If Only for One Night

Part 2

"I'm ready."

Austin looked up, turned his head around and went completely numb. Entranced, he stood up, walked around the couch and stopped when he was at least a foot away from Aria. Taking her in. Her eyes drew him in. She had long eyelashes but the black and taupe smokey eye makeup made them appear longer. Even her brown eyes appeared larger and brighter. The effect was astounding but she hadn't stopped there. She dotted the inner corner of her eyes with gold flakes while swarovski crystals dotted the outer corner of her eyes in a V.

Then he took the rest of her in from head to toe. Her hair was swept to the right in a long diagonal braid. It dangled over her bare shoulders pass down her collar bone and ending atop her chest. Pearl and crystal hair pins were pinned between the interweaving strands.

The ballgown dress she wore dipped down in a gentle slope in the center of her chest, in a sweetheart neckline. It was champagne colored and came down to her knees. The bodice sparkled with crystals up and down the boning. The skirt had majestic pickups and had crystals sewn into it too.

Cute, rounded toes peeked out of her shoes. Adorning her feet with a rhinestone trim down the middle. And a champagne lace fabric on either side.

Until this moment he hadn't known if angels were real. Aria sparkled, smiling nervously as she waited for him to say something but he couldn't. He was speechless with pride.

A ringtone wrenched through air making them both jump. He watched as Aria reached inside a bag he just noticed tied around her wrists. It was made of the same material of her dress. She pulled out her phone, quickly swiped the screen, sent a text and shoved it back inside.

Austin reached out for her but hesitated. Something about her phone bothered him. His brow furrowed in concentration, unsure why he couldn't let it go when it came to him. Aria changed her phone case from pink glitter case to a blue glittered one. Didn't she tell him she didn't like the color blue?

"How do I look?" she asked, interrupting this new bit of confusing information.

"Beautiful." He shook his head, deciding let it go. Everyone's entitled to change their phone cases. And he was more than ready to leave and show her off. "I can stand here and look at you all night."

Aria blushed. "Hope not. Or we'll miss prom."

"Can't do that." He reached out and grabbed her hand in his. A zing of electricity shot through from her hand to his making him smile. He led her to the door and mourned the momentary loss of her dainty fingers when turned on the alarm and lock the door. Within second he hard hands in his again as he walked her towards the car. He turned to her to gain her reaction about the car but she looked at as if it was just a car. Odd.

After seating her first, he ran around to the driver's side. Giving her a wink, he started the car and headed towards the Hilton hotel.

Sooner than he appreciated he was giving the keys to a valet and escorted Aria into the venue. The car ride was quiet but he attributed to her being nervous. He actually wanted to spend some time talking before he sprung Jenny on her. After all, her and Jenny didn't actually get along as he originally thought they would. And knowing Jenny, she wasn't going to like having Aria here. She practically shouted it from the International Space Station in fact, that Aria was stringing him along.

As they walked across the lobby, it didn't escape his notice the attention they were getting. Or rather the attention Aria was getting. Who was oblivious to it. She was busy turning her head this way and that as if observing and committing everything to memory. The gleaming, polished tiled floor and wooden beams, the chandeliers above and the double stairs before them.