Frost in December - My Brother's Best Friend

Chapter 9: Reckless

Vivian

Anything or anyone could've encountered me in the elevator, and it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest. A woman? Fine. A horse? Weird, but acceptable.

Never in a million years did I expect Kaden. Well, it wasn't that unnatural for him to be in his own elevator. But I had somewhat grown used to the sight of him in his secure four walls. He was nothing but a gym and office rat. I actually believed that he didn't even have a home, instead he spent all day working and in his free time, he worked out.

Because Kaden had gotten ripped. Not like my brother who became fit through irregular exercises, but the kind of muscles that could pick me up like my weight was equivalent to that of a toothpick. I forced my mind away from those thoughts before they could escalate any further.

Like, I don't know, imagine him pick me up and hold me against a wall with ease.

"What are you doing here?" I blurted out before I could stop myself. What a dumb question, Vivian.

He arched an eyebrow, clearly amused. "This building belongs to me, remember?"

I groaned in false annoyance. "Don't remind me why you're insufferable," I said in distaste and tried to make an equally disgusted face.

Clearly, it did not work, because Kaden only continued to grin at me knowingly. "You know, women are usually into one-liners like that," he said as he stepped closer to me.

"Luckily, I'm not one of your blonde hookups," I retorted snarkily. Kaden's eyebrows furrowed in confusion for a split second before he got a grip of his composure.

"No office playdate today, Dimples." His voice suddenly dropped lower and I felt something flutter in my stomach. "What, why?" I asked confused.

"We're going to find you a dress." Right. The opening party.

I squinted my eyes at him and pointed an accusing finger at him. "Are you critiquing my outfit choices right now?"

"Yes," he said flatly.

I gasped. "But I thought I look cute today..." I gave myself a once-over and smoothed out my baby blue skirt. When I looked back up, I caught the way his gaze lingered on my body for a few more moments before meeting my eyes. This boosted my confidence so that I could say, "I don't think you're in any place to judge me. You wear a suit every day."

Kaden didn't even seem bothered by this. "My wardrobe doesn't require change."

"Neither does mine!"

"For this occasion, I beg to differ." He frowned. "Look, I'm not trying to insult you. I'm merely here to give you my credit card and you can buy whatever dress you desire."

My ears perked up at his words. Woah, this opening party must be essential to the bakery's reputation. A magnificent dress was needed and Kaden Vlastov just gave me a free pass to his bank account. Who was I to decline? "Any dress I want?"

He nodded. "Chanel, Dior, whatever more there is," he said in the most casual voice like their dresses didn't cost more than my rent for three months combined.

Kaden held out a black card, "Have fun."

My eyes almost popped out of my head. "Have fun? You're not coming with me?" He sighed. "You know that I'm busy."

"But as you said, this event is really important and since you clearly doubt my fashion sense, might as well tag along and help me pick!" This will fuel the operation. I was looking forward to pick the most expensive dress and then see him fume.

There was no time for arguments, so I simply grabbed his wrist and dragged him along with me, ignoring the bewildered stares from the lobby. Especially the ones from Elizabeth.

I expected Kaden to rip his wrist out of my grip and lecture me in front of all of these people, but he never did. He pliantly followed my lead to the nearest mall.

Which was, unsurprisingly, another one of his properties.

We stopped at the luxurious boutique, the glass doors sliding open to welcome us. A few employees greeted Kaden respectfully. The soft glow of chandeliers illuminated rows of exquisite gowns, each more stunning than the last. But none of them really struck out to me. They lacked...personality. As we walked through the store, Kaden remained stoic, his expression unchanged.

I, on the other hand, was practically bouncing with excitement. I had always dreamt of buying a dress so jaw dropping it would leave everyone astonished. "Oh, Kaden, look at this one!" I exclaimed, pulling out a shimmering gown adorned with intricate lace details. $186,000. "Isn't it gorgeous?"

Kaden glanced at the dress briefly before nodding courtly. "It's fine."

Undeterred by his lackluster response, I continued my search, flitting from rack to rack like a butterfly drawn to nectar. Then I spotted another. A breathtaking gown crafted from the finest silk, its train cascading elegantly behind it. Not what I would usually go for, but it was significantly more expensive than the one before.

"Kaden, this is it," I declared, holding up the dress for his inspection. "This is the one."

He regarded the gown with mild interest, his expression betraying no emotion. "Okay," he said and dragged us to the checkout counter. I watched as he approached the cashier, his movements unhurried and deliberate.

The young woman shamelessly checked Kaden out for everyone to see. But he didn't flirt back. I doubt he even noticed her. As the cashier rang up the dress, I held my breath, waiting for Kaden's reaction.

I grinned, knowing that I had found the perfect dress to test his resolve. I wasn't actually going to let him buy it for me. I wasn't crazy. "That will be $257,000."

To my surprise, he remained unfazed, his cool demeanor never faltering. As the final price flashed on the screen, I expected him to express some form of disapproval or annoyance. Instead, he simply nodded, as if the exorbitant cost was of little consequence to him.

I couldn't help but marvel at his composure. I knew that he made some good money. But here I was, trying to provoke a reaction out of him, and he was handling the situation with such grace. It was as if nothing could ruffle his unflappable exterior.

One look at his face and it still remained stoic, drained of any kind of emotion. No dread, no fear, no shock.

"That's it? Do you want to buy shoes or jewellery, too?" he asked casually as he gave his card to the cashier. My jaw dropped. He's actually going to pay for it. And he asked me if I wanted more?!

I stopped the cashier before she could charge his card. "Wait! I changed my mind," I said slightly panicked.

"Dimples, what are you doing?"

"I changed my mind. Let's go to another store. I'm sorry for the inconvenience!" I grabbed Kaden's hand with a flushed face and ignored the sour look on the cashier's face. To my surprise, Kaden patiently trodded after me as I still held his hand.

"I can't believe you're ready to spend that much money on a dress!" I gasped, appalled. Kaden laughed behind me, his voice deep and rich. I continued trodding down a familiar path through the mall as I kept rambling on about his reckless.

His lazy smile went unnoticed.