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Idressfortheevent, feeling a little more nervous than I usually would. I’ve been to dozens of these.
It must be the fact that I am taking a date to this one - a fake date. This is just to appease Mom and keep her off my back for a while.
I slip the jacket on and turn to look in the mirror, enjoying the new style of the collar. It’s subtle but looks good and anything different on a night like this is good for me.
I wonder what Laina will look like when I pick her up in a couple of hours. She told me she got a dress but wants to surprise me and I’m looking forward to it.
Laina was a pretty little girl and grew up to be a stunning woman. Any dress will look incredible on her, and I smile at the idea of spending the evening with her.
There will be dinner and dancing, and I wonder if Laina enjoys dancing. I always found these events to be forced and often boring, but tonight will be different.
I just hope that Mom accepts this and drops the subject of her arranged marriage for a long time. If it looks like me and Laina are dating, that will suffice for a while.
I walk out to my deck and enjoy a whiskey since my driver will be picking me up before dropping by Laina’s apartment to take us to the event. Drinking is a requirement tonight, though nothing too crazy. I’ll just need enough to even myself out.
Once I’m in the black town car, I watch the buildings through the windows. We pull up to the curb and I tell Dave that I’ll go get her and be right back.
Laina opens the door and I have to hold my mouth closed from gaping at her. The dress is a subtle deep purple with a hint of shimmer, and it shows off her curves perfectly. I’m happy to see that Laina isn’t one of the women that feels like anything bigger than tiny isn’t worth being proud of and I smile at her.
“You look beautiful,” I tell her as she blushes and looks down. Her hair is in loose curls and there is an intricate braid wrapped around her head, acting as a headband. Without makeup, Laina is gorgeous, but tonight she surpasses that. Her periwinkle blue eyes pop with the darker shades of purple on her eyes and a deep pink lip color, and I sense she is wearing some higher heels tonight under the sweep of the material that falls over her legs.
“You clean up good yourself, Kyle. We’ve come a long way from being the kids in the tree house, haven’t we?” she asks as I wonder why my heart is beating so fast.
“That we have.” She grabs a small clutch and locks the door before slipping the key into the purse, and I offer her my arm to help her to the car. Laina smells intoxicating, and I breathe in the sweet citrus as she brushes by me to slip into the car.
“This is nice. You didn’t want to drive?” Laina asked, and I don’t want to admit how often I’ve used a driver in my life.
“There’s an open bar, and I like to stay safe. I don’t plan on getting out of control, but some drinks might be required for this event.” I smile and glance at her, feeling my heart start up again.
“Gotcha. This is good then.” She settles back against the seat, and I see how well the dress fits her without being too much. There’s a hint of cleavage and it bares her beautiful shoulders with a simple necklace with one shimmering dark gem around her neck. I definitely have the prettiest woman in the room sitting beside me right now, though I’d lie and tell Mom that it’s her when we see her in about half an hour.
We enjoy the drive to the event center and pull up to the curb in a long line of cars.
“Oh, wow. This is big.” Laina murmurs beside me as I look at her. Everyone stops and as people get out of their cars and leave the keys with the valet, the line moves forward. There is a red carpet and a lot of press taking pictures, and I reach over to cover her hand with mine.
“Just smile and pose for the cameras. Follow my lead. You look amazing, Laina.” I assure her as she stares at me. “You’ve got this. It’s just people.”
“People. Just people,” she repeats as our turn comes up. I get out of the car and help Laina out as the cameras flash. I find her hand and hold it, guiding her along as I offer her a smile.
We pose for a few pictures with the intricate backdrop of the entrance, and I pull her close, stroking her hip to reassure Laina that everything is good. I know how these things can make a person feel and just want to make sure she’s comfortable.
Once we finish, I take her hand again and lead her into the lobby of the building. It’s full of people dressed to the nines, and Laina gasps as she looks around. “This is so fancy!”
“You look better than any woman in this room, though I’ll tell my mother the same thing in a few minutes.” I wink at her as she blushes again and greet people as we walk by.
“As you should,” Laina agrees as we walk through a large door into the main room of the event. There are more people here gathered around the large bar in the corner and looking for their tables in the dining area. It’s decorated with cream roses and peach and yellow blooms to represent the color of the shelter sign and there’s candles on every table.
There are signs making it clear what this event is for, and they selected a lot of positive photos of people with their new pets over the darker sad ones I’ve seen in the past.
The silent auction display is bigger this year and offers a variety of items that I intend to take Laina to so she can see if she wants to bid on anything.
“Kyle. You’re here!” I hear Mom and turn to smile at her dresses in a soft yellow gown and a lot of diamonds.
“You look beautiful, Mom. This looks successful so far. Great job.” I smile at Laina as she looks at Mom with a wary expression. “You remember Laina, I hope?”
Mom looks at the woman beside me with a surprised expression before extending her hand. “Of course. How are you? I wasn’t aware that Kyle had a date tonight.”
“It thrilled me to be invited. It looks amazing in here.” Laina smiles as she shakes her hand and seems to get comfortable again. “Kyle tells me you do a lot of these.”
