Foreign Affairs ❥ lrh

Chapter Five: The Escape Plan

The gleaming champagne Ellie Saab ball gown fit even better in the hotel than it had in the Bergdorf Goodman dressing room. It wrapped her shoulders, bust and waist exactly as it was meant to and hid the parts of her she was insecure about, instead accentuating her collarbones. The skirt dipped down low enough to hide her weak ankles so she could breathe easy about possibly making a misstep; it would be cloaked from view.

Sage had worked her magic, curling and twisting Violet's hair into an elegant knot with seemingly-effortless curls loosely framing her face lightly and falling down her back in some areas. Violet had returned the favor and styled Sage's in old-Hollywood waves. They clasped Tiffany's diamonds and pearls around their necks and through their ears in a delicate fashion, careful not to over-accessorize. Violet picked through Cartier rings, found four favorites and slid them on.

Sage hadn't put her dress on yet and was just milling around, bejeweled in her fuzzy robe and slippers.

"I'm gonna go check on the boys," Sage said, opening the mini fridge and pulling out a mini bottle of wine to twist it open. She threw her head back for the first big gulp as she tiptoed out of the door. Through the cracked door, Violet heard her small knock and the deep masculine voices that answered her.

The suitcase with her shoes was propped open on one of the luggage stands as she sifted through it for the nude ones that would match her gown. By the time she found them, Sage was pulling the door open again and swallowing the rest of the pinot grigio.

"They're ready," she sighed, placing a hand over her heart like she was trying to manually push the alcohol down her throat. "Are you gonna do a courage shot while I get dressed?"

"I already feel like I could throw up," Violet said honestly. She hoisted her dress up behind her before she sat down on her bed to put her stilettos on. "I can't drink anything before I eat." As she closed the clasp around her second ankle, her nose wrinkled in disgust. "Do you mind putting the lid back on that and throwing it out?"

Sage's guilt was written all over her face. "I'm sorry," she started, confused.

"No it's fine," Violet jumped back in, trying to wave the worry away. "It's just the alcohol smell and jet lag. Not a snazzy combination."

"Oh," she said, relieved. "Yeah, no problem." And she did exactly as Violet had asked before dropping her robe to the ground, unzipping her dress and taking it off the rack. She stepped in, gracefully and wiggled her hips through the tight corset portion. "Can you zip this please?"

Violet lifted her wide skirt in front of her before sliding off the bed, careful not to step on any fabric from either of them and made her way over to the back of Sage's dress and pulled the concealed zipper up to the top. She tucked the tiny handle in the fold of the fabric. "There you go."

She took a step back, minding both of their dresses and looked on in awe as Sage turned around to face her. Both of their jaws dropped. Followed by a long string of compliments from both parties toward the other. Though they didn't say it out loud, neither of the young women had ever felt this beautiful.

Violet looked at the clock on the bedside table to check the time and, thankfully, they were exactly on schedule.

"Do we have a carriage waiting?" Violet asked. Almost immediately she realized that there was nearly no chance Sage knew the answer and shook her head and walked over to the phone. "Nevermind, sorry."

After a short phone call with the front desk, Violet was informed that two Royal carriages had been reserved for them by the Royal Family and would likely be ready in ten minute's time. When she hung up, she looked over at Sage, reconsidering her question from earlier.