Chapter Thirty two

Ariana's POV;

I was actually enjoying my new phone. The day I got it, I stayed up in the bedroom checking out its features. Fiona came in and convinced me to take a few pictures just to see how good the camera was. She said I looked too good to not take a picture and disturb the internet with it, her words not mine.

I only wanted a few photos but Fiona made me take so many and in the end only picked out a few to post. We made some videos as well and when I eventually posted, the likes and comments were unstoppable. I read through a few comments and saw that people thought that married life looked good on me. I snorted. If only they knew.

I sighed and yawned tiredly. I had been on my new laptop all morning, preparing my curriculum vitae. I was looking for a job because I had been idle for so long and it was about time I put my degree to use. I had a degree in Economics from NYU and I just finished my college education the previous year. Owing to the erratic condition of my father's health after my graduation I could not secure a stable job so I settled for working at a restaurant until I could concentrate on getting a well paying job, that was until you know who, came into my life.

I applied to different companies in Los Angeles and awaited a positive reply from them, I really hoped I'd be called for an interview soon. I used my maiden name because I did not want to use Damien's name to secure any favors, I wanted to work for myself and take care of my father.

Damien, whom I had finally googled had me gasping and widening my eyes at my screen when I found out his net worth and status in the society. He's the CEO of Kingston Tech that produces some of the best electronic devices in the US, then he owns clubs, hotels, along with so many assets all over the place, he ventured into so many businesses and was even into oil and gas, an industry that was not to be toyed with. He was a goldmine through and through. He was so young, it became a source of minute worry how he got so wealthy and became a multi billionaire before thirty. No wonder he was so full of himself. I scoffed. I had not heard anything from him since and I was glad.

I put my laptop aside, slid into my bunny slippers and walked to the bathroom to take a pee. I yawned again as I came out and my stomach rumbled in response. I was hungry and there was no doubt about it. Rubbing the back of my palm on my face, I dragged my feet across the room, pulled the door open and stepped outside. I shut the door behind me and it echoed in the empty hallway. This place was just too big, I believed it was a waste of space.

I slowly made it down the stairs, passed through the living room and headed straight for the kitchen to get a snack for myself. I met our chef, Lorenzo, preparing what I would call another masterpiece for dinner.

"Hi Lorenzo." I waved at him as I walked straight to the refrigerator situated at one end of the large kitchen. I grabbed an apple and bit straight into it while I searched for something else to busy my mouth with.

"Hello, Mrs Kingston." He said with his thick Italian accent that I found very attractive.

I rolled my eyes at the formality.

"Just call me Ariana." I groaned as I sat on a stool opposite him at the kitchen island.

"Ah, Sir Damien would have my head on a plate if he heard that I was on first name basis with his beautiful wife." He said and I blushed at the compliment.

"Well he's not here, is he?" I placed both my elbows on the counter as I bit further into the apple.

He gave me a slow smile. I grinned back.

We kept talking and he gave me a few things to try out as he cooked. I ended up making the puree sauce for our dinner. I had missed cooking. Ever since I moved down to Los Angeles, I did not have the chance to cook anything, it was all ready made meals and it was becoming tiring because cooking was something I enjoyed.

Lorenzo was a fairly handsome man. He was lean but a little muscular, he was tall and had a nicely trimmed moustache. I had only seen him without his hat once, when he was not cooking, and I saw he had deep brown locks that seemed very soft from the look of it. He had such a great sense of humor and took pride in his work. He truly deserved all the credits he got, he was doing really well for himself.

I always enjoyed Lorenzo's company and one of the major reasons was that he truly reminded me of Nolan.

Speaking of which, I had not spoken to Nolan ever since the wedding. I tried reaching out to him through a direct message on WhatsApp but he left me on read. It hurt so bad that we could not chat all the time like we used to. I was at least glad that he kept going to check on my father in my absence, it counted for something.

I made Lorenzo taste the puree I had made. His eyes lit up as he did.

"Perfetto." He said in Italian, joining his thumb and index finger as he did.(Perfect.)

Coming from a chef, that meant a lot.

I grinned and puffed my chest up in exaggerated pride, Lorenzo laughed at it.

"Gracias." I said with a mock bow. (Thank you.)

