Strings

Chapter 16

Avery

The whole banquet hall oozed of money, power, luxury and over the top extravaganza. And so clearly my first instinct upon entering this wave of ridiculous extravagance was to run away as fast as I possibly could as if my hair was on fire.

However as much as I wanted to consider this as a serious possibility there were two major factors stopping me from making the run of my life:
A) I was wearing the most ridiculous heels
B) Hayden's grip on me was so tight, I couldn't break away even if I wanted to

Not that I wanted to. I welcomed his warmth.

Immediately brushing the thought away I try to focus on my breathing, trying not to get overwhelmed from everything that was around me.

I am the wife of the most dangerous and feared businessman in the corporate world. I am expected to act as such.
I take a deep breath and try to ready myself.

"You okay?" Hayden asks from beside me. His voice barely above a whisper and I was sure I was the only one who heard him.

I nod back at him with a small smile.
I've got this.

***

It's been a little over 30 mins of exchanging fake pleasantries when I spot Skyler stride towards us, looking ethereal in a midnight blue gown that hugged her in all the right places and leaving a titillating slit all the way up to her right thigh.
Her bold yet not overdone makeup made her stand out but what I admired the most was the aura she carried around her, which screamed bold and beautiful and nothing else could possibly describe her better.

"Hi Aves, you look  s t u n n i n g!! I sincerely hope that brother dearest here hasn't bored you to death" Skyler exclaims, with a nice glint to her eyes as Hayden rolls his eyes.

"Not yet, but I assure you, we're borderline close" I respond back, laughing along lightheartedly, earning a look from Hayden, who looks pleasantly startled.

More people come and go, and I feel extremely uncomfortable and not to mention unfit in a banquet hall as demanding and scrutinizing as this one. I felt like all eyes were on me;
Half of the ladies looking me up and down, snickering amongst themselves. Laughing and making fun of whatever in me they found so amusing. But not once did they dare to call me outright on anything as Hayden towered next to me. Making plainly clear that he couldn't care less of what ever it is that they were trying to do but it would do no one any good if they tried to cross the line with me. And for that I was extremely grateful.
The other half of the ladies shot dirty looks at me, sizing me up and down and giving me the meanest and most coldest look they could possibly muster, no doubt cursing me for bagging the hottest, richest, and the most dangerous man to have possibly been present in any room.
I sigh as I think about how everything actually happened and how painfully pathetic it seems now to me.
If only they knew.....

Hayden notices the shift in my mood and if he doesn't already know, then he might've had a pretty strong guess that all the staring and the whispering might just be getting to me.

He doesn't say anything to me but gestures at someone. I try to peek as subtly as possible but it's of no use.
The man is so humongous, I couldn't possible be able to tell who he's signaling to.

Not that I needed to either, because a second later Skyler appears, in all her glory and comes up to us.

"Go outside for a while, Skyler will accompany you." Hayden says sounding like he's addressing a child.

"Yo, if Aves wants to go get some air she can decide for herself, what did I tell you about bossing her around?" Skyler retorts back in her signature style.