AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Would he ever kiss her again?
Twenty minutes later, Lucy had her cordless phone pressed to her right ear. “Yes, I would like to know if you could send the same driver to pick me up,” Lucy inquired, while in her lace bra and matching underwear. Her gown was laying on the bed. She wanted to assure she would have a ride in time for the dance.
“That would be no problem, Ms. Shillerton. Thank you again for your business. The driver will be there shortly.”
Lucy's sigh was one of relief. It was as if she’d been holding her breath, wondering how on earth she would get a last minute limo to take her to the ball. The last thing she wanted to do was to drive there herself and show up in her old car while the valet directed all the limos present there.
It was a good thing that the limo driver from their favorite company was already booked for the entire evening. They were technically paying for him by the hour, anyway, and since Maxine was already inside the ballroom, the driver would be free, right?
Lucy could not believe the image she saw in front of her as she stood in front of her full length mirror. She barely recognized herself.
Oh, my God!
Was that really her?
She was no beauty queen and certainly no super model but she really could not believe how transformed she looked. Maxine was right. There’s a time for work and a time for play, to relax and unwind and maybe dress up and feel good about yourself. Every woman should do that once in a while. Take time and nurture themselves and take good care of themselves. They were so programmed to taking care of others, whether in business or family life, that sometimes they forgot to take care of themselves or felt guilty when they did.
Lucy spun around slowly in her gown to make sure everything looked okay. She never had the opportunity to go to her high school prom. She wasn’t particularly popular and didn’t even have a boyfriend or a date at that time. It was as if she were going to her prom now. How silly was that?
She glowed in her floor-length, satin emerald green dress. It was sleeveless, strapless, sexy. The off- the-shoulder look and full flowing bottom gave her silhouette the accentuated appearance that she’d always admired in other women. She looked like a modern-day Cinderella going to the ball.
Yeah, right. She sure didn’t feel like a princess-to-be.
Lucy was still tired and stifled a yawn. Her makeup was tastefully light and her dark long mane flowed down her back and off her shoulders.
Suddenly, her legs weakened again. Damn that feeling!
Butterflies tickled her stomach at the mere thought of seeing Antonio. She thought about Antonio Romero’s eyes capturing her. Or his lips reclaiming hers. What would he say? Would he even notice she turned up at the ball? There would be hundreds of guests and probably many beautifully dressed women there. What would he even think of her? Would he even care to see her again?
Insecurity gnawed at Lucy. She looked down at the hemline of her prom-like gown. Who was she kidding? She could never pull this off. She wasn’t the confident, outgoing type. At least not where socializing was concerned. And to top that off, she’d be showing up alone! How pathetic would that look?
The buzzer sounded through her phone and she picked it up. Her driver was waiting downstairs.
Okay, it was show time.
Antonio glanced at his watch. It was already seven thirty. He had scanned the ballroom several times. He spotted Lucy’s associate, Maxine. But where was Lucy? So she decided to bail, huh? She dared not show up to his annual function. Just what exactly was she playing at? He had spoken to her about it on Monday.
Just then Antonio’s groin ached. Of course, he had kissed her. That was not his original intention during their meeting but it was something he had to do. Had to. And she all too well kissed him back hungrily as if she wanted more. She could not have expected him to call her after that, could she? Was that her problem? Antonio sensed something might have been wrong. Still, the thought of being slighted by a woman unnerved him. He was used to women calling him all the time, caving to his demands, begging to see him. Not the other way around. Oh, no. What was it with that woman? She was certainly different than any woman he’d ever met in his life, that was for sure.
Antonio stood on the second level in the Imperial ballroom at his family’s estate. The room was two-tiered so he could stand above the main floor looking over at the guests while enjoying the sights and overseeing that everything was the way it should be.