Dinner was ready and it was soon time to dish and serve the meals. I offered to help out but Ma Rosa and the maids would not let me do anything. She tried scooting me out of the kitchen asking me why I was in there in the first place. It got worse when Lorenzo let her know that I cooked with him.

"Why would you let her cook? You know your boss would not like it." She scolded with her arms on her hips as she glared at both of us.

"Ma Rosa, I insisted. I was bored." I said to her truthfully.

"Oh Mia Cara, you're just so sweet." She gushed dramatically. (My dear.)

Next thing I knew, Lorenzo had shoved a spoon in her mouth and ran off, I gasped in shock cause it all happened so quickly. If looks could kill, Lorenzo would be six feet under the ground at this point.

"Lorenzo I know you can cook, why all this?" She scowled menacingly.

"I didn't make it." He responded with a teasing smile.

She turned to me swiftly while I looked down shyly.

"You made it?"

I nodded.

"It's really good. Damien sure married a good one." She commented. I laughed and left them in the kitchen to do their thing.

I got into the dinning room and saw Aleena seated there, she gave me a smile which I returned slightly.

"I haven't seen you all day." She remarked.

"Yeah I've been busy." I replied as I took my seat at the table.

"Hmmm." She hummed and faced her phone again.

"Have you spoken to Damien?" She asked in her usual habit.

"Yeah I have." I said flatly.

It was a lie, but she did not have to know that it was.

"He FaceTimed me yesterday." She commented probably searching my face for a reaction.

"He told me about it." I lied again. I don't know but there was just something about this girl that made me get so defensive and territorial whenever Damien was involved. I almost slapped myself in the face when I thought about her possibly lying to get my attention but then again, screw it, I thought.

She looked astonished for a second, that was confirmation that they had actually talked and he had not sent as much as a text to me since he left. It was not like I wanted to speak to him so badly but common sense would have a man know that he's supposed to speak to his wife- whether or not the marriage is a sham- when he is away. But no, the arrogant brute of a man would rather call his childhood best friend and try to raise her suspicions even more. Men and their egos that push them into doing dumb things! His ego would not let him apologize for being a jerk to me that was why he called someone else and Aleena of all people. I bit my cheek from the inside so I would not have to say something snarky.

"Seems like he tells you everything."She said with a fake laugh, I could tell because it sounded absolutely wrong and very awkward.

"We're married. It's something couples do." I said with an air of finality in my tone as I turned to phone and typed away. This girl just had a way of prodding into a person's life, she would never want to stop asking until you gave her a strong reason to stop. I did not necessarily dislike her but I was more than willing to keep her at arm's length.

Everyone else soon started coming in for dinner. It was hardly silent because the conversations flowed as we ate, it was kind of fun.

It seemed that everyone felt more at peace when Damien was not present because there was no awkward silence, it was all fun and laughter.

It made me want to know more about Damien. I wanted to understand why he was so cold and why he was an absolute jerk even to his own family at times. I wanted to understand how he wielded so much power that they were petrified and lowkey dreaded his presence.

The mention of his name brought about a different vibe in the room, it made everyone go silent for a second or two. He did not seem to be close with anyone of his family members and did not seem to have a lot of friends either. It just did not make any sense to me why one person would be so closed off to everyone in his life.

Ma Rosa came out while we were eating and cheerfully announced that I had made the puree. Well, I certainly did not seen that coming.

Damien's parents as well as Jesse and Fiona complimented me, Aleena kept quiet, while Tracy dropped one of her usual snarky and sardonic comments, one that really got to me.

"He sure went for someone traditional." She muttered sardonically with a scoff as she sipped on some wine immediately after.

I stared up at her swiftly, she did not even spare a glance in my direction. I looked around and saw that everyone had gone back to whatever it was they were doing, no one, not even one person seemed to noticed my reaction or even took note of what Tracy had said.

That statement had a lot of underlying meanings and I would be dumb to not understand what she meant. She was indirectly saying I was a trophy wife that did not have anything going on for herself, another way of saying that I was a leech who just wanted to sit and have her husband provide for her in this modern age.

Maybe no one else got it, but I did and I made a strong resolution to get a job that would have me leaving the house everyday to avoid her words seeming true to everyone else.

I excused myself shortly after, though I tried to hide it, her words had gotten to me and soured my mood greatly.