The stunning lady in red
9pm
I stood in front of the large mirror I had installed in my bedroom few weeks back staring at my Smartphone that was already ringing again and ringing loudly enough to finally jerk me out of my thoughts. I realized now that I had been standing in front of the mirror for minutes already even though I was already prepared to leave. I had initially worn a black gown before quickly changing into a red LV gown that I matched with some really expensive black Stuart Weitzman stilettos. I had my hair packed into a bun to add some sophistication to the look and as I stared into the mirror now I smiled at myself because I was sure I looked stunning. I had gotten a blend of hot and yet sophisticated and it felt perfect. Now I was sure I would get the attention of whoever I met at the venue, I had intentionally picked something red for that very reason; I was on the hunt for a mysterious billionaire so catching his attention felt important.
My phone was ringing again and just like the calls earlier, it was still Mr. William. Mr. William was the company's elderly driver and from all the calls so far, he definitely had the limo waiting for me outside my apartment already. He was clearly not a patient man I thought to myself laughing softly as I picked up my purse from the table next to the mirror, caught one last glimpse of how I looked in the mirror and made my way out of my apartment. In no time I was out the house, down the elevator, through the doors and seated comfortable in the car. I am one of those people who walks really fast when I get excited. I was seated in the car trying to balance my thoughts when the partition separating the back section of the limo from the driver's section came down and I saw Mr. William's kind face looking back at me. He had a warm smile on his face when he spoke. "My dear, you look stunning. The assignment is going to go perfectly well, I wish you the best of luck." He said nodding at me. He was not someone who liked to be kept waiting but he was a kind man, he had always been since the first week of working with the company.
"Thank you." I said being just as warm and just as friendly as he had before the glass partition went back up slowly, and I was once again sitting there alone with my thoughts. I found myself wondering if I was truly up for this assignment before shaking my head stubbornly and locking all forms of doubt out of my mind, there was no need to get excited or scared when the person I was to try and get an interview with was probably not going to even be in attendance at the party. I made up my mind then to just have fun that night and be as free-spirited as I was by nature.
...
9:30pm
The Grandeur nightclub, New York City
It was night already so the traffic was expected. Luckily my apartment was close to the club and it was barely a 30 minutes drive. I stepped out the limo and made my way through the entrance and to the elevator. The Grandeur club was on one of the top floors of a 17 storey building. I had no camera with me, no microphone and had kept my ID card as a reporter in my purse which made it very easy to get into the main club, no one would think I was a reporter; it was a well thought of plan. This way I looked sophisticated enough to get into the party quickly without any problems and checks. If I needed a recording all I needed was my Smartphone and if I got into any trouble while inside the club, all I needed to do was show my ID card, no one ever dared to hurt a reporter in New York. They all feared how ugly it could get for their lucrative establishments if a bad article was published so they kept reporters far away from parties but never maltreated us.
The party was already going on at a high tempo when I arrived. I planned to dance but first things first; I walked up to the bar and got myself a shot. I couldn't handle alcohol on a normal day but at the moment I didn't mind, I just wanted to feel free. In no time I was also on the dance floor and just as I had planned, I was getting everyone's attention. I was dancing and making friends but still looking out for any man in a black suit because according to the reports, the heartless millionaire always wore a black suit to public places which was another reason some of the rumors went as far as linking him to the mafia.
I looked up at the DJ's booth and was screaming instantly, when I saw who the DJ was I suddenly felt more confident and sure that luck was definitely on my side. I made my way up to the DJ's booth from the dance floor and though it took a few seconds for him to notice me, he soon left his equipment and was trying to crush me in a bear hug. DJ echo was an old friend of mine from Los Angeles, he was married already and I was the one who hooked him up with his husband so I was always going to have a special place in his heart. We used some minutes to talk and catch up, but there was something important I needed his help with so I asked him directly when all the catching up was done.
"Hey, do you know Mr. Max Malevolo? I heard he was attending the party today." I asked hoping he could help me out.
"Sarah don't tell me you are here for work." He said sounding surprised.
"Getting an interview with him could change my life forever. So if you could help me find him I would really appreciate it." I said giving him a light squeeze on his shoulder as I pleaded with him.
"The man never gives any interviews to reporters Sarah, everyone knows that." He said stating exactly what I already knew.
"I know that already, all you have to do is help me find him then I'll handle it from there." I said trying to convince him.
"I had looked around for him all night to give him a shout out, but I don't think he came. He is never late so if he isn't here already then he never had any plans of actually being here this time around." He said dashing my hopes and excitement with just one sentence.
"I heard he came here every year on this exact date?" I asked still not giving up on meeting the mysterious man. It wasn't just about my work anymore; I was getting really curious by the way everyone spoke about the man like some enigma. DJ echo had been my friend for years and I knew he liked to talk about anything and everything, but at that moment he looked like someone trying to avoid a particular line of conversation and his next choice of words proved that.
"Sarah can you just do me a favor as a friend and enjoy the party? Mr. Malevolo is not someone you should be searching for; he could wreck your career forever." He said with looking at me with a weak smile on his face. "Okay?" he asked willing me to let go of my interest in the billionaire playboy.
"Okay!" I replied smiling at him even though I knew I didn't mean it, I was going to keep thinking about that mysterious man till I got to meet him myself and I knew that for sure.
