of stuff, and we wait for it to be packed.
I pull out his credit card to pay, but he pays instead, with a different credit card. I don’t say anything. The drive home is silent and tense. I can still feel his lips on mine.