Chapter 25 Ella
ELLA
“Wow,” my mother says, gushing. “You look . . . stunning. More than stunning.” Her eyes grow misty, and she dabs them with a tissue.
“You look beautiful, yourself.” I give her a careful hug since we’re both in gowns.
My glam team just finished with me, but they worked on Maya and my mom as well.
I haven’t seen Maya yet, but they did an amazing job on my mom.
She’s in a vibrant turquoise gown that makes her blue eyes pop, and her blonde hair hangs to her shoulders in loose curls.
“Just like always, you look so hot that no one will believe you’re my mother. ”
It’s not a lie. My mom had me young, at twenty-four, and she’s aged like a fine wine.
So at the age of fifty-one, she looks more like she’s forty-one, and too young to have a daughter in her late twenties.
We get asked all the time if we’re sisters.
I hated it when I was a teen, but now I love it.
My mom is beyond beautiful and deserves all the attention she gets for it.
Maya walks back into the loft space the glam team has commandeered for the night after changing into her gown, and again we’re all bouncing and laughing in excitement.
“Oh my god! Maya, you look insane!” She’s a vision. Her red hair is down in long romantic waves, and she’s in a lavender gown that makes her pale skin look like creamy porcelain and her hair stand out but not clash. She looks like a siren or a nymph from a Greek tale.
“Look at both of my girls done up for a fancy party, looking like modern-day princesses,” my mom says, dabbing her eyes with the tissue again.
“Don’t cry, Mom, you’ll ruin your makeup.”
“I can’t help it. All I can see is the two of you in dress-ups, sneaking into my makeup and perfume, and doing fashion shows in our living room. If your younger selves could see how beautiful you look now . . .”
“I haven’t seen my final look yet, hang on.” I move to the full-length mirror in the corner where Katya is ready with a steamer to get out a few stubborn wrinkles at the bottom of my dress. As soon as she’s satisfied, I look in the mirror.
I’m wearing a creamy pink strapless gown that hugs my curves but flows in layers of chiffon from the knees to the short train.
The cut, color, and layers give it a sweet, romantic feel.
My hair is pulled up in a gorgeous up-do, and my makeup is a combination of pinks and bronze, almost giving a blushing bride vibe.
Overall, it’s a soft, romantic look, and if the gown was white instead of pink, I’d think it was perfect for a wedding.
“You almost look like a bride,” Maya says from behind me, mirroring my thoughts.
Katya fits us all with jewelry and reminds my mother and Maya that the pieces are in the Langford’s collection and must be returned directly to her at the end of the night.
Both of their eyes are wide when they realize the diamonds they’re wearing are not just large but are real and are decades or centuries old.
I blush, noting that I’ve seen and worn a couple of the pieces.
I turn away to hide my smile at the memory.
Katya fits me with a delicate diamond bracelet and earrings, and I’m of course wearing Asher’s gold ring on my right hand. She has me wear a large diamond ring on the middle finger of my left hand, but nothing else.
“No necklace?” I ask, touching the empty space beneath my throat. It looks a little bare.
“Mr. Langford gave me very clear instructions. No necklace tonight.”
Hmm. “Did he say why?”
She shakes her head. “Your team and Mr. Langford approved this look and every detail of it. This is what they want; I’m sure they have their reasons.”
Emily walks in dressed in a peach-colored gown, surprising me. “Hey! I didn’t know you were coming to the party tonight,” I say, giving her a quick hug. “You look amazing. I love that color on you!” I introduce her to my mom and Maya, telling them what an amazing boss she is.
“The Langford annual ball is a big deal,” Emily says when the introductions are over, “so the whole team is here. They’ll stay out of the way so as not to be a distraction, but they’re here just to make sure things go off without a hitch.”
“Isn’t that what the event planners are for?”
“The event planners are running the event. We are running the extra things that pertain to you and Asher.”
She looks me over with a critical eye. Not in a rude way, but in the, it’s her job to make sure I look a specific way for specific events, way. She gives a relieved sigh, clearly happy with what she sees.
“And what things pertain to Asher and me?” I can’t help but ask, starting to feel nervous.
“Asher wants it to be a surprise.” She rolls her eyes, and it looks like she’s genuinely worried and frustrated.
“I can’t tell you what’s in store, but I need to give you some heads up.
Tonight is big. Like big, big. So you need to be perfect.
