𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒 |𝟏𝟖+ (#𝟏)

𝚂𝙴𝚅𝙴𝙽𝚃𝙴𝙴𝙽 |

17
AMBER JACKSON
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*the dresses described in this chapter are above*

"My God this feels so good." I groaned into the open air as the masseuse massaged my back with what smelled like lavender essential oil. My back and shoulders have been tense in recent days because my dissertation was due in five and a half months and I didn't know what I wanted to write or present. It took months of preparation, including reading numerous articles and studies, and I had no idea where to begin. Not only that, but I was finally feeling the effects of working a job and going to grad school, which the admissions warned wasn't a good idea; the workload was catching up with me, but I was handling it surprisingly well.

Despite this, I couldn't afford not to work because I had bills to pay, and your girl needed to treat herself every now and then by going out to eat or shopping online. Alessandro offered to assist me by compensating me without me actually doing any work so that I could fully focus on school, but I refused. We weren't dating, and he didn't need to add me to his list of responsibilities.

Besides, before I met him, I was juggling school and work. I'd be fine for the next six months. Hopefully.

Because I refused, Alessandro then offered to shorten my hours, but not only did I not want that, I could barely handle the whispers around the club from people I'd never spoken to - people who don't know me as anything but Alessandro's submissive. So I started planning ahead, and now I was two thirty-page plus articles ahead in three of four classes, with an assignment ahead in everything I finally caught up on this week.

But still there was no rest until I fucking graduated.

With all of my refusals, Alessandro thought it would be appropriate to reward me with a massage because I had been trapped in a room for eight hours filled with the scents of books, whether at school or at his home library. This man was a rare blessing. If I hadn't met him, I'm sure instead of enjoying my first professional massage in my twenty-plus years on this planet, I'd be stuck in the cycle of dealing with rude people through customer service work, which I despise.

This gala was the only breath of fresh air I'd get that wasn't tied back to work or school, and I was honestly excited even though I had an idea of the plethora of people I'd be surrounded by. Alessandro's mother had already arrived to get ready, upstairs in one of the many spare bedrooms, surrounded by a team of makeup and hair stylists. Our getting ready time was pushed back due to Alessandro's impromptu massage session for me, which she completely understood when he explained I couldn't get ready with her as planned.

Three hot stones were placed on my spine, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I waxed my body and brows yesterday, and I got my manicure, pedicure, and facial done this morning. It was one of the most self-care-focused days I'd had in a long time, and I was grateful. My massage was finished in twenty minutes, so I grabbed the white robe and dragged it over my mostly naked body. The Taiwanese woman in charge of my massage was folding the towels she used. I turned to her, "Jai-Li, tell your daughter to call me for help with her college application. I know how tedious it can be." I handed her a piece of paper from my purse on which I had written my name and phone number. The grateful smile on her face warmed my heart, reminding me of how difficult it was for me to apply to college. Her English was a little choppy, but she wasn't difficult to understand when she raised me good blessings and thanks.

"Thank you. Thank you, I'll make sure she calls. You go to her dream school." she tells me with a grin showing a perfect row of top teeth. I smile and give her a small hug before walking out the room to the one directly next door, where I find Alessandro seated in sweatpants and a matching crewneck reading some restaurant order forms while his mother finishes up her hair. "You leave a big tip for that nice lady. She was very lovely, and we had a great conversation during the massage." I state as I take a seat next to him, running my nails up and down his neck.