Chapter Seventeen

I munched on popcorn as I watched the TV that night. There was nothing else to do. I tried sleeping but I couldn't, which was unusual. I scrolled through my phone aimlessly.

'Paparazzi spots Los Angeles' famous business tycoon during pre wedding photoshoot.' I looked up as soon as I heard the headline on entertainment news.

I saw unedited photos of Damien and I displayed on the screen but they were not well defined. They looked rushed.

"American Business Mogul, Damien Kingston, was spotted earlier today by the paparazzi during what we assume was a photoshoot with his wife to be. The popular thirty year old playboy was deemed to be an unrepentant one and the internet went wild with shock, when he got down on one knee and proposed to an unknown lady whose first name we just found out is Ariana Delaney, of Spanish descent." The OAP said and turned to an her co host.

"Indeed Amy, we all thought it was a publicity stunt when he said the wedding would be in a month, until this photoshoot. Let's not forget this post from two hours ago by Apex Invites, with the hashtag #Damriana21. The hashtag has been trending ever since as fans would not let it be."

I looked up to see a sample of our wedding invites displayed on the large TV screen. I exhaled as I got off the bed. I needed to pee. They continued gossiping about Damien and I for a while before moving on to another issue.

When I came out of the bathroom, I saw my phone blinking. I had put it on silent.

"Hey Lucy." I said into the phone.

Hope you all remember Lucy? If you don't, here's a quick reminder, she's a former colleague of mine and she has a huge crush on Nolan. Too much information? Oh well...

"Hi, Mrs. Damien Kingston!" She yelled. I moved the phone away from my ear and slightly grimaced.

"Lucy I'm not married yet!" I clarified.

"Same difference Ariana,"

I imagined her rolling her eyes.

"I just saw you guys on entertainment news and I just had to call! How did you snag such a perfect man?!" She said with so much excitement in her tone, she had way more excitement than I did and I was the bride.

And perfect man? Damien Kingston was far from a perfect man and he was definitely not perfect for me.

"You don't even want to know Lucy." I said with a sigh.

"So when's the wedding?" She asked eagerly.

"Thirtieth of this month." I replied.

"Oh my! It's so close!" She exclaimed.

"Yes it is. I'll be sending invites out tomorrow."

An idea popped into my head.

"Lucy will you be one of my bridesmaids?" I asked hopefully.

The line went silent for a while.

"Lucy? Are you there?" I pulled my phone off my ear to check if she was still on the line.

"OH MY GOD! " She yelled so loud, I was glad my phone was away from my ear.

"I can't believe I'm going to be one of the bridesmaids at the Damien Kingston!" She exclaimed apparently elated at the offer.

"Thank you so much, Ariana!"

"No, thank you." I said.

"Have a good night." I bade.

"Nolan misses you." She said with all of excitement gone.

"I miss him too." I admitted. I missed speaking to Nolan about anything and everything but now he was hurt for reasons I could not bring myself to understand.

I bade good night to Lucy and hung up before I would get emotional over the phone.

I shut my eyes, trying to sleep but my heart was unsettled. I saw that Nolan was online but I did not know if he would reply if I chatted him up, I did not want him to ignore me. He did that whenever he was in a bad mood or was holding something against someone, one of his toxic traits I had always scolded him about. Now, I was on the receiving end.

I made up my mind to send him an invite and a flight ticket anyway, whether or not he was going to honor my invitation.

I wrote down the names of the people I wanted invite to the wedding. I did not have a lot of people on my guest list. Back in New York, it was just me, my father, Nolan and a few colleagues I spoke with and some of my father's neighbors. I lived in a very private apartment block and I hardly knew my neighbors, mostly because I was hardly ever in. I was either at work, my father's place or Nolan's and when I finally did get home, I locked myself indoors and minded my own business.

I slept off soon after.

****

I got up super early, for reasons unknown to me. I guessed I was beginning to adjust to the change in time zones. I stared up at the beautiful sunrise, I just had to take a picture of it because the view from the penthouse was spectacular.

I brushed my teeth and stepped out into the living room in my pajamas. I picked up an apple from the kitchen fridge and bit into it. I munched on it slowly as I stared into at the rays of the uprising sun splattered by the window blinds on the kitchen counter. It sure was a sight to behold.

The sun reflected on the diamond ring I had on my finger. I never took it off, because 'the boss' would have my head on a plate if I misplaced it.

