Page 9 of Safer Together
~ Chapter Four ~
Angela
I am incredibly nervous, excited and also a little frightened waiting for Elliot to arrive. Even though we had been talking nearly every day on the phone or via Skype, it isn’t the same as having that person right in front you. Standing close enough to touch, to hold and kiss. Being able to look at him here in person will feel like a gift after the two weeks that we have been apart.
Everything has been going so well. The conversations are effortless and surprisingly enough, I have found myself thinking about him often and missing his company, missing being with him. And so, I hope that tonight my work Christmas party goes well. No issues arising, just Elliot and I enjoying each other’s company; and for the other forty or so people who will be doing so around us and with my fingers crossed, I hope for no dramas arising at all.
Will the spark that was electric the last time I saw him still be present? The kiss we shared at the airport before I boarded my flight home was something really special. It was a promise of what will happen in two weeks’ time, to keep a hold of in the meantime. Something that I have been thinking about a lot when lying awake in bed at night. What if the spark is still there for me, and it is no longer there for him?
Maybe when he sees me this time, he will realize just how plain I am. How he could find a prettier girl back home. A thinner girl. And what if he decides that he doesn’t want to be with me? How do I get over that? I shake my head several times, I must look as though I’m trying to shoo insects away from my head, but no, I’m trying to dispel these negative thoughts. Breathe in Angela, just breathe. After ten deep breaths, calm begins to wash over me.
I am standing in front of the vanity mirror, staring at my reflection for the umpteenth time this afternoon. After many outfit changes, I finally settle on a leaf green, long sleeved, woolen dress. It sits right on the knee. I have opaque, skin-toned tights on underneath, teamed with my knee-high, buckskin leather boots.
My hair falls in waves around my face, shining back at me, looking glossy in the light of the bathroom. It feels amazing to have fresh hair. My trip to the hairdressers this morning was a treat to be sure. Three hours of total bliss. A color, cut, scalp massage, and finally a style. Dominic always makes me feel like a brand-new woman. One thing it does for me is to boost my confidence, and that can’t hurt when I will be on the arm of an incredibly handsome man tonight.
My hair is now a beautiful glossy black color, with a subtle purple highlight, when in the correct lighting. It is also now a little shorter, after Dominic convinced me to take two inches off the length, which I am absolutely loving. Ever the amazing hairstylist, he also took the time to properly blow wave it and therefore the slight kink my hair often shows, was now styled into a sophisticated wave.
My makeup is looking good, what was that term I heard today in the salon? Oh yes, ‘it’s on point’. A new term for flawless, I believe the young apprentice had called it.
I had watched a makeup tutorial on YouTube earlier, on how to contour and create a perfect smoky eye, and even though I had half the number of products that the woman in the video was able to put her hands on, I was able to create a very similar look. The eyes reflected at me in the mirror appeared larger than normal, brighter in fact. The whole area sparkling from the glitter I had used on the lid.
Knock, knock, knock. The sound announcing that someone is at my front door, I turn from the bathroom and walk the distance slowly to my front door. I am nervously sliding my hands along the curves of my body, smoothing my dress with them as they go. Even though I know who will be on the other side, I chance a peek through the peephole, glad to see that it is who I have been waiting for.
I grasp the door handle and pull it towards me, opening it. Elliot stands there; framed in the doorway, he looks sexy as hell. Wearing black dress pants and shiny black leather wingtips on his feet with a collared, sage green, button up shirt, cut just right to show off the toned muscles of his body underneath. His hair had been tamed with product applied to keep it under control. His eyes, deep blue like the depths of the ocean skimming over my body, checking me out, just like I was doing to him. My heart skipped a beat just being in his presence, looking at his sculpted features in front of me, just as it always did.
“Hey, baby. You look gorgeous.” He steps forward, one step and then another until his face is only inches from mine, and then he kisses me, softly, on the mouth….the way he takes control and shows me that he cares. I lift my arms up and reach around his neck locking him in place, pulling him closer to me, feeling his body against my own, hugging him close to me while our lips get reacquainted with each other after their two-week vacation apart.
When we finally pull apart, I’m breathless. What this man does to me, does to my body. The electrical current running over my skin doesn’t retract when we are no longer touching, it stays there as a reminder as to what his touch does to me.
“I have missed you, Elliot,” I confess. Feeling stupid for saying it, thinking maybe I should have kept it quiet. He runs his thumb along my jawline, angling my face up slightly so we are looking right into each other’s eyes.
“That’s good, because I missed you too, baby. It’s so good to see you.”
I smile back at him, loving that he has also missed me. I pull him close in an embrace, rubbing my hands along his back.
“So, tonight is your work Christmas dinner, I’m guessing your colleagues will be bringing their partners along, just like you are bringing me. How many do you think will be attending?” he asks.
I pull back to look at him. “There are usually around forty or so of us. If at any time you feel uncomfortable, just let me know and we can head out. It’s going to be a shock to some of the girls I work with to see you there.”
He raises an eyebrow, inviting me to continue.
“Well you know my assistant Jenny, you met her that time you stopped by for coffee.”
He nods to show me he does know who I mean.
“Well she thinks you are, well, many things but mainly dreamy. She may even ask for a photograph with you.” I laugh lightly, trying to put across a feeling of good humor, as though I wasn’t concerned at all about the attention he would draw tonight. I was mainly concerned about the ladies, I hoped they all behaved themselves.
“As long as she can then take a photo of us together, I am fine with that. You really do look beautiful tonight, Angela.”
I playfully swat at his chest, with as much pressure as a piece of cooked spaghetti hitting him in the chest. “If you’re lucky, Mr. Sands, that might be arranged.” I peck him quickly on the cheek and then pull back, making my way towards the bedroom in order to grab my items, calling out as I go, “I’ll just grab my things. Won’t be a minute”.
I wander back into the bedroom and collect my phone, wallet and keys. I keep a hold of my keys while throwing the other two into my black clutch that I would be using for the evening. Once closed, I place my clutch comfortably under my armpit to keep in in place.
Returning to the living room, I walk straight into the awaiting arms of the man that I am lucky enough to call mine. I wrap one of my arms around his waist awkwardly and kiss his chest quickly before letting go. He steps aside and lets me pass through the already open door ahead of him. Once I am in the hallway, he follows suit, closing the door behind him. I check the door is locked and quickly insert my key into the deadbolt engaging it before we go. Once all is locked, I place my keys into my clutch and then hold it in my left hand, offering my right hand to Elliot, who takes it easily within his own.
We walk down the flights of stairs into the parking lot at the back of the complex, parked next to my own car is a sleek white Mercedes, smaller than the one he has back at his residence.
“What is it with you and Mercedes?”
