Hey!:)
Nothing to say except thanks for the reviews, follows and favorites. I've added an important announcement at the bottom of the chapter so please don't skip that. Thank you :)
I hope you enjoy this chapter. I had fun writing it :p
Rose
I found myself in the ballroom exactly an hour later, marveling at the transformation the place had undergone while I was away.
The lighting of the entire hall had been changed; over the space of an hour, a solemnly grand ballroom had been transformed into something resembling a club. Twinkling strings of lights replaced chandeliers, majestic rugs removed to reveal hardwood floors and stately tapestries covered by huge speakers.
A huge disco ball hovered above the dance floor, throwing into sharp relief the number of people who danced underneath it, in tune to the upbeat music played by a DJ.
When I stepped into the hall, the lights brightened abruptly.
Neal's voice was magnified by the microphone when he announced: "Rose Mazur, ladies and gentlemen."
A shower of confetti rained down on me from above as the guests started clapping merrily. Happily surprised, I brushed some confetti from my hair and laughed when more rained down on me.
"Thank you!" I blew kisses into the air, grinning when many reciprocated.
"And there's our groom." Neal announced, making me whirl around in shock. "Dimitri Belikov, the guy who's taking our Rose away from us."
Many laughed as they clapped but my eyes were fixed on the entrance.
Through the dark of the doorway, Dimitri's form materialized as he walked into the light.
My breath caught when I looked at him.
He was dressed in a crisp white shirt and light khaki trousers, paired with a fitted, rusted copper colored blazer. The color brought out the brown in his eyes and gave a shinier edge to his hair which he'd tied back as always.
His dark eyes were fixed on me, unmindful of the applause and the greeting that the others called out. His gaze was intense and dark, shining with emotions that his face didn't portray. It was as if his gaze was lighting a fire under my skin, a fire that roared through my veins and threatened to consume my heart.
Vaguely, I wondered if he liked what he saw.
Everyone else did.
I'd always been sure of the reactions I could cause in men but with Dimitri, it was a mystery.
Did he find me pretty? I didn't know…
His eyes trailed down my body and up again in an agonizingly slow motion. I could see his fists clench and his eyes widen a little but…that was all.
For the hundredth time in my life, I cursed that damned mask of his.
I knew I looked hot. Everybody knew that I looked hot. So why did I need validation from Dimitri?
He was crazy if he didn't appreciate this.
Or gay.
Whatever.
I was wearing knee-length dress of shimmery maroon silk with a v-neckline that plunged quite low. It was quite normal at the front but past the shoulders at the back, the straps holding the dress up turned into thick, rustic gold chains inlaid with rubies. They criss-crossed at the back, a large ruby fixed at the point of intersection before they tapered down to hook into a thin gilded belt at my waist. It left the dress backless except for the chains, just the way I liked it.
My hair was arranged in an artful chignon but at that moment, I wished it was free. I knew Dimitri liked it that way.
Why did I care, anyway?
I forced myself to look away from him when Neal's voice echoed through the hall, "Come on in, you two. You're the guests of honor, after all."
Breathe, Rose.
Plastering on a large smile that soon became genuine when Neal came into sight, I hastened my footsteps as I walked over to him, very aware that Dimitri was barely a foot away from me.
"Let's get the party started then." Neal gestured for the DJ to continue playing and jumped down from the low platform, walking over to close the distance between us.
Around us, people had resumed dancing but Viktoria emerged from the crowd to talk to us. Sparing her a smile, I greeted my own brother while she talked to hers.
Neal grinned widely when I threw my arms around him. Pulling away to hold him at arm's length, I critically examined his outfit.
He was wearing black slacks with a light gray shirt that sparkled in the light, half concealed by the black vest he'd added. His classic bowler hat completed the outfit.
"Not bad," I told him, giggling when he gave me a look.
"I wish I could say the same," Neal said with a mock sigh. "Your dress is a little too revealing for my taste."
"Well, it's a good thing I don't dress to suit your taste," I shot back.
Neal looked amused. "No but I dare say that outfit suits somebody's taste."
I rolled my eyes.
Neal's face turned serious as he beckoned me closer. "Look, I know something's not right between you and Dimitri. You're going to tell me all about it and we'll sort it out. Together. But for tonight, you will have fun and act like everything's perfectly fine."
