Page 26 of Deceived

I hurry over and get into the passenger seat, not putting it past him to leave without me. The soft leather seats cushion me as I get situated.

Neither of us tries to fill the silence as we drive. Aksel puts on some classical music that I’ve never heard.

When he pulls up in front of a designer boutique with beautiful gowns in the front, I know I’m out of my league. They keep referring to this as a ball, but I thought that was an exaggeration. If I’m going to be wearing a dress like that, this is one fancy event.

“Let’s go,” Aksel says, exiting the car.

The woman behind the counter smiles seductively at Aksel before eyeing me up. I wish he would have warned me that I would look out of place in my jean shorts and given me a chance to change.

Not that I care what this woman thinks of me. Not at all.

She sizes me up and then dismisses me, turning her attention back to Aksel.

“What can I do for you?” She asks, her dark red lips turning up into a smile.

He wraps an arm around my shoulder.

“We need a designer gown. Sadly, we don’t have time to have one made so we will have to pick one from here and have it tailored. Prepare a dressing room,” Aksel says.

Despite the worker sticking her chest out and giving him sultry eyes, he barely pays attention to her. I want to tell him to be nice to the help, nice in general, but I also kind of love the disappointment on her face.

Something green has crept up on me and I want nothing to do with it. I do not care about Aksel. End of.

He starts picking through the gowns on display around the shop. He dismisses most of them immediately but every so often he pulls one and shoves it towards the worker. I hate the idea of him picking out my clothes, but I have to admit I am out of my depth here. I have no idea what standards he’s judging them by. So, I just follow him around and keep quiet.

Once he has dissected the entire store, he uses a hand on my back to guide me to the fitting rooms.

I’ve never been in a store this elegant before. There is a crystal chandelier hanging above the roomy dressing room and a silk curtain lining the entrance. Each of the dresses Aksel has selected hang independently on display.

I step inside, turning around to close the curtain but Aksel is right behind me with a smirk on his face.

“No. You wait out there and I’ll show you the ones I like,” I say.

I press my palms against his hard chest, trying to push him back but he’s immovable.

“You’re going to need help getting into some of those and someone to close the zipper at the very least. Unless you want the worker in here with you, you’re stuck with me, Willson.”

I’m about to protest again because I can dress myself but he presses closer. My face is at eye level with his chest forcing me to lean back to maintain eye contact.

I can’t decide which eye to focus on, the gorgeous blue and earthy brown both call to me. The blue sparkles with playfulness, almost like it reflects a completely different person.

The corner of his lips tease upwards. “You’re not scared of me, are you Anna?”

It’s a taunt. A dare. One I can’t force myself to back down from.

“Of course not.” I step back, allowing him in.

His eyes flare like I’ve shocked him. If he thought I wasn’t going to call his bluff, he hasn’t figured me out yet.

Aksel perches on the silk ottoman in the corner, gesturing for me to start.

I contemplate my options. He’s only gathered five gowns, three are black, one is plum and the last one is bright red. It draws my eye immediately, but I deny myself. I don’t want to stand out at this event.

I grab a simple floor-length black gown with a slight shimmer to it and examine it closer.

“Just put it on, we won’t be deciding based on how it looks on a hanger.”

I roll my eyes but comply.

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