Remember any reaction of yours will be seen by a room full of people, and all those people have cell phones with cameras.
Anything you do or say can be leaked to the press in a matter of seconds. ”
“You’re making me nervous. Is this big thing a bad thing?”
She sighs. “No, it’s a good thing. A very good thing from our PR perspective. I just worry about you.”
“Oh my god, what is it?” I can’t help asking again. My nerves are getting out of hand.
“Just know that tonight’s event will be making the news, so be prepared for a barrage of it tomorrow.
And you should know that there will also be a professional photographer taking photos that will be given to the press, not leaked.
These will be officially released Langford photos.
” She turns to Trenton. “Her lipstick is kiss-proof?”
“It is, just as ordered.”
Emily nods. “You all did your jobs well, she looks perfect.” Now she turns back to me. “Good luck tonight, Ella. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“That wasn’t foreboding at all,” Maya says, taking my hand. “What the hell is happening tonight?”
I shrug. “With Asher? It could literally be anything.”
“I’ll try to get something out of Sterling. Maybe he’ll tell me, and then I’ll let you know.”
“I don’t know if that will work. If Asher’s ordered it to be a secret, it’s going to be a fucking secret.”
“Don’t worry about it. It’s going to be spectacular!” Andre says, packing up his station of hair tools.
“You know what it is?”
He gives me a knowing smile. “Of course I do. Everyone on your team but you knows. We’ve all been prepped, and I can’t wait to see it. Trenton and I were invited personally by Mr. Langford! We’ve never been to a party like this, even with all our rich bitch clients. We can’t wait!”
“See you there!” Trenton says, waving for me to get a move on. We’re running a few minutes behind.
With that, we make our way down the second story hallway to the grand staircase, and now I really do feel like a princess of old as my mother, Maya, and I start down the stairs.
Asher and his family are all gathered in the grand foyer below, and I try not to blush as they all look up and watch our decent.
Asher’s eyes meet mine. He looks a little surprised for a moment, and then his surprise morphs into the dazzling smile I rarely see except behind closed doors.
His eyes never leave mine until I’m standing before him.
“You are a vision,” he whispers.
“Thank you. You look amazing yourself.” And he does. All the men are in smart tuxes, and Asher fills his out like some Adonis in the flesh.
“I can’t wait to peel that dress off you later,” Asher murmurs in my ear.
I laugh, low and quiet. “Same. You better watch yourself tonight, Mr. Langford, or you might find yourself fucked in a broom closet during the party.”
He raises his brow. “Is that a threat or a promise?”
“Both.”
He kisses my temple. “I knew I liked you.”
Asher glances down at his watch, then lets out a relieved sigh when Harold opens the front door. Shock filters through me when Zahra and Lucy walk through, dressed in gowns.
“What are you two doing here?” I gasp, running to them.
“Your boyfriend flew us in for the party,” Lucy says.
The three of us hug, and my mom and Maya join us. My mom hasn’t seen Zahra or Lucy for a while, so she hugs them furiously and makes them promise to chat with her and update her on their lives before the night is over.
I notice Asher out of the corner of my eye, standing back from our little reunion.
“You did this?”
He shrugs. “Tonight is a special night. I wanted all your most important people to be here.”
I hurry over to him and press a kiss to his lips. “Thank you.”
“Anything for you, baby.”
“It’s time,” Catherine calls.
Asher takes my hand, and we follow his parents and the rest of our little group as they head toward the ballroom—yes, the summer mansion has a fucking ballroom in the east wing of the house—but before we enter, Asher pulls me to the side and asks his family to give us a moment.
“Tonight is . . . a big deal for my family,” Asher says, suddenly uneasy. “And a big deal for me.” My stomach drops. What the hell is happening tonight? “And I realized after your reaction this morning to our family photo that it’s probably going to be a shock for you.”
“What is going on, Asher?”
“It’s a big step. And now I’m realizing like an idiot that I probably should have talked to you about it, but it’s too late now. And it’s fast. I know it’s fast. But I didn’t expect us to be in the place that we are now. I thought everything would be more business, more cut-and-dried.”
He’s tripping over his words and rambling, and I’ve never seen him do either of those things. “Asher, please tell me what’s happening. You’re starting to scare me.”
“It’s sudden, I know that. Like I said, I didn’t think we’d cross the boundaries we crossed, and so now this feels much different than how I thought it would when the idea was first presented to me. But—”
Cheers erupt from the ballroom.