"I don't think those two go hand in hand," I joked before sobering up. "Don't worry. No one will know."
"Good. Now go and mingle. It's your party!"
I huffed, pushing him away slightly. "I'm so done with mingling. But if you insist."
Thankfully, there weren't many that demanded to talk to me like they had earlier. Perhaps it was the age difference but this party was lively, full of life and fun without all the boring conversations like earlier in the evening. Dimitri and I weren't forced to stick close- we could mingle on our own.
And we did.
In fact, I'd not caught sight of Dimitri in a while now.
But I did catch sight of Tasha while I was chatting with Jillian Mastrano, the girl Eddie was in love with but couldn't do anything about. To my horror, Tasha smiled when she caught my eyes and began walking towards me.
"Rose?" Jill touched my arm hesitantly. "Is everything okay?"
We were sitting at the bar, holding glasses of vodka that my drunkard of a cousin had pressed into our hands. "I'm fine, Jill." I said distractedly.
As Tasha approached, I turned around in my barstool to scan for exit routes.
Just when I was about to walk away, I caught sight of Adrian looking at me with a knowing smirk.
I didn't want to talk to him now. He already knew about my so called jealously. He'd never let me escape Tasha-
"Rose!" Tasha called, materializing in front of me. "Hi!"
Too late.
"Hey," I smiled weakly, sinking back into the stool.
When Jill elbowed me, I remembered my manners and introduced her to Tasha.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Jill." Tasha smiled at her before turning to me. "Rose, have you see Dimka?"
Huh, there was the ray of sunshine I'd been looking for: Dimitri was apparently far away from Tasha.
Had he seen her, in that little black dress she was wearing? Had he liked it, admired it even?
I'd be so pissed if I found that he did. I could barely get a reaction out of him and-
Shit! I needed to get a grip.
In an attempt to regain control of myself, I impulsively downed the vodka I'd held in my hand.
Blinking hazily as my throat burned, I remembered that I was yet to answer Tasha: "Dimitri's around somewhere. Haven't seen him, sorry."
Did my voice really sound as hard and remorseless as it did to my own ears?
Tasha's icy blue eyes narrowed curiously.
"That's okay," she said with a nod. "I'll find him myself. See you around."
"Why do you need him, you bitch?" I muttered under my breath when she left, snatching up another shot of vodka from the bar and downing it as well.
Jill stopped me from demanding another glass. "Rose, that's enough."
I rolled my eyes. "Relax, Jilly bean. I'm fine."
"Are you?" she asked skeptically before her eyes flickered down to where her hand was locked on mine, preventing me from getting myself another glass of vodka. "I don't meant to interfere, Rose, really but you don't look fine. Not that you don't look fine, I mean- you look hot. But not fine fine, you know? But-"
"Jill." I cut off her rambling. "What did you want to say?"
Jill took a deep breath. "What was that with Natasha?"
"Nothing," I dropped my glass onto the table with a clank. "That was nothing. It was just Dimitri fucking Belikov screwing with my head as always."
Jill was silent for a moment before she stood up. "I'll be back in a minute."
I waved her off, eyeing some of the couples on the dance floor. With my luck, one of them might be Tasha and my dearly beloved betrothed.
"Rose?" I looked up to see Madhri by my side which was a surprise in and about itself. She was dressed scantier than usual and had been surrounded by a group of men when I'd first entered the hall.
It was shocking to see her away from her gang of admirers. It was even more shocking to see her approach me with a glass of whiskey in her hands which she held out for me to take.
What was she playing it?
"What do you want?" I asked her suspiciously.
"Nothing at all," she said sweetly before her smile transformed before my eyes; growing sharper and more mocking. "I just thought you could use a drink."
"And why is that?"
Madhri shrugged, her eyes wide and innocent as always. "Oh, I don't know-maybe because you're betrothed to one man and desire another?"
I gaped at her before laughing incredulously. "Say what now?"
Madhri smile flickered but remained sickly sweet. "I saw you with Adrian earlier. Of course, I know that he's wanted you for a long time so the surprising part for me was that you finally got rid of the stick up your ass and accepted him."
I laughed again but there was no humor in it. "I've not accepted anything. Adrian's my friend and will always be my friend. That's all there is to it."
