Without Him

Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

Tonight was Braden's family friend dinner. Before I left work, Mr. Kerrington made sure to share with me how much he, his son Braden, his daughter Caroline and his wife were anticipating my attendance. It made me feel somehow special and nervous at the same time, making me over-think my decisions. I didn't want to arrive too late or too early. Making me think if my dress was too formal or too casual for the occasion.

"Ella!" I heard Mr. Kerrington call as I locked my office before leaving. Most of the employees had been dismissed earlier than normal due to Mr. Kerrington's dinner.

"Yes?" I replied, turning around to face him. Mr. Kerrington was wearing a grey suit with a white shirt and a grey tie. His salt-and-pepper-looking hair was combed back, like he usually had it. His sort of wrinkled face was expressing a smile.

"I just wanted to tell you Braden, Caroline, my wife and I are very happy to have you with us tonight. You know we treat you as part of the family"

His words had surprised me. I didn't know they were so keen to have me attend, I mean I'm sure people with more importance were going to the dinner tonight. "Oh, well thank you for inviting me."

"Nonsense, thank you for agreeing to go." So modest "By the way, I told Braden to pick you up, if it's okay with you of course." He quickly added

"Sure," I agreed.

"Since dinner starts at 7:00pm, can I have him pick you at about 6:30pm?"

"Of course, fine with me"

"Excellent. I'll see you later tonight then."

"Absolutely, goodnight, Mr. Kerrington" I walked through the corridor full of offices until I reached the elevator, taking myself to the lobby and exiting the building. My car was parked across the street, I approached it, unlocking the doors and starting the engine, heading home to start getting ready for tonight's dinner.

Thankfully, Mum was still going to be at my apartment until I got ready and Bliss arrived. Which gave me the chance to take shower, get dressed and do my make-up and hair peacefully, without having to keep an eye on Mia. I got home at about 5:29pm, which meant I only had exactly one hour to get ready before Braden came to pick me up. When I arrived home, I didn't have the chance to have my daily after-work talk with Mum since I was running out of time. As soon as I got to my bedroom, I quickly discarded my clothes and shoes and went to the shower.

After 45 minutes of hard and fast work, I managed to get ready on time. I had a red dress with Louboutin heels. The dress was a bit tight at the top but had a flowy skirt that was mid-thigh length. The heels were black with gold patterns. I decided to pair the outfit with a gold necklace and a nude clutch. For my makeup, I did smokey eyes with natural and neutral colors that matched my outfit and made my hazel-dark green eyes stood out, my cheeks were slightly pink from the blush I had applied and my lips had red lipstick. My hair was loose with natural curls, I had managed to do with my curling wand.

"You look absolutely stunning, Ella" Bliss had arrived while I was getting ready. I had said my goodbyes to Mum pretty quickly since I wanted to get ready before Braden arrived.

"Thank you. For your complement and for babysitting Mia tonight. I promise I'll be home early"

"Don't worry about it, relax and have fun." She smiled at me, while having sleepy Mia on her arms.

"Thank you, again. Bye pumpkin" I kissed Mia on the cheek, leaving her on a hazy state on Bliss's arms as I headed to entrance of the building were Braden was waiting for me.

As I got out of the elevator and exited the building, I instantly spotted Braden leaning against his car. He was wearing a light blue shirt and black dress pants, his hair was elegantly combed. When he spotted he stood up straight and eyed me from head to toe.