After applying a streak of no-nonsense red lipstick, she stepped into her only pair of strappy stilettos and glanced at herself in the mirror.
She would never come close to the tall leggy model downstairs, and if Silas had a problem with who she was, she would gladly accept a divorce. In fact that was what she hoped would happen. That he would divorce her because she couldn’t stand being in the same house with him and reliving that one time, he had taken her virginity.
She fingered the heavy ring on her finger and again it seemed to give her courage.
She stepped out of the bedroom and into the elevator. She knew exactly which hall the dinner party was being held in, yeah, she was calling it a party and not a business dinner because it wasn’t. Not with that one guest in attendance.
She had no idea where her confidence had come from, perhaps it was fueled by her frustration, her sadness, her need to leave before Silas destroyed her completely.
She walked into the hall with its graceful lighting, its muted tones, its minimalistic appeal, and all of it looked out onto the emerald-green grass adorned with marble sculptures of geometric shapes. And then there were the rose bushes Mickey had planted on Silas’ instruction.
She was the flowers in his garden, and she didn’t go with his aesthetic. It was the simple truth.
She forcefully swallowed down the lump in her throat and smiled at the first guest she saw, all the while searching for Silas, searching for the model, expecting to find them together.
“Wow,” a man said as he approached her. “And who might you be? I don’t think we’ve been introduced. Massimo at your service,” he said then bowed. She recognized him as the first guest who had arrived. The rather handsome one. But her heart sank when she scanned the whole hall and all its guests and failed to find her husband and the blond woman.
The man continued to speak rapidly to her in Italian before switching back to English.
“You are a goddess in a sky of stars.” Arabelle found herself smiling or she would end up crying. But how could she not smile? The man was charming and over the top and he really was movie star cute.
She even laughed a little when he quoted the lines from a famous song to her. “You must forgive me. I haven’t seen such a level of beauty in my life before and beauty is what I seek.”
He reached for her hand, then examined her palm. “You are an avid reader, I see.”
“How did you know?” The only reason she allowed herself to be distracted by the man was that the alternative was too painful for her. She barely held on as a panic attack started to flourish. Was he really having an affair in the house where his wife lived?
“A magician never reveals his secrets,” he winked. Still holding her hand, he stared into her eyes, then without breaking contact he lowered his head and attempted to kiss her. But before he could plant a chaste kiss on her hand, the thundering sound of Silas’ voice echoed around the room.
“Massimo,” he roared. In a split moment, he was at her side. He pulled her into him, his one arm firmly around her waist, possessively and territorially, while with his other he grabbed Massimo’s hand and bent it awkwardly.
“You ever touch my wife again, I’ll break you into a million little pieces, slowly.”
“But she is so beautiful your wife. I will pay you anything you want for her.”
Arabelle gasped in sickening shock as the crunch of bones echoed around her. She staggered backward and would have collapsed if it weren’t for Silas’ arm around her waist
His security arrived promptly and took Massimo away who had been howling his head off, screaming that he was going to ruin Silas and steal his wife.
As cold as ice, Silas turned and addressed his associates.
“Excuse me while I take care of a few matters. I’ll be back when I’m done.”
Taking a hold of her, Silas directed her out of the hall. She didn’t wait to have her say. She started immediately.
“Are you fucking insane? You broke an innocent man’s wrist and for what? Because he paid more attention to me than you could ever withstand? Is that why you did it? You are… completely insane and a hypocrite and I want—”
He had marched her to the elevator and then dragged her inside it while his phone rang.
Arabelle stopped her tirade against him only because she wanted him to hear everything she had to say and this time she wasn’t backing down like a coward.
She wanted a divorce and she wanted it immediately.