Proserpina
I reluctantly opened the bag he had indicated. It bore the label of a famous fashion house. And I opened my mouth in shock. An insignia gown in black with a voluminous skirt and a tight-fitting bodice with a plunging neck line, in the sheerest of materials, expensive by any count! The next bag had a pair of shoes, and a small purse.
Even as I stood staring at it, Lucien emerged, clad in a towel, fresh from the shower. His hair was damp, and he stopped in the doorway, frowning when he saw I was still there, goggling like a child at the dress.
"Change!" he bellowed. Grabbing the bags and feeling like Cinderella, I scooted from the room.
Half an hour later, my Mafia Don entered my room. I was standing before the mirror, staring at myself and gaping at the transformation.
The black gown was cleverly designed to cover but reveal a woman's curves. The neck showed off the soft mounds of my breasts, revealing more than I cared for. It flattered me, making me look mature, mystical but ...I couldn't put a finger on it. I had let my hair down, and it cascaded in a sheet behind me, now reaching a little lower than my waist. The eye makeup I had put on, using the make-up set that had been helpfully added to the box, accentuated the hazel colour of my eyes effectively. Lip liner made my mouth look swollen and ripe.
While I had been a girl when he first met me and claimed me for his own, I had now matured and my body had...ripened? The full breasts, the curved hips, all of it seemed to make me look ... sensuous, I thought in shock.
My eyes met Lucien's in the mirror as he entered, and I caught the sudden blaze of desire in his eyes, which darkened as they roamed over me. Bowing my head, I blushed. Coming forward, he lifted my hair and, to my astonishment, slipped an exquisite necklace of fine, twinkling stones around my throat, his warm hands lingering as he kissed my nape.
Having never owned anything more than a gold ring left behind by my mother, I touched the necklace in wonder. My skin tone seemed to enhance the glitter
"The earrings," he said softly slipping a pouch into my hand.
'Diamonds?" I squeaked in surprise.
"We don't have much time," he drawled, watching me as I fixed the small, delicate studs.
I turned to him and asked in a small voice, "Where are we going?"
But he was already out of the room and I had to pick up my stilettos by the straps and run after him to keep pace. Once in the car, he was besieged by calls. I sat quietly in a corner, listening to the hum of the air conditioning and watching the countryside slip by.
Slowly, my heart sinking to my toes, I realized that we were entering the city, heading for the Fight Club, where I had first met Lucien.
Why was he taking me there, I thought in growing dread, my heart clenching in a grip of ice.
I turned to look at Lucien, who was deep in thought as he stared impassively through the window, his grey head of hair turned away from me.
He suddenly seemed older and more frightening.
What was he going to do to me???
***
Finally we arrived at our destination.
The Club.
The very same place where I had lost my heart to this man.
I clambered out of the car and stood eyeing the club uneasily. There were a number of luxury vehicles parked neatly and as we stepped forward, a group of reporters swooped down on us. Lucien Delano held my hand firmly, leading me to the entrance, his men creating a protective circle around us.
The journalists threw questions at us as we made our way forward, cocooned by Lucien's security staff.
"Is this your secret mistress?'
"Have you split up with Abby Winters?"
'We heard that you have an illegitimate child..."
The group hounded us, and I breathed easier as the doors closed behind us. I felt disgusted and ill at ease, but Lucien seemed supremely indifferent as he led me upstairs to the room where I had first met him...I blushed as I looked around.
I wasn't aware that he had been watching me, and when I turned to him, the hot look of lust and something else in his eyes made me long to throw myself at him and beg him to love me as I loved him.
Mockingly, he stared into my eyes and smiled drily, "So you remember, little girl? This room where we first ..."
Stepping forward, I placed my fingers across his lips, stopping him. I did not want him to use a derogatory term for what was one of the best moments in my life, the awakening of my sexuality; with this man who had guided me, held me, taken me to such heights.
The night I had fallen in love with this man...
I had fallen in love with him that night; nothing he did to me could ever undo that, I thought sadly.
He looked at me sharply, surprised by my gesture. I was always so submissive; this action had caught him off guard.
Rising on tiptoe, my discarded stilettos at my feet, I gently kissed him and whispered huskily,
"Could I ever forget?"
My voice caught, and hoping that he would assume it was only embarrassment, I made to turn away.
But he captured me in his arms, holding me for a while, silently. He buried his face in my hair and he seemed to be breathing hard as he held me in his arms.
Then, turning abruptly, he made his way to the bar. I followed, placing my hand on his chest, I said in a small voice,
"Lucien, please...don't drink so much..."
He looked down at me quizzically this time, standing still , the silver-tinged head angled to catch the light. Afraid that I had committed a mistake, I made to step back but he encircled my waist tightly and drew me to his hard body. Tilting my chin he said mockingly,
" So, my little woman, why should I listen to you?"
I bowed my head. What could I possibly reply?
As I stood, mutely, he tipped my head up again. The light in his eyes was soft, almost tender and my lips parted as he lowered his head...
There was a discreet knock on the door and the spell broke.