Madhri narrowed her eyes but before she could speak, I straightened up and leaned closer so that she could see how serious I was.
"If you spread any such rumors, Madhri, I swear I'll forget you're Eddie's wife." I hissed, glaring at her. "And that's a bad thing, Madhri, very bad because it's the only thing that's protected you from me so far."
Madhri stepped away, shaking her head. "You're crazy, Rose. Absolutely crazy."
I smirked. "Of course I am. You should know better than to mess with me."
"What's going on?" Jill had returned with Lissa in tow.
I grinned at her. "Madhri was just leaving, weren't you darling?"
Madhri left in a huff, not before glaring at Jill.
"I see you brought reinforcements," I told Jill, my voice casual and barely betraying the anger that I was feeling. I was so tired of being treated like I'd break any moment.
I wouldn't.
They should know that it takes more than a man to break me.
Even if that man was Dimitri Belikov.
Jill looked at me guiltily. "I thought Lissa could help."
"She can't," I said shortly, flagging down the bartender. "Two shots of vodka, please."
"Rose," Lissa gripped my arm when Jill retreated. "I know you're tensed about the situation with Dimitri-"
"Don't say his name," I told her firmly. "For five fucking minutes, I want to forget that he exists."
Lissa's eyes softened. "I'm sorry."
I sighed and leaned my head against her shoulder.
"If it makes you feel better," she said after a moment. "I think he's just as affected."
I snorted. "You can't possibly know that. He never slips with that damned mask of his."
Lissa laughed. "No. He doesn't, does he? But I know what I saw."
"And what was that?"
"He couldn't keep his eyes off you," Lissa told me softly. "-not at the party earlier and definitely not now, especially with you looking the way you do."
I didn't know if I could believe it. But I appreciated the effort, nonetheless.
"Thanks, Liss." I jumped down from the stool. "I'd better get back to my mingling duties."
Unfortunately, mingling wasn't much of a distraction anymore. No matter who I was talking to, my mind reverted to thinking about Dimitri.
It was annoying as hell.
Pretty soon, I bumped into another person who knew a little too much.
"Hotness alert!" Adrian whistled as he looked at me, "Damn, Rose! You look...you look-"
"Hot?" I contributed helpfully.
Adrian nodded, eyes twinkling. "Beyond gorgeous."
I smirked. "I know."
"I'd ask you to dance," Adrian said, eyeing my dress. "But I'm not sure I'll be able to control myself with you looking like that."
I laughed it off. "I'm in no mood to dance with anyone."
Adrian's smile turned sly. "Not even your betrothed?"
"I'm so damn tired of hearing that word." I groused.
Adrian took a step closer, landing right in front of me. "Perhaps we can remedy that-"
"Adrian." Neal's voice cut through the air from behind me, sounding polite but dangerous; like steel and silk and so much like our father. "You know better than to step so close to my sister."
Adrian smiled slightly and nodded with resignation. "Neal."
Neal's smile was as pleasant as ever but I could clearly tell he was not pleased. He never did like Adrian much. "It's nice to meet you, Adrian. But you'll have to excuse us. I'm taking my dear little sister to dance."
"But I-"
Neal cut me off by pulling me onto the dance floor. He didn't speak as we fell into the waltz and neither did I.
"What's the deal with Adrian?" Neal asked abruptly, spinning me in a circle.
I frowned, trying to gauge his mood. "Adrian was just-"
"Rose." Neal interrupted me, his tone now weary. "He likes you. Unless you like him in return, do not encourage him."
I looked into my brother's blue eyes that were uncharacteristically serious.
I straightened my shoulders, gripping his hand tighter as we moved in coordination to the music. "I didn't mean to do it. And he knows that I don't like him like that."
Neal nodded once before relaxing his face into a smile. "Good."
He twirled me around till the song ended before spinning me abruptly and letting go of me. The move was so unexpected that I thought I'd fall but Neal had it perfectly choreographed.
Instead of falling or even stumbling, I smoothly ended up in a different set of arms.
A different but familiar set of arms.
My hands pressed against someone's sturdy chest, in an attempt to break a fall that never came. My whole upper body weight was more or less on this person as I leaned on him heavily.
Perhaps it was the aftershave that gave him away or the inexplicable heat that always sprung up between us. Either way, I was well acquainted with this person who'd caught me.
