An old lady was slowly walking in front of me and trying to hold onto the wall for support.
"Ma'am, please allow me," I stated next to her with a smile and held out my arm for her to take. The old lady looked at me and smiled. Her hair was pure white, and her face was full of wrinkles.
"Thank you, young man. I see your mother raised you well." She stated and held onto my arm. Her comment about my mom slightly made my stomach ache, but I moved past it. "I haven't seen you at a Van Kline function before. Did your family recently join our society?" The old woman asked.
"No, madam. I was invited by Miss Kiara. I am her plus one."
"Oh, wonderful! She is truly a wonderful woman. I'm glad to see she has finally found a partner."
"Oh, no. Kiara and I are just friends." I stated and shook my head.
"That's what we all say until you look at each other one day, and it's so much more than just friends. That's exactly how I met my Danny. Bless his soul." The old lady said with a sad smile as we walked into the hall. Everyone stared as we entered, and the women seemed to almost slightly curtsy when they saw the old woman.
"Look at all these people, just flashing around their wealth. Most of them just inherited their fortune while I had to work my way up." The old lady mumbled next to me. "What is your name, young man?"
"Jason, madam."
"Well, Jason, I can tell that you are a proper young man. I'm going to give you some advice that you should carry for the rest of your life. Money might seem like it's everything. It gives you power and certainty and allows you to attend even the fanciest places. But love will make you happy, and it will be all you need." The old lady remarked.
"I will remember that, madam." I smiled, and she nodded.
"Good, now. You must stay by my side until I find someone who doesn't irritate me like the rest of these guests." She questioned and looked around the room. I walked with her over to a table and then left her side as she started talking to other people.
I looked around the room for Kiara and couldn't spot her. I awkwardly stood near the snack table and plopped a grape or two into my mouth. An elderly gentleman walked over and tipped his hat to greet me.
"Uh, you must be Mrs Porter's grandson. I'm Mr Leuw, your grandmother's trusted financial advisor." He stated, and miss took me for the old lady's grandson.
"Jason, sir. But, you have me mistaken...." I was about to correct him when he interrupted.
"Of course. My apologies, Mr Porter. We are at a lovely luncheon, and it is no place to discuss business."
"I, eh..."
"You must let your grandmother know that the dress she had on was splendid. Even in her old age, she still knows how to wow the crowds. Don't you say?" He asked. There was no point in correcting him, so I just gave up.
"Yes, indeed, Mr Luew. As they do say, all things are better once they age."
"Right, so. I have an excellent bottle of scotch that has been aged since 1994. You should join the men and me afterwards to have a glass." Mr Leuw offered.
"That is very kind of you, sir. But..."
"Excellent!" He interrupted again. "Excuse me, Mr Porter. I see my wife has wandered off. I must find her before she finds a bottle of wine." Mr Leuw stated, then tipped his hat before walking off.
I shrugged and scanned the room again. My eyes lay upon Kiara as she walked in, next to who I assume was her father. Her gorgeous silver hair was neatly braided up into a bun and decorated with diamond hairpins. I noticed she had taken out her nose piercing and looked beautiful with a soft pink lipstick. My eyes went down to her neck, which had a sparkling diamond heart necklace. Her dress was a simple red satin dress that formed a U in the front. Her cleavage shyly peeked through the dress but wasn't revealing at all. The dress was also tight around her waist, then dropped into a larger skirt that went down to the floor. I couldn't even see her shoes.
Kiara turned with her back to me and kissed her father on his cheek. The back of the dress dropped down into a low V, which added a bit of sexy. Kiara then walked away from her father and headed toward me. Her eyes met mine through the crowds, and I felt my breath stop in my throat as she smiled at me.
Kiara greeted a few people while on her way to me, and I watched as the stunning woman walked gracefully past the guests. I swear, many people turned to stare at her as she walked past. How couldn't they? She was so fucking stunning.
"Oh, my gosh. I can't believe you actually came." Kiara beamed as she was closer to me.
"Wow, Kiara. You look utterly gorgeous." I complimented her and placed a kiss on her cheek. "I would kiss you, but everyone is staring," I whispered in her ear, then stepped back. "This is for you, miss Van Kline." I smiled and bent slightly forward as I held up the rose for her.
"Thank you, Jason. But a friend wouldn't give me a rose." She laughed but gladly accepted it. "I see you found a suit. You look very... elegant."
"Does the fact that I stole it drop my elegance?" I chuckled softly just for her to hear. Kiara gasped and tapped my chest with the rose.
"Naughty, naughty." She smiled and then turned towards the table. "I'm starving. Someone kept me out last night and didn't even feed me." She sarcastically added.
"Now I know for next time. Will there be coffee as something like this? I hadn't had any sleep, but caffeine is helping to keep me awake. I don't want to pass out and smash my face into my plate while we are all eating."
Kiara burst out laughing, and a few people turned to look at us, confused. Her hand quickly flew to cover her mouth as she tried to contain her laughs.
"I think that will be the most entertaining thing to happen at this luncheon." Kiara giggled. "Don't worry, there will be coffee. Very strong, exotic coffee imported from Brazil, but it's still coffee. Also, just so you know, this dress is very uncomfortable. It's way too long for my liking and covered up way too much. I feel like I'm trapped by cloth."
"Just a few more hours, then you can leave," I reassured her. Kiara quickly rolled her eyes and held my hand to pull me along as she introduced me to people. It was her responsibility to make small talk with all of the guests. I was introduced as simply 'Jason' while the others greeted me with their full titles. I recognised some of the surnames as they were rich businessmen or women. So, when they spoke about their companies, I knew how to engage in the conversation.
Kiara and I made our way over to a table, where her Dad and Mr Luew stood deep in conversation.
"Daddy, I would like to introduce you to my plus one. Jason..." Kiara started to say as her Dad looked at me.
"Uh, yes. Jason Porter. The infamous grandson. Mr Leuw has told me so much about how your grandmother highly praises you. I'm glad to finally meet you." Mr Van Kline stated.
Fuck.
