Vogue | Tony Stark

SEVENTY TWO - DREAMS COME TRUE

"It looks incredible, every shot is perfect. Gosh, look at that one!"

Esté was mesmerised as she reviewed the ad campaign for Gucci's Winter collection, amazed at just how beautiful the camera and the pieces had managed to make her look when of late, she'd felt anything but.

It was mid-October and the shoot had been wrapped for a while, the editors working overtime to pull together their most captivating advertisement yet. They'd spent two weeks in the Swiss Alps shooting for the campaign and while Esté had loved getting back into the swing of things in front of a camera, she felt like her soul was missing the entire time she was away from Tony and Selena.

As she gazed at the monitor and watched the playback of the advert however, Esté was breath-taken at the end result and felt relief at the fact it had all been worth it.

"Mama!"

Esté smiled with red cheeks at her daughter who was being held comfortably on Tom Ford's hip, a small hand outstretched towards the screen with a wide grin as she watched her mother strut through snow in a fur coat.

"That is Mama, you're right princess!" Tom cooed at the baby girl, giving her sides a gentle tickle that earned a golden laugh.

Estélla had always valued her close friends and never taken them for granted, but what she hadn't considered was just how precious they would be to her once she became a mother. She and Katy had grown even closer, spending their time in parks and indoor play centres with their children instead of bars and nightclubs and of course, Alicia was always there to play her part as the fun Aunt for Selena and Dawson.

Her little girl's wardrobe was full of luxury clothes and tiny shoes gifted to her by close friends like Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise and of course, the never ending text messages and phone calls from them and other friends alike made Esté realise that even when she'd felt like it, she'd never truly been alone.

Perhaps it was the postpartum blues or maybe the impending weight of a wedding the following year, but Esté's self-confidence had taken a hit over the last few months. She'd been on cloud nine after getting engaged but the older and more difficult Selena started to get, the more Esté felt like she'd started to lose herself again.

She still worked and accepted jobs, trained in the gym and stayed healthy and while she quite frankly looked almost the same as she'd done before giving birth, Esté didn't feel anywhere close. She understood that it was more than likely the hormones wreaking havoc on her body, but Esté still struggled to find beauty in herself most days.

Until she saw that final version of the Gucci shoot, that was, seeing for the first time in a while the old version of herself that she'd loved entirely.

"I can't wait for it to go live, you've done a wonderful job, Tom. Thank you, you've no idea how much I needed this."

She embraced her friend and felt her daughter grab at her neck, carefully taking her back into her arms and kissing her head as she nestled into her shoulder.

"This was all you, Esté. But I do have one more thing I want to show you."

Confused yet intrigued, Esté followed on Tom's heels as he walked through his office into another room, pressing a fingerprint to a scanner by the door that flashed green before he pushed it open, holding it there for the girls to head in first.

He followed them inside, smiling mindlessly as Esté carried her daughter over to the window and pointed out the greenery of Central Park and the cars on the streets below them, taking the time to drag out a stand covered by a white sheet.

"I know the wedding isn't until next summer, and I also know that you've never once mentioned this to me and you're under no obligation to accept," Tom said with a nervous smile, one hand on the sheet, "But I pulled a little something together for you."