House keeping came in soon, reminding me that the day had begun and it was about time I got ready for the day ahead of me.

I took a bath, humming to Justin Bieber's 'Peaches' as it played from the TV. After my bath, I applied lotion and moisturized my skin.

From what I had gotten online, I figured that finding the right thing to wear when going to pick out a wedding dress could be tricky. I went barefaced as usual, I put on a nude strapless bra, nude panties that would not leave lines in case I tried on a body hugging dress.

I slid into a comfortable A shaped knee length gown that wasn't difficult to remove, I needed it for my try outs to be less difficult. I tried on the kind of heels I pictured for my wedding day. I was sure getting into the whole wedding spirit.

I stepped out to see that breakfast had been served. It seemed like the staff haf my schedule at their disposal because everything came in exactly when I needed it.

I settled down and had my breakfast while listening to some Doja Cat songs playing from the stereo. I finished my meal, took the plate down to the sink and washed it quickly.

I picked up my purse, flung it over my shoulder and cat walked out of the suite after putting on my sunglasses and checking out my look one more time.

"Hi Sweetie, oh you look so beautiful." Stella said the moment she saw me. She climbed out of the car and gave me a hug and kiss on the cheek, I did the same.

"You look even better." I said truthfully, eyeing her emerald green wrap dress paired with silver stilletoes. I stopped myself from staring too hard.

I got into the vehicle and was met with an unexpected face.

"Oh, hi Tracy." I said with a warm smile.

"Hi." She said with a small wave and turned back to what she was doing on her phone.

I turned to Stella.

"Where's Fiona?" I asked.

"Oh sweetie she really wanted to come but she has an important project to present today so I could not let her skip school. But Tracy is here with us, we'll have just as much fun!" Stella explained while I nodded in understanding.

"Don't push it mum!" Tracy muttered coldly.

To be candid, I was really bummed that Fiona could not make it for the dress picking and even worse, Damien's sister who apparently did not like me, had to be her replacement.

"Now come on Tracy, don't be like that. Don't you want to get to know your brother's soon to be wife?" Stella nudged her a little bit.

"Uhm no thanks." Tracy said rudely. Now, surely I knew she was truly Damien's sister, they were so alike. I guessed they were really close.

Stella shot me an apologetic glance. I smiled reassuringly, I did not let Tracy's attitude bother me because I was not in anyway seeking her validation.

We continued the ride in silence with all of us deeply engrossed on our phones.

****

We slowly walked into the enormous bridal shop. The place had about three floors and comprised of everything a bride and her squad would need from top to bottom. It was a one stop shop for everything we needed. Their products were on the high side though.

One of the attendants rushed to our side the moment we walked in. She led us to a side of the store and had us sit down. She ordered us some juice and snacks. I was impressed at how good their customer service was.

"This is my daughter in-law to be, the wedding is in about three weeks and we'd like to pick a dress and have it fitted as soon as possible.'' Stella said to the attendant.

"Is there something specific you have in mind?" The attendant turned to me and asked.

"I've always a wanted ball gown with lots of glitter." I said.

"A princess look?"

"Somewhat."

"What about a reception dress?"

"A flowing body con dress with intricate designs would be nice."

"The theme?"

"White and gold"

"Ah classic." She hummed.

"I'll be with you shortly."

She walked further into the shop and we waited.

"I saw you and Damien on a few blogs. I didn't know you had your photoshoot yesterday." Stella said to me.

"I wasn't aware until the evening before and there was hardly any time to tell you."

"How was it?" She asked.

"It was okay, I loved the scenery."

"I can't wait to see them." She squealed in glee. I smiled.

I looked up and saw Tracy roll her eyes. I ignored it but a small part of me still wondered what her problem with me was.

Our attendant soon returned with about five absolutely gorgeous dresses of different kinds but somehow fit into all my descriptions.

I drew back, suddenly developing cold feet. I was suddenly feeling too overwhelmed.

"Maybe we should pick out the shoes and jewelry first before trying out the dresses." I said quickly.

"Are you sure? Is everything okay?" Stella asked worriedly. I nodded in spite of myself.

"Alright keep the dresses aside and show us some shoes and jewelry." She ordered.

The attendant whose name I figured was Leah, nodded and walked away again.

Now this was going to be one difficult task, I could feel it.