The Beast And His Belle

Chapter 5

In the days that followed, Belle spent her time alone. She tended to the roses in the greenhouse, read her beloved books on the grounds. Sometimes she'd read in the greenhouse, or other times by the water fountain. But despite all her best efforts, she couldn't peel her eyes away from the west wing.
What was down there that Jackson wouldn't want her to see? He had enforced to her again before he left that she was not permitted to go down that end of the house and if she opened the curtains, to remember to shut them and have everything back the way it was by the time he came home. The idea toyed with her mind and ate at her stomach, as long as she put everything back where it was supposed to belong, he would never find out. Right?

The curiosity finally got to be too much, and one afternoon she found her feet walking themselves down the dark corridor. The first door she came across was of course closed. With shaky hands she turned the knob and it revealed a dark masculine painted room with a large mahogany desk in the center.
Right away she was ready to close his office door and turn around to leave. If she was ever caught, he'd probably accuse her of snooping for her fathers affairs just as Marcel accused when he found her in the hallway at Mason Enterprises. She had turned her body to abort her plan when she caught a glimpse of family photos lined along the wall of built in bookcases.
Her mind make the decision this time to release the door handle and walk across the room of his study to get a closer look. Her mouth dropped open in shock as she barely believed her own eyes seeing a loving picture of a family of three.

Unlike the portraits Belle saw hanging in Mason Enterprises' hallway, this picture revealed a younger Robert Mason, Jackson's father. There was nothing fake about the smile that showed in this picture as he embraced a beautiful woman in his arms. That woman carried the same features Jackson has. The same hair color, the same smile. And she only knew it was the same smile because that woman was hugging a much younger Jackson who beamed the same as his mother. Jackson looked around ten years old and Belle's heart filled with warmth seeing such love being exuded from a little photograph.
She was awestruck realizing Jackson had once been happy and showed his emotions rather than shied away from them.

Once she saw all she needed to see from his study, she closed the door and moved down the hall to the next room. She opened the second door and it showed as a grand bedroom, most likely Jackson's. A giant bed was the focal point with a plush sofa at the foot and a fireplace on the opposite wall. She noticed the floor to ceiling windows in his room were also blocked off by curtains.
Her mind wandered back to Jackson as the tips of her fingers skimmed his bedding. The room smelled like him, had the mysterious aura like him, and she found herself missing the man himself. Even though she had no intentions of giving herself to Jackson, she longed for his touch to penetrate her skin. She longed to feel his warm breath and course stubble graze her face, for his lips to force tingles to rise through her body.

Without even realizing, she found herself laying atop his covers, her nose inhaling the scent left on his pillow. It wasn't until she opened her eyes that her swelled heart had sunken and cracked. There on his nightstand stood a framed picture of Jackson not much different in his age from now. His arms were wrapped around a young woman and they both showed the expression of love. Belle had no words if she needed to speak in that moment. Her head was doing circles trying to comprehend who this man really is. And her mind kept questioning; where is this woman now? And what happened that caused Jackson to change so much?
She opened the drawer to the nightstand to find more answers. Rummaging through its contents, she felt the softness of velvet and pulled out a small black velvet box. When she popped it open, it revealed a shiny engagement ring. Similar in size to the one she wears yet the cut and style resemble an oval shape rather than her princess cut.
Belle was lost for words that the Jackson Mason was not only capable of being happy but he had loved. Loved one woman in particular and planned to spend the rest of his life with her.

Before she could question any more, she heard the front door close and her heart nearly leaped out from the walls of her chest. She quickly jumped from his bed, smoothed out his covers, put the ring back and ran out of his room shutting the door.
"Hello, Mrs. Mason. My name is Flora."
Jackson had explained Flora is somewhat of a housekeeper who does the food shopping and cooking twice a week or more for extra occasions like dinner parties.
"Hi, nice to meet you. Please, call me Belle," she replied. Belle introduced herself and obliged Flora in explaining her dietary habits. When Belle asked if Flora needed any help in with dinner or tried to strike conversation, Flora just kept to herself and silently nodded. She looked of foreign decent so Belle assumed maybe she didn't speak English very well and relinquished her attempt at finding a friend within the Mason walls.

***

"Hello, I'm here for my wedding dress fitting," Belle said the following day, stepping into the fancy designer boutique shop.
"Oh, you must have the wrong dress shop," she was told rudely being looked up and down only once.
"No, I'm in the right place. I'm Isabelle Le Fleur, I'm marrying Jackson Mason." It made her furious to have to use his name just to get treated like a decent human being rather than a stray dog.
"I'm so sorry, Miss Le Fleur. Please forgive me. Right this way." The receptionist lead her to the back dressing rooms where her dress had already been chosen and all that needed to be done were small alterations.
"Ladies," the receptionist got the attention of a group of women huddled together. "This is the future Mrs. Mason!" she said with a pickup in her tone as if they all had been waiting to see who the lucky woman was to have Jackson as their husband. But when their eyes landed on Belle, she read their expressions very well. Jackson Mason would never marry someone as average as her!

Belle tried hard to not let their scrutiny get under her skin, but it was far too easy knowing their examination was right. The Jackson everyone knew was a Jackson who would never settle number one, but if he did, he would never settle for someone like her. She stayed shyly quiet through her fitting as she kept hearing the whispered judgements from them as she dressed in the changing room.
"Do you think she's after his money?" one asked.
"Absolutely!"
"Maybe he got her pregnant?"
"Maybe she purposely got pregnant so he'd have to marry her!" they kept gossiping in whispers clearly loud enough to hear.
"God! What I wouldn't give to just have one night with the Jackson Mason!"
"Do you think he'll actually be faithful to her?" they started their whispers again but she had finally heard enough.

Belle knew the marriage was a lie but she couldn't help but think about the other side of Jackson that he doesn't let anyone see. He was capable of love, of loving one person enough to settle down for a marriage. She looked at herself in the mirror wearing the laced and beaded gown and veil, she may not be that woman Jackson wanted to marry but she was to the public eye. And being his in that sense made her she want to resemble a marriage based on love and respect. She stepped out of the dressing room after changing back to the clothes she arrived in, standing tall with her arms folded and her gaze dominant.
"Jackson wouldn't have chosen to get married if he wasn't faithful so you can stop with all your critical judgments of not just me but him as well." Her harsh tone made the women's lips close tightly and she knew she got her point across.
She realized if her name was going to be thrown out into the public by the media, the least she could do was use it to spread some kindness and love rather than hate.
"So instead of looking down on me with your negative judgments and criticism, maybe you should realize that a man like Jackson fell in love with me for having a kind heart and seeing the good in everyone!" She spoke true to her belief in the world and hoped it would make a difference to these narrow minded women as she took her leave out of the dress shop.