"Get back to the partying and dancing my friend, I will be handing over the booth to someone else soon then we can share some drinks." He said hugging me again before returning to his booth and going on with the work he loved so much. He was a gay DJ married to a Doctor and the most fun DJ I had met in all my years of travelling and partying. I was genuinely happy to see him but as I walked back to the dance floor, all my excitement from earlier was replaced by a dull feeling. It was like the possibility of meeting the most eligible bachelor in the world under 30 had gotten me high and now I was suddenly back to reality and down from cloud 9. I had no plans of admitting I wanted to meet him but now there was no denying it in my mind.
I couldn't enjoy dancing anymore, the entire reason I had been dancing and being so wild all night was so I could be noticed by the man if he actually attended the party, but he didn't and clearly wasn't going to. I walked back to the bar feeling down and sat there now going through my recent whatsapp messages and giving replies with a glass of martini in my other hand. I had a tolerance for alcohol whatsoever, but I needed that tingle.
I sat there bored and uninterested even though the party was the craziest party I had been to in years. 10 minutes passed, then 20 minutes, then 30 minutes and in no time an hour had gone by. I decided that I had seen enough of the party to write a good report about it. I turned away from the bar and the party itself; I made a beeline for the elevator at the end of the enormous club room even as my legs wobbled with every step because of the alcohol.
Getting toward the elevator I noticed someone was in the elevator and the doors were about to close, for obvious reasons I was in no mood to wait, leaving the underwhelming party as quickly as I could was the only thought on my mind as I yelled at the stranger. "Hold the elevator!" was all that my mind could think up and as I said it I noticed the man just standing there and not making a single move to stop the doors from closing me out. The anger at his obnoxious behavior and the smug look on his face gave me a sudden burst of adrenalin that had me sprinting to the elevator in stilettos as quickly as my gown could permit me to. I made it just at the last second and stopped the elevator doors from closing shut with my purse held out in my outstretched hand.
I stepped into the elevator slowly as the doors closed behind me leaving me locked alone in the elevator with the man who totally ignored me earlier. In that moment if I had a gun in my purse it could have been a really bad experience for him. He just stood there with a pair of dark glasses preventing me from seeing his eyes. He was way taller than me even though I had stilettos on and clearly unbothered because he stood there without saying a single word or even making a move to apologize for what he just did even as I glared at him. I was angrier than I had been earlier now, the alcohol I had earlier was definitely playing a part in how angry I was. I turned to face him intending to say what was on my mind at that moment, at that exact moment my phone began ringing and the vibration released it from my drunken grip and sent it falling to the floor. I made a move to try catching it mid-air and as I did, my stiletto heel got bent, buckling my knees and sending me falling sideways to the elevator floor just as quickly as my phone had been falling. I saw my phone fall to the floor and was about to fall as well, that was when I felt him.
I had no idea how he was that fast and didn't think he was that strong at first glance, but he stopped my fall immediately and caught me mid-air. His arms were around me almost instantly and I stopped falling. I could feel the strength in his arms and in that moment I was relieved I didn't hit him with my purse immediately I stepped into the elevator earlier, even though I was very tempted to do so back then. It may have been the alcohol or just the fact that I had not been that physically close to any man since I moved to New York, but I liked being in his arms, it was only after some seconds that I realized I was in the arms of a total stranger and actually liking it. The effects of the alcohol were gone immediately and I stepped out of his arms and back to my feet quickly.
Everything involving how I met the man, from running to the elevator, to glaring at him, to almost falling down drunk and now lingering in his arms had been totally embarrassing and now that the effects of the alcohol had worn out, it felt even more embarrassing and I was beginning to feel the heat flood through my body and the blood rush to my cheeks. The weirdest thing was the sudden warmth I now felt between my thighs. I looked down at the floor quickly hoping he didn't notice what was happening to me from the redness now flooding my cheeks as I pretended to stare at my phone. Looking at my phone now and I noticed his glasses on the floor as well, they had probably fallen off his face when he lunged forward to catch me and stop my fall. I bent down to help him with his glasses and pick my phone as well, he was squatting down to do same thing at the exact same time and just like that we were both squatting down in the elevator facing each other and in that moment our eyes locked.
I had not looked at him before; if I had I would not have turned around to face him earlier.
He was without a doubt the most beautiful man I had ever seen anywhere.
Now that the glasses were off and I could see his beautiful blue eyes, I understood perfectly well why he was being obnoxious and slightly rude earlier. As though he could read my mind he smiled at me right then and it made my heart begin to race while taking all the air out of me and leaving me breathless.
He picked my phone first and handed it to me as we remained there facing each other. It was then he spoke to me in that seductively low and slow timbre of voice that 1 in a 100 men are born with. "You are the stunning lady in red from the dance floor earlier. How are you feeling right now?" he asked leaning in, clearly afraid I had drank too much, I could see the concern on his face and I knew in those slow seconds that passed then, we were no longer strangers.
I made up my mind there and then to get out the elevator once the doors slid open and get away from this man. At that exact moment the clanking sound began and he seemed to hear it to because he was looking past me suddenly and staring at the door. That was when the lights went off and the elevator stopped moving. It was clear that the elevator had stopped moving and even clearer that I was not going to get the opportunity to run from this devilishly handsome stranger anytime soon, by some strange twist of fate that left me feeling trapped and excited at the same time, we were both stuck in the elevator alone and without any idea when it would be moving again. I tried to power my phone on and shook my head in disbelief when it refused to light up and turn on. Things were clearly not going according to plan in more ways than one. Some of it felt good though and I found myself smiling there in the darkness, happy for some strange reason and smiling at the stranger facing me even as he couldn't see me smiling like an excited teenager through the darkness surrounding us.