Caught up in the sins and glamour of high society life, Astoria became the girl no one could trust.
In order to return to grace, she must do the unthinkable: find a husband before the end of the year... before her mother chooses for her. With only...
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"Astoria, have you seen my cufflinks?" Rafael shouted from the bedroom upstairs. I grinned, ignoring his inquiry as I spotted them out of the corner of my eye on the counter. I flipped his eggs in the frying pan in front of me, idly letting my fingers smooth down my white linen dress. My hair was pinned up off my neck, neatly twisted into a bun on the back of my neck.
"Did you check the kitchen?" I called, grinning from ear to ear as I fixed two plates of breakfast. I heard him race town the stairs, scanning the room, dumbfounded until his eyes settled on the gold cufflinks on the kitchen island. He smiled sinisterly as he quickly fixed the cuffs of his white dress shirt, kissing me on the cheek as he trailed behind me towards the breakfast nook.
"Thank you," he whispered, brushing his fingers across the back of my neck, making me shiver as I set the plates down, sitting across from him. "So what are you all dressed up for?" Rafael asked, taking a bite of his eggs, nodding in approval.
"I'm meeting Daphne," I said casually, watching his eyebrows shoot up.
"Nathaniel's sister, Daphne?" He asked slowly. I nodded my head, watching him slowly take in the information. "Alright, what time will you be home this evening?" He inquired.
"Probably around six or seven, why? Is that too late?" I asked, finishing my omelet and dropping my dish in the sink.
"What are you two planning on doing?" Rafael asked, trailing behind me.
"Well," I began, rolling my shoulders before turning to face him, leaning back against the counter. "I have to go shopping."
"Shopping?" Rafael asked, pulling on his suit coat, fixing the lapel. "Couldn't you go with Lana?" He asked.
I shrugged. "Lana and I have been spending a lot of time together here..." I trailed off. He nodded encouragingly. "But she is scheduled to clean the house today, remember? Today is Saturday?" I asked.
"Well maybe-"
"Rafa," I whined, resting my hands on his chest, straightening his tie as I grinned cheekily up at him. "Please let me do this," I begged, watching his resolve fade away.
"Fine, but if you owe me dinner tonight," he reasoned. I nodded, kissing him quickly before bouncing away, grabbing the keys to the Bentley on the way out.
"See you at six!" I chirped, shutting the door behind me with a grin.
I pulled my phone from my purse as I backed out of the driveway, making my way to downtown to pick Daphne up from her hotel.
"You ready?" I sang through the phone. I could hear Daphne's noncommittal response and grinned. "I can't wait to see you!" I said in an enthusiastic tone.
"You better have a cup of coffee waiting for me," she grumbled. I grinned, pulling up to the valet as I stepped out of the car, winking at him as I walked into the modern hotel lobby.
