Amelia

Chapter Eleven

A/N Apparently Wattpad had made this chapter private and it never publicly got published so this book went from chapter 10 to chapter 12 for a long time and that's fine I'm just slightly dying of embarrassment that's cool anyway it should be fixed now enjoy

Chapter Eleven

"Amelia, darling, you must hurry. You wouldn't want to make us late for your father's party now, would you?"

"Of course not, dear. I'm almost finished." If you had just let me wear the red dress I would have been done half an hour ago.

I swiped on a dash of pink lipstick that matched the pale pink gown I had on. Throwing it quickly into the white beaded clutch that matched the white heels I wore, I raced on wobbly legs to the front door where Alexander waited impatiently. Mrs. C stood next to him with my coat.

"Well, what do you think?" Please don't tell me to change again. We're already late. The first dress I had worn, an off-the-shoulder red number, was vetoed immediately due to the fact that Alexander saw red as a "harlot's color." The pink mess of fabric I currently donned was the first gown my hand touched after Alexander forced me to change, but I knew it would still be to his liking. It was a subtle color that contrasted enough with my pale skin not to make me look nude, but still ended up washing me out. It had lace sleeved down to the wrist, a boat neckline, and a straight silhouette. Not unflattering, but not what I had wanted to wear either.

"Much better, darling. You're welcome." I hadn't said 'thank you,' but knew it was better not to mention that.

The drive to the hotel where my parents were having the party took a good twenty minutes. I resisted biting my nails for the majority of the ride, knowing that Alexander wouldn't like it and my mother definitely wouldn't like it. Well, no more than she would like me showing up late.

She was the first person we saw as we entered the ball room in the Grand Dahlia Hotel. She smiled brightly and embraced Alexander before sending an air-kiss my way, but I could see the anger in her eyes at our late arrival. The party had only started ten minutes ago, but as the daughter and son-in-law of the guest of honor, we should have arrived before anyone else.

"Alexander, darling, and Amelia. How wonderful you both look. Was traffic bad on your way in?" A subtle way of asking 'why are you late?'

"Oh no, traffic was fine. I'm afraid Amelia here just couldn't decide which dress to wear."

Mother turned her icy glare to me, her smile still firmly in place. The edges of that smile were sharp enough to pierce souls. I opened my mouth, ready to defend myself -or at least come up with a really good excuse- when my father showed up.

"Amelia, darling, there you are. You look lovely, doesn't she dear?" My father grabbed my hand, placing a kiss on it before going to stand at my mother's side. This was the most affection I ever got from either of my parents. Mother wasn't really a hugger and Father, well, he wasn't really around much.

"Stunning, dear. Why don't you both go sit down. We are almost ready for the first course." Mother turned and started leading up to the table at the front of the room and Alexander followed immediately afterwards. My father and I trailed behind them.

"I'm sorry we're so late, father. It was my fault."

"Don't worry about it, darling. You're here just in time for the food, and I've had plenty of time to mingle while your mother seethed in a corner." He sent a knowing smile my way.

"Oh, no. Is she really that mad?"

"Nothing a few glasses of wine can't solve. But, to be on the safe side, you may want to avoid another screw-up tonight, eh?" I nodded and took my chair and father went to his place at the head of the table.