Love Bites [on hold]

☆|one

☆photo of Natalie's dress above

They were sitting at a restaurant where she had never been before. It had a vintage theme to it, with red and gold being the two main elements.

Massive chandeliers hung low from the decorated ceiling, their arms curving into lions at the point where they carried the lamps. Thick, red, velvet drapes hid the large wooden windows while a gigantic carpet covered the whole area, over which several round tables were scattered across the hall, lined in gold and red silk cloths.

Overall, it was lavishly extravagant. Natalie didn't recall her parents being into rich stuff, despite the fact that they were no short on money. She wondered if the groom's family had picked out the place. That made her think whether she should admire their taste of style or despise their inclination to show-off.

A cute waiter with dark blond hair that was swept to one side and a pair of pale green eyes walked over to hand each of them a menu.

Their guests hadn't arrived yet, so Natalie took her time scanning through the items offered. It caught her interest that no prices were displayed anywhere across the pages. She was sure that didn't mean it was a good thing.

It probably included every single plate she had ever heard of throughout her entire life, as well as stuff she'd never seen before. There were whole pages for beef, pork, chicken, turkey, seafood, pasta, and then a couple of pages for each particular cuisine sorted by country, followed by dessert, drinks, salads and appetizers. It was crazy. Her mouth watered at the thought of high-quality food.

But then she remembered the purpose they were here for in the first place and her heart clenched in her chest. She slammed the menu shut and placed it down on the white china plate before her. Her father gave her a curious look, but her mother didn't seem to notice.

A few days ago she had waken up to the most unsettling news. Her father had gotten into a terrible car accident in which someone was actually killed. She hadn't reacted well to the news. In fact, to be more precise, she hadn't reacted at all.

The man killed was Graham Fields, father of Jared Fields, a middle-class dentist who was famous for his gruff attitude that contrasted with the gentle charm of his wife, Carla.

"Oh, there you are!" A voice bombarded out of the blue. She jumped in her place and her face immediately snapped up to see three figures approach their table. Her parents immediately rose from their seats, and only then did she realise that she needed to mimick their actions. She dragged the chair back with a screech and rose to her feet, only for her hand to swing over the glass of red wine before her, spilling its contents all over the tablecloth.

"Shit!" She hissed and caught the now empty glass before it fell down to the floor and shattered into a million tiny pieces.

"Natalie, language," Her father grunted under his breath as she managed to steady the glass in its spot. She ran her hands over her dress to brush off any excess liquid, knowing that her mother was probably going to murder her for staining the lavish dress she wore, and looked back up to three pairs of concerned, yet amused eyes.

She gulped and waved her hand at them. "Hi! I'm Natalie," She greeted. "But you can call me Nat, or Natty, or Leah, or whatever makes you sleep at night."

"Put that hand down before it does any more damage," A male voice erupted, and she followed it to the sight of an old man with thinning hair and a bulky stature. He had dark eyes and a tall figure that perfectly fitted his linen suit. She assumed it could only be Jared Fields, her soon to be father-in-law. The thought of it made her stomach squirm.

Her eyes inspected him. He was tall for his age, about five-foot-ten, with a rectangular pair of glasses and a gray suit, through which a crimson red button down shirt peeked, as if to match the theme of the restaurant.