CHAPTER 4

NALANI

I end up wearing the dress Gwen picked because I choose to keep the peace and prevent Daniel from getting mad on a big day like this.

The moment I step into the hall, I feel eyes on me, and I swallow thickly.

At the end of the room, I see Daniel’s figure, and even if his back is turned to me, it’s hard to miss his imposing physique. He stands in the midst of a small gathering, a glass of champagne in his hand, and from the look on the faces I can see, he’s telling an impressive story.

It only takes a few seconds for the group to notice me, Daniel too.

He excuses himself and crosses the room to where I stand with purposeful strides, and I smile, even though he doesn’t.

“Congratulations, baby,” I start, the moment he’s within reach, and I try to touch his chin.

He skillfully avoids my touch by grabbing my wrist, not enough to hurt, and he leans in, ignoring my words.

“Now that you’re here, I need you to do something for me. I need you to stay quiet, out of sight, and not cause a scene, Nalani. I hope you can do that for me?”

I swallow, wondering why he would ask me that.

Still, I respond. “Of course. I won’t cause any trouble.”

“Good,” he says, and as quickly as he came, he leaves.

“I need a drink,” I whisper to myself, already feeling out of place. I make it to the bar and quickly request a cocktail. “Hopefully, it’s strong enough to make me forget where I am,” I say to myself, but I don’t realize that someone close by hears me.

“Forget all you want, but it doesn’t change the fact that you look like a slave. I mean, what the hell is that dress?”

I don’t need to turn to recognize the leech’s voice.

Gwen.

She laughs, and a round of giggles from the three other women with her burns a hole in my chest.

“Gwen,” I start, but I hold myself back because I don’t even know what to say to her. “Is this your idea of how to get under my skin? It’s not working,” I lie through my teeth as the burn spreads to the back of my throat. It hurts. Badly.

Gwen’s laughter tells me that she sees through my lie, so I stand up abruptly, having heard enough.

“Oh! Wait. Don’t go,” she coos, and I turn, gripping my purse tightly, I’m sure my knuckles turn white.

“What is it, Gwen?”

With a sweet voice, deceptive enough, she speaks. “It seems this party is running low on servers, so why don’t you be a good little housewife and help distribute a tray of champagne, Nalani?”

My name rolls from her tongue with contempt so viable, I visibly take a step back, not just because of the insult.

“I’m not doing that,” I state, and Gwen’s voice drops an octave lower, warning bleeding through it.

“If you know what’s good for you, pick up a tray.”

I shake my head once, feigning confidence, and she doesn’t even give me the time to regret my decision, because Gwen switches into character like I’ve never seen before.

She rises to her feet like the seat is on fire, and she points at me, false shock painting her face pale.

“Why do you have my earrings on? Have you been stalking my apartment, Nalani? I told you before. Daniel is only a business partner to me, but you won’t stop following and threatening me. Are you doing this to make a statement?”

I’m rendered speechless by her words, and I take another step back, shaking my head frantically and turning around. My eyes meet Daniel’s, and I see pure anger in them.

“No, that’s not true. These were given to me by Daniel, my husband, for this event.”

Even though my words are true and the golden earrings were in the pile with the dress she picked, it sounds like I’m fabricating my story. The round of whispers going through the hall attest to that. I sound insane, so I turn to Daniel, pleading with my eyes that he defends me. “Daniel, love, you know I prefer silver jewelry. I wore this because I thought you wanted me to. You put it down for me, didn’t you?”

Daniel remains silent, and the multiple judgmental eyes on me make me wish the floor would open and swallow me whole.

“You didn’t have to steal hers to make a statement,” one of Gwen’s cohorts say out loud, and I feel a hand clawing at my neck in mortification.

I turn around frantically in a bid to explain and exonerate myself from this baseless accusation, but ironically, and as bad luck would have it, I collide head first into a server with a handful of half filled wine glasses on a tray.

My dress is too heavy for me to catch myself quickly enough, so I plummet straight for the ground.

The server barely saves me from face planting the floor, but the drinks don’t stand a chance, so the glasses shatter the moment they hit the tiles.

“I’m so sorry, ma’am,” the teenage boy apologizes even though it was my fault, and I don’t find my focus before thick feet appear in front of me.

Daniel.

He looks pissed.

He grabs me by my arm roughly, anger radiating off him in waves.

“Daniel, I’m sorry, this is just a mis…”

“Come with me. Right. Now.”

Without argument, I follow him like a deviant child, waiting to be scolded, and he doesn’t waste time in delivering it once we’re behind a closed door.

“What the heck are you doing? The one time I ask you to not cause a scene, you do it without wasting time. What’s this about you stalking and stealing from Gwen, Nalani? Are you okay?”

My mouth opens wordlessly, and my eyes burn with unshed tears.

“What am I…” I stammer. “Everything I’m wearing, down to this ugly dress, is what ‘your friend’ picked out for me! I did this to maintain peace, but she still found a way to embarrass me. You can’t tell me you’re oblivious to how she disrespects me, but you still let her. And you want to get mad at me?” I’m panting by the time I’m done, my eyes clouded with hot tears, and I think I see a flicker of emotion pass through Daniel’s eyes.

As quickly as it appears, it vanishes, and I ask myself if I was mistaken, because he still picks Gwen’s side.

“Pull yourself together before coming back out,” Daniel says coldly, and I sigh, deflated.

He leaves me alone in the empty room, and the only things I can hear are blood trashing in my ears, and the faint sound of the party going on in the next room.

I find the ladies room to do as Daniel said, and the moment I close the door behind me, it opens from outside. My attention draws to the door, and a gasp escapes my lips when I realize that it’s a man.

A man whom I don’t recognize because a striking face and statue like his would be hard to forget.