Inhaling sharply, I removed my hands from his chest and looked up hesitantly.
Warm brown eyes met mine as a new song blasted through the speakers.
Smoothly, he adjusted my body weight in his arms to help me recover my balance; catching hold of my right hand in his left and holding our joined hands away from us as his right hand rested on my waist, careful to not venture into my bare back. Reluctantly, I placed my left hand on his shoulder, unsure about dancing to this song with him.
Because, it wasn't just an ordinary dance.
Oh no! To my absolutely fantastic luck, the song that had just started was for a tango.
Yes, tango.
The most romantic, passionate and sensuous dance ever.
And I got to dance it with my betrothed who I was angry with and who was pissed off at me in return.
Joy! Not.
His eyes remained unreadable and intense as we fell into position along with all the others on the dance floor.
I bust the windows out your car
And no it didn't mend my broken heart
I didn't look away from him as I stalked backward in tune to the beat, the distance quickly reclaimed by Dimitri as he moved gracefully and completely in sync with me.
It shouldn't surprise me that the man was so graceful.
Just another cap in his feather, wasn't it?
As much as I hated it, I loved this lack of distance between us. My hands trailed along his chest in between steps, delighting in that familiar heady electricity that I'd missed.
I'll probably always have these ugly scars
But right now I don't care about that part
I twirled in his arms, ending back much closer to him that I'd been before. This close, I could make out the tiny tears and pores in his face, and a small scar near his left eye.
My breathing hitched as his warm breath washed over me.
This was prime time torture.
I bust the windows out your car
After I saw you laying next to her
Her? Tasha fucking Ozera, that's who.
But Dimitri's evidently had another person in his mind, going by his next words, whispered smoothly in my ear: "How do you know Adrian?"
I didn't wanna but I took my turn
I'm glad I did it cause you had to learn
I threw my leg in the air as we leaned sideways. Dimitri's hand slipped slightly on my waist, his fingers just barely touching the skin at my back.
A sharp jolt of electricity shot through me at the touch, almost making me forget his question.
Almost.
"Adrian?" I echoed harshly, cursing myself for sounding breathless. "That's who you want to talk about?"
I must admit it helped a little bit
To think of how you'd feel when you saw it
Dimitri tugged me closer as we straightened, my arms winding around his neck. The air between us was thick and heady, sparked with more than just anger. But there was anger, plenty of it in both of us. It showed in our little too aggressive handling of each other, in the zealous steps we took and the way we stalked and caught each other in twirls.
I didn't know that I had that much strength
But I'm glad you'll see what happens when
You see you can't just play with people's feelings
"What's going on between you and Adrian?" Dimitri's voice was low but sharp, his eyes burning as he looked at me.
We were forced to look away from each other as we took the next step, holding our heads stiff and away from each other.
Dimitri spun me in one rough circle before I turned away and let go on my body in a backward motion, trusting Dimitri to catch me.
He did, straightening us gracefully before spinning me around to face him.
"My relationship with Adrian is the same as your relationship with Tasha." I told him in what I hoped was a steady voice.
He was about to reply but I cut him off. "Oh wait!" I mocked, angered all over again. "It's not the same. You see, I wasn't flirting with Adrian."
Tell them you love them and don't mean it
You'll probably say that it was juvenile
But I think that I deserve to smile
Dimitri's eyes narrowed. "Are you saying that I was flirting with Tasha?"
I spun so that I was facing away from him, with my back pressed to his chest. Ignoring the blazing inferno that lit in my stomach at his warmth on my back, I turned my face sideways to say: "No, I'm not saying that, Dimitri. I am, however, noticing it."
Congrats on not acting like a jealous bitch, Rose. Bravo!
Where was all this bitchiness coming from?
I bust the windows out your car
You know I did it cause I left my mark
We walked sideways in that position; my back pressed to his chest. When he spoke, it was directly into my ear. "I can't talk to you like this," he stated, more to himself than to me.
Despite his words, goosebumps formed on my skin at the proximity of his lips to my skin.
Wrote my initials with a crow bar
And then I drove off into the dark
I smirked, wanting him to feel a fraction of the tornado I was feeling.
"Where was this good sense yesterday when you were busy criticizing my actions?"
