Chapter 192

Ella

As the maid walked away, her words kept swirling around in my mind. A networking event? Really?

Logan had told me that it was a holiday party, so now that I heard it was really a networking event, I was even more confused.

“Great,” I said to my wolf with a sigh as I began to walk away. “More mobster networking. My favorite.”

“It’s not just that,” Ema replied. “Why wouldn’t he just tell you it was a networking event? Why disguise it as a holiday party to begin with?”

I sighed inwardly. Ema had a point; Logan had been keeping secrets lately, especially regarding his ‘secret plan’ for the legal case. It was frustrating to be left in the dark, but deep down, I knew I had to trust him. We had an agreement, and I needed to stick to it. There was no room for mistakes.

Nevertheless, I decided to keep a close eye on things during the party. If there was something going on, I wanted to know about it—a little bit of snooping wouldn’t hurt, right?

And besides, I had nothing to do. It was Saturday morning, and I was tired of laying around in my bedroom during my off hours. That was why, when I saw the housekeeper, Mrs. Wentworth, scurrying past, I called out to her.

“Mrs. Wentworth?”

The housekeeper stopped as I approached her, and shot me a warm smile. “Good morning, Ella,” she said. “Did you need something?”

I shook my head. “No, I’m okay,” I said, “but I was wondering if I could help with the decorating or anything.”

As I spoke, Mrs. Wentworth furrowed her brow. “Ella, honey, you can just relax,” she said in a kind tone of voice. “We’ve got it handled. Besides, you’re a guest.”

“Mrs. Wentworth, really, I insist,” I continued, reaching for the heavy box that she was clearly struggling to hold onto in her arms. “Please, let me help.”

Suddenly, just as I was trying to wrestle the box from the woman’s arms, a voice caught both of our attention.

“Everything alright in here?”

Mrs. Wentworth and I whirled around to see Logan standing there with a curious expression on his face.

“Ella wants to help,” Mrs. Wentworth said. “But I’m trying to tell her that she’s a guest, and it’s not necessary.”

Logan let out a soft sigh and glanced at me with an amused look in his eyes. “Ella, you work hard enough as it is. Don’t feel obligated to help.”

“I don’t feel obligated,” I said, finally managing to get the box out of Mrs. Wentworth’s arms. She looked visibly relieved to not be holding it anymore, even though I knew she was trying to hide it. “Really. I like helping. I used to help my housekeeper, Selina, all of the time growing up.”

Logan watched me for a moment, as if contemplating saying more, but he eventually shook his head and chuckled. “Alright, have it your way,” he said, giving in. “You can help, but don’t overexert yourself. I don’t want you to get too tired before the party.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’ll be fine, Logan.”

Without another word, Logan spun on his heel and disappeared again. Mrs. Wentworth and I paused, looking at each other, before she let out a chuckle.

“Follow me,” she said. “That box needs to go to the parlor.”

That day, Mrs. Wentworth and I spent the morning and early afternoon decorating for the party. I helped string up lights, hang garlands, and arrange tables. While we worked, however, I couldn’t stop thinking about what the party was truly for; no matter how festive the decorations were, it still felt odd knowing that it was actually a networking event—a networking event which, apparently, I was not supposed to know about.

Surely that meant that Logan had something planned as far as the legal case went, which only made me even more curious.

“Ella?” Mrs. Wentworth’s voice pulled me back to the present. I turned to her, blinking and realizing that I had completely zoned out while I was supposed to be handing her decorations for the Christmas tree.

“Sorry,” I said, handing her another glass ball to hang. “I was just thinking.”

“You seem to do a lot of that,” she teased. “Thinking, I mean.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Yeah,” I said, then bit my lip, considering for a moment. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Anything, dear.”

“Mrs. Wentworth… does Logan normally throw holiday parties on such short notice?”

Mrs. Wentworth paused for a moment, considering my question. Then she shook her head. “No,” she replied. “He doesn’t. Actually, this is only the second party that he’s ever thrown in this house as long as he’s lived here.”

I raised an eyebrow, intrigued by her response. “The second party? What was the first one for?”

Mrs. Wentworth chuckled softly as she took another bauble from my hands and hung it on the tree.

“Oh, that was a housewarming party when he first moved in a few years ago,” she explained. “But to be honest, Ella, I think he did it more for appearances than anything else. Logan isn’t one for extravagant parties in his home. He’ll attend them, sure, but never throws them.”

I found her answer a bit surprising. “Really?” I found myself asking. “But he seems so… social.”

“That’s just what he wants you to think,” she mused. “Logan isn’t the high society type. But I think you knew that already.”

I paused for a moment, biting the inside of my lip as I handed her yet another decoration. Maybe she was right; maybe I did know already.

And maybe that was why this whole event was even more suspicious. And I couldn’t help but think to myself…

“What are you planning, Logan?”

…

As the day wore on, exhaustion began to creep in. With the majority of the decorations placed, I decided to retreat to my room for a shower and some rest before the mysterious holiday-networking party began.

But just as I was about to turn on the shower, there was a knock on the door. I called out, and a moment later, a maid was stepping into the room with a wrapped gift box in her hands.

“Miss Ella,” she said, “Mr. Logan wanted me to bring this to you.”

I accepted the gift box, my curiosity piqued. Carefully, I unwrapped it, revealing a stunning gown in midnight blue silk and a matching set of jewelry. The gown was elegant, with intricate beading and a flattering silhouette. The jewelry consisted of a delicate necklace and earrings, adorned with sparkling sapphires.

I couldn’t hide my astonishment. “Is this for tonight?” I asked, holding the dress up in the light.

The maid nodded. “Mr. Logan said that he wanted you to have something nice to wear,” she said. “And that he would see you at eight o’clock.”

I thanked her and watched her leave the room, my mind racing with questions. I felt altogether spoiled, like the rich little princess that I had always strived not to be. And yet, at the same time, something felt different. Something about this gift felt intimate, not at all like a trinket given to me to keep me happy.

And as I stared down at the midnight blue dress in my hands, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was even more than met the eye tonight.