Step 21: TEASE him

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My plans to devour a whole pizza were ruined by my bad mood. And my attitude was only made worse when I heard the front door slam shut. Hopefully, Ivy wouldn't be there as she would be the little push that would cause me to snap. I walked out of the bedroom to see Ethan holding a few shopping bags.

"Have fun?" I asked casually as if I didn't care. Which I didn't.

"Yeah." He handed the bags to me. "These are for you."

I looked inside. There were clothes and very expensive. "You really didn't need to."

Ethan ignored my hands that were trying to return the bags. "I'm not a woman, Ashley. I can't wear them."

"Then why do you have them?"

"My sister bought them for you to say thank you for dragging me here."

I smiled. "I wonder how you're related to her. She's lovely."

"Wait till she poisons you," he mumbled then looked at his Rolex. "My family have decided to have dinner together at seven. It's at some restaurant nearby."

"Didn't you have dinner with Ivy?" I pointed out.

"I canceled."

"Oh." I kept a blank face but internally I was laughing. The poor girl. If she thought she could push me out of the picture, she had another thing coming. "So do I get to come this time or should I stay here?"

"Seeing as you're my girlfriend to them, it would make more sense if you came. If you don't have anything to wear, just wear one of the things Victoria picked out."

"Yes, sir," I saluted then went back into the bedroom where I left the bags on the bed. I grabbed my towel and other necessities to have a shower. You can probably guess that the bathroom was amazing with a marble floor, giant bathtub with gold taps and a ridiculously large sink. I waited for the water to become warm before entering the shower. At first, everything was normal until I heard the door open. Peering around the curtain, I was face to face with Ethan who was as shaving. I tapped on the glass.

"Ethan," I whispered.

He turned. No shock. No horror. "What?"

"Get the f*ck out," I said emphasising each word.

"This is my room."

"And I'm f*cking naked in this room so can you leave?"

"Do you have a third nipple I should be worried about?"

"No, but-"

"Do you have a d*ck?"

"Not as far as I know."

"Then I really don't care." Ethan continued shaving. I narrowed my eyes at him. I couldn't fight him as I wasn't decent and my towel was hanging on the side of the bath.

I threw my hands up in the air. "F*ck you, Ethan." I walked out of the shower, acting as if I didn't care about my nudity. I grabbed my towel which I used to cover myself then stomped out, slamming the door as I left.

Of course he didn't care. I was like a boy in his eyes but I planned to change that. One of the clothes Ethan's sister had given to me was a short, plum purple dress that had the sides cut out. It looked like something from Ivy's wardrobe except it covered a lot more skin. I put in on and slipped my feet into simple black heels. Spraying the perfume I received for my birthday, I was good to go. I grabbed my clutch and waited for Ethan on the sofa.

"Go and change."

He stood in front of me, looking intimidating in a suit with a simple black tie. His eyes raked over my dress causing me to turn red. Then I registered what he said.

"I'm not changing," I argued. "We're going to be late if I do."

"They can wait. Go."

I stood up to my full height which wasn't much. "No. You're being ridiculous."

"I don't think I am." His body was tense and he was frowning.

I rolled my eyes at him. "You are. I'll go without you if you're going to get angry over a dress."

"Fine," he grumbled. "I'll come."

*****

Like Ethan said, the restaurant was close by. We walked in holding hands, acting as if everything was right in the world. My smile disappeared the second I saw Ivy sitting on the table with the rest of his family. She grinned at me, waving her pink painted claws. B*tch.

"I thought you said it was a 'family' dinner," I whispered to Ethan.

"It is."

"So why is she here?"

Ethan raised an eyebrow. "My mom probably invited her."

Andrew sat beside Ivy and was smirking, aware of the tension. Why couldn't she be interested in him? They had so much in common: they were evil, good looking and rich. A match made in hell. Ethan pulled out my chair which by chance was the one on the right of Ivy, a terrible mistake as now nothing could hold me back from stabbing the b*tch.

"You're late," Mrs. Holt pointed out, glaring at me as if it was my fault.

I smiled sweetly. "I'm so sorry. Ethan didn't like what I was wearing."

"He has a point," she huffed.

My hands moved slightly towards the small knife on the table but moved back to my lap when a waiter came over. He was young and looked friendly. "Hello, I'll be your waiter today. What would you like to drink?"

I zoned out, staring at the table. Suddenly, I felt myself being tapped. "What do you want to drink?" Ethan asked. I looked up to see everyone watching me.

"Water," I quickly said.

The waiter gave me a wink before writing it down. "I'll be back in a moment."

"As I was saying," Ethan's mom continued, "you should avoid wearing clothes that show so much skin." My eyes widened. Did she not see what Ivy was wearing? "It's terrible that children in this day and age feel that to make themselves attractive they must show skin. I mean, if you're - I hate to use this word - ugly, nothing can be helped no matter what you do. Only certain people like my dear Ivy can pull of anything. Oh, can I have ice with that?"

The waiter from before was placing everyone's drinks on the table then took back Ethan's mom's glass to do as she requested.

"Well, seeing as I bought the dress, I think you pulled it off, Ashley," Victoria responded. At least one person liked me.

Ivy picked up her glass. "I guess so. I'm surprised it fit." She stood up, revealing her latest dress which was a tight bandage dress. "Not everyone can has the right figure."

"I'm going to the restroom," I muttered getting up. However, Ivy decided it was the perfect moment to spill her expensive drink.

On my f*cking dress.

#

So many reads for this book! Thank you! xxx

I was going to stop writing it but we'll see how it goes.

Love you

XO Nyx


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