CHAPTER TWO
Aria’s POV
My heart was still pounding as I parked in the garage and walked into the house through the adjoining door. I heard music from somewhere inside.
Usually, it would have made me smile. But I couldn’t stop thinking about that mail.
And it irked the hell out of me.
No one ever made me nervous. Not clients. Not boardrooms. But this… It was crawling under my skin.
“I think red is your color…”
What did that even mean? A dress?
I clenched my hands around the box as I pushed into the cozy living area. Ethan walked out of the kitchen, a napkin on his shoulders, and a flirtatious smile on his face.
His eyes fell on the box.
Was I supposed to tell him about the mail? Should I just show it to him and let him think whatever he wanted to?
“Hey…babe?”
It sounded more like a question than a greeting. I slid the box onto the coffee table.
“You wouldn’t believe the type of day I had.” I dropped onto the couch and worked at the buckle of my stiletto. “I told you about the party with the girls, right? They decided to go ahead with it but I told them I wasn’t…”
Ethan wasn’t listening. His eyes were on the box. “So…mystery men are sending you gifts at work now?”
He tried to say it casually, but there was no mistaking that undertone.
My eyes drifted to his, watching him as he sat on the couch next to me, but directly in front of the box. The flirtatious smile was slowly vanishing.
“A secret admirer, maybe?” I smiled sweetly.
He didn’t.
“What is this about, Aria?”
"It came while I was rounding up at work," I huffed, bidding goodbye to whatever romantic night Ethan had planned. All because of some stranger, his stupid email, and that damn box. "Mr. Cole brought it up."
“And you didn’t think to talk to me about it first?” He scoffed and got on his feet, putting some distance between us.
I narrowed my eyes in his direction. Having an argument about this strange box was the last thing on my mind that night.
So, I took a deep breath.
“Ethan, I had no idea anyone was going to send me anything.” Anyone could see that, but I guessed my boyfriend didn’t fall into that category. “I haven’t even opened it yet.”
He peered at me for a full minute before coming back to the couch.
“It could have been the girls,” I continued, glad that he was at least not frowning. “Maybe they sent in something for the party and couldn’t cancel the delivery after I told them I wouldn’t be able to make it.”
As I spoke, Ethan pulled the box over to himself. His fingers unloosened the bow holding it in place, and I resisted the urge to cringe when he squeezed it roughly in one hand before tossing it to the ground.
When he lifted the lid of the box, I couldn’t hold back the gasp that escaped my lips.
I moved closer, my hands lifting it out. It was a brilliant red silk dress, encrusted with diamonds, and a low plunge in the front. It was backless as well, and even without putting it on, I could tell that it would fit perfectly.
My throat went dry. Whoever sent this knew my size, and more terrifyingly, they knew my taste.
The mail was right.
My favourite color was red.
I was on my phone in a second, going back to that message. I needed to know who the sender was. In the middle of my search, another email dropped in.
This time, it was an invitation to some dinner from Tiana.
Walking out of the living area into the bedroom, I could feel Ethan’s gaze boring a hole in my back. But it was the least of my concerns right then.
“Tiana,” I muttered into my phone pressed against my ears the minute I pushed the door shut behind me. “What invite is this?”
She said something, but I couldn't hear her with all the music blasting from the stereo on the other side of the phone.
Of course, she was at the party.
A message came in.
“Give me a minute to find somewhere quiet to talk.”
I waited until her voice came on again.
“So?”
“The invite was sent to the company’s mail a few minutes ago and it was addressed to you. It is for a dinner.”
“Who sent it?” I had a good feeling it was the same person who sent the dress.
Tiana was quiet for a few seconds. That should have gotten me concerned. Not many things could get her that way.
“The CEO of the company buying the Vale Firm,” she explained, her voice dropping really low. “You wouldn’t believe who he is.”
“I don’t care about that,” I shoot back a little too harshly. “He must think so highly of himself enough to go ahead to plan a party for a sale that hasn’t even been acknowledged by me. I haven’t even met him. What gives him the right to order me around like I am his slave?”
“Erm…Aria? I think that is the point of this dinner.”
"I'm not going!" I huffed, storming back to the living area. "You can tell him to fuck off. Both he and his stupid offer. I’m not selling to a man who treats me like property before we’ve even met.”
Ethan was still in the same spot as I'd left him, watching the scene with a keen expression. I grabbed the dress and moved out back to the trash can.
“Don’t throw the dress away, Aria.”
I stopped. “How did you know about that?”
“If you had bothered to read the invite properly, you would have seen it boldly spelled out under the page. He wants you there in it.”
“I am not…”
"He also said that if you don't attend the dinner, the deal will be off the table. The Vale Firm is going to be declared bankrupt and you will no longer have a company. Think about this properly, Aria."