He turned me around to face him and dipped me slightly, looking into my eyes searchingly.
I don't know what he found in my eyes; I withheld nothing from him.
Whatever it was, he didn't seem to like it.
I bust the windows out your car
You should feel lucky that that's all I did
After five whole years of this bullshit
Gave you all of me and you played with it
Dimitri grasped my shoulders and spun me. I let my body go slack so that I fell back into his arms, my hands loosely held around his neck.
He looked down at me steadily before nodding.
"I deserved that," he acknowledged, to my shock and surprise.
He pulled me up slowly, both of us looking into each other's eyes.
What did he mean by that? Was he indirectly apologizing for yesterday?
I must admit it helped a little bit
To think of how you'd feel when you saw it
We stalked sideways, turning us heads in tune to the beat before twirling once again. Each of our steps had half turns so I found myself catching occasional glimpses of the dark emotion in Dimitri's eyes.
Why couldn't he just tell me what he wanted to?
Why did that damned mask make it so hard to read him?
I bust the windows out your car
But it don't compare to my broken heart
"For what it's worth-" his voice was soft when he spoke, his lips millimeters away from mine as we sashayed across the dance floor. "-I was not flirting with Tasha. I don't like her that way, never have."
I resisted the urge to close the distance between our lips.
You could never feel how I felt that day
Until that happens, baby, you don't know pain
I turned my back to Dimitri and bent my knees so that I was halfway to the floor with only Dimitri holding me up. His touch was driving me crazy, especially when his fingers brushed against my bare skin as we moved.
I never thought I'd regret wearing this dress.
But I did. How could I not when his slightest touches were driving me crazy?
So far, I'd blocked out a majority of this electricity between us, focused as I was on my anger. But he'd just said-
As if in tune with my thoughts, Dimitri's lips turned up at the corners as he pulled me up and pushed me away smoothly, keeping a hold of me with his left hand as we extended our free hands outwards.
I looked up at him through my lashes, my mouth growing dry at the intense look in his eyes.
Desire, I realized.
He wanted this as much as I did.
You broke my heart, so I broke your car
You caused me pain, so I did the same
I twirled back into his arms and let myself go; falling limp in Dimitri's arms as he dipped me fully. Just as quickly, he pulled my up into his arms and raised his arms up to twirl me in the air.
I laughed at the movement as the skirt of my dress swirled around my legs beautifully, Dimitri's answering chuckle music to my ears.
Up in the air, held securely by Dimitri's strong arms with my face tipped up to the heavens, I felt a wild abandon wash over me.
I didn't care that Dimitri and I weren't exactly on the best terms at the moment. I knew that I was safe with Dimitri; he would never let me fall. Perhaps that applied to our lives too…
Whatever it was, I knew I'd rather be with him-in this moment, than with anyone else.
Gently, Dimitri lowered me down as though he was as reluctant to end this moment as I was. His arms were fully wrapped around me, holding me closer than I've ever been to him.
Our chest heaved in sync, our hearts pounding rhythmically to the beat of the music. Dimitri's eyes were wide and alive at that moment as he looked up at me, reflecting this strange euphoria that I was feeling.
And then I saw it.
Awe and wonder mixed with something else swirled in his eyes, adding fuel to the fire burgeoning in my belly.
At that moment, I wanted him bad-
"Give it up to King Belikov and Princess Rose!" a voice shouted through the mike, followed by rambunctious applause that broke the little bubble Dimitri and I had been wrapped in. We separated and smiled at the audience but our gazes locked again in a moment.
I bust the windows out your car…
No, we were not completely okay yet. But we would be…
AN: I don't know what I've done with this chapter! I just hope you liked it! Leave a review and let me know your thoughts :)
For the tango, I watched a lot of videos and tried to write the scene as it should be but I'm not sure I pulled it off. The song used here is 'Bust the windows out your car' by Jasmine Sullivan. This is used in the tango scene in step up 3 so check out that video if you haven't ;)
Now, for the important part-
A week ago, I received my call letter to work in TCS, an IT company which had recruited me and several others last year. As a result, I have to move halfway across the country for my training on 6 February and my work location is yet to be disclosed. I've been busy preparing the required documents and packing. Hence forth, the updates may be delayed and I hope you can understand that. Thank you :)
