Chapter 86: Chapter 86

I grab fistfuls of the twelve thousand dollars Louis Vuitton dress Ash bought for this day and drag. The sound of it tearing makes me shiver with satisfaction as it rips from top to bottom. It's a slip of a thing, not even worth the amount it was paid for. I look down in disdain as it pools at my feet.

Unfortunately, my satisfaction is short-lived.

My chest is still on fire with shock, that damn tightness sat constricting my lungs to the point I almost can't breathe and have to drag short gulps of air in through my mouth.

How will you feel if your fiancée didn't show up on the day of your engagement party?

Yup! That's exactly what happened to me.

Twelve hours earlier

The day dawns bright and clear. It's so bright that shards of sunlight peek into the room through the floor-to-ceiling curtains, piercing my eyes in its brightness. I roll to the other side, noting the warmth and dent on it. Ash must have just left for his hotel room. I smile to myself as my eyes stray to the bedside table on which a note is propped up against the lamp.

I sit up and reach for it, noting with pleasure, Ash's messy scrawl.

Can't wait to officially become your fiancé. See you in two hours.

I read the note one more time and shiver in pleasure.

"Soon, my darling, soon."

I touch two fingers to my lips and then place them on the note before I put my two hands in the air and stretch them, releasing the tension from my shoulders and body simultaneously before I struggle to get up and waddle to the bath. A knock sounds on the bedroom door and even without me telling the person to enter, it opens.

I roll my eyes as Adele's chirpy voice filters to me from the bathroom. I know she's tidying up the bedroom and bringing out the things I'm going to wear for my engagement party today.

I'm getting engaged today to Ash, the love of my life and my ride-or-die. I can't believe it. Excitement buzzes inside me, but riding on its coattails is another feeling I know so well. The feeling of anxiety and trepidation. It wells up, threatening to strangle the feeling of excitement, but I push it down and focus, instead on the day ahead.

Clarissa peeps her head into the bathroom and I wave her in.

"Hey, babe, last-minute jitters acting up?"

I move away from my perch on the sink where I had been unknowingly staring at my reflection, and waddle over to her, smiling in the process. "No one's going to take my shine from me today, Clar, now get in here and help me."

The next thirty minutes are spent with me bathing in honey and milk to make my skin shiny, soft, and supple, after which the bath is drained and Clarissa helps to wash me with a strawberry-scented bath wash. After that, I proceed to the bedroom where the makeup artist is already waiting to work her magic on my face.

Once she's done, the hair stylist gets to work on my hair. I watch, entranced as it's parted this way and that slicked to perfection and put up in the most exquisite style I have ever seen. By the time my nails are done and I'm standing in front of the mirror, I don't recognize the person who stares back at me. If not for the sparkle in my eyes which gives me away, I'd have definitely said I was staring at someone else, someone more sophisticated.

I take my time to walk my eyes from the top of my perfectly coiffed hair to my face before I linger on my eyes. They're bigger now than usual, made more so by the expertise of the make-up artist. There's a certain innocence lurking in the corners but as I look deeper, it's laced with mystery.

It's going to drive him wild when he looks into your eyes, I guarantee you.

Words, the makeup artist had said to me when I was allowed to look at myself in the mirror for the first time when she had finished. A smile lurks at the corners of my lips and my eyes are instinctively drawn to them. They're fuller than usual.

Strawberry pink, the rarest of the colors, so that when his eyes dip to your lips, all he'll be thinking of is when he can get you alone so he can have a taste of them and then devour them.

I giggle to myself now as I continue going lower. I take in the dress I have on. It's strapless and silver, showcasing my shoulders to perfection. It also catches the lights as a result of all the little silver bubbles attached to it. I don't know how the designer did it, but as I continue staring at myself, it gives the illusion that I'm not pregnant. It's free and flows down to my feet, covering the stilettos I'm wearing and making me feel like a princess.

"You look beautiful, Mrs. Alicia."

I smile, even though I've told her many times to call me Alicia. A request she has stoically refused to grant me.

"Thanks, Adele."

Clarissa takes my hand in hers as she lets out a little squeal. "My bestie is officially going to be engaged today."

My heart soars in excitement as I stare at the ring Ash gave me. It speaks volumes.

I'm loved.

I'm coveted.

His.

Even without an engagement ring, I know without being told that from the first day, he set eyes on me, I was his.

I just didn't know it then.

The drive to parched for the night does not take long at all. Within a couple of minutes, Wilson is already opening the doors for me and I'm climbing out with the help of Adele and Clarissa on either side of me. Ash made sure to close down the restaurant to customers because he wanted us to get engaged here on the terrace overlooking the sprawling hills.

I couldn't agree more.

Standing and looking at the view has got peace stealing its way inside of me. I turn away from the splendid view and take in the view of the terrace. The tents are a vision of floral fantasy - white linen and spindly gold chairs. The round tables are set for ten, each one with a huge vase in the middle with white roses and names in front of each place in gilt script on a white card.

At a large corner, a jazz quartet is set up and already belting out soulful music.

"The guests have begun to arrive." Clarissa's voice pulls me from admiring the setting and as I turn around and lean over the terrace, I see limousines pulling into the driveway and valets opening doors for elegantly dressed people coming out.

My nerves flutter wildly causing my hands to shake.

Where is Ash?

He should be here by now. We planned that he'd spend the night at a hotel and get here first thing in the morning to overlook the decorations, but he could not bare to leave me and I didn't want him to either. He must have snuck out when I fell asleep and left early this morning. He should be here by now.

Clarissa and Adele usher me to one of the private rooms in the restaurant so I can be away from the prying eyes of the guests and also wait for Ash. As I sit on one of the chairs, the tightness around my chest slams into me in full force, and if not for my bulging stomach, I would most definitely have pitched forward.

I can't resist it, I call Ash, but it goes straight to voicemail. The tightness around my chest increases, and I let out a small whine as I close my eyes. Seconds pass into minutes, and minutes pass into an hour. I call Night Eyes and in a panicked voice, ask if he has seen Ash, but his reply is negative. He hasn't seen Ash since the day before.

One by one, I call Ash's four other men, and they say the same thing. Soon, they join me in the room, their faces pasted with worry and anxiety. After three hours of waiting and Ash not showing up, I know what I need to do. Clarissa asks me where I'm going the moment I stand. Adele stands beside me, ready to stop me, and even Ash's men as well, but I just shake my head and walk out.

I don't know who had the bright idea to give the guests food, but they're munching happily and talking amongst themselves. I catch some of them glancing repeatedly at their wristwatches and I know I'm going to have to bell the cat. I walk up to the podium and tap the microphone, catching the attention of everyone seated.

"I'm very sorry for having wasted all your time, but. . ." I swallow back the knot wedged in my throat and surge on. "This engagement will not hold."

As I stop down from the podium, I don't make it far before tears blind my eyes. Today, here and now, I will remember this shame and this hate that's coursing through me.