Heritage

Heritage (Chapter 20)

Chapter 20 - Stella

The day has passed by relatively slowly, filled with pacing, indecision and butterflies anxiously fluttering around my stomach.

It's Saturday already and Leon s party starts in just one hour. I'm putting the finishing touches on my look for tonight and I can already feel the excitement getting to me. As I lift my hands to pin my hair up, I notice that my hands are shaking.

Calm down, Stella...

After applying a thin coat of lip-gloss and making sure that my hair is securely in place, I take my brand-new dress off of its hanger and admire it for a moment before slipping it on. I bought it online and had it shipped to me straight from the ship-town, since I haven't had time to go shopping this week.

The dress is strapless, light blue and gathers under the bust in an empire waist, reminiscent of the gowns of Greek goddesses. The material is light and shimmering, with intricate beading covering the entire bust. I chose the gown because blue is Leon s favorite color, and it complements the color of my eyes so well.

After pulling the dress up over my hips, I zip it closed and turn left to right in the mirror to take in the full image.

Not so bad, if I do say so myself...Now let's just hope Leon agrees...

I spray myself quickly with my favorite perfume, glance one last time in the mirror and have just enough time to grab my handbag when the buzzer on my HabMod door sounds.

I take a deep breath, glance quickly in the mirror and open the door to find Leon standing there, clad in his formal dress uniform, looking as gorgeous as ever. He's leaning against the doorframe and when he looks up at me his jaw drops for a moment.

"Oh wow..." he says, as if he's just run a marathon.

"Do I...look ok?" I ask him shyly, smoothing out the skirt of my dress.

"Stells, I've never seen a woman look more amazing than you do right now. You re stunning."

"Thank you, Leon. You look very handsome tonight. Happy birthday," I say to him, smiling as I place a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Aw, come on, it's my birthday! All I get is a kiss on the cheek? Not even any lip action?" he replies, with his signature smirk in place. I hadn't noticed until now that his hand was behind his back, but he moves it and presents me with a corsage. A single white rose on a silver band.

"I wasn't sure what color you were going to wear, so I asked my Mom and she said white was safe," Leon admits sheepishly.

"It's beautiful, Leon. Thank you," I reply, stepping closer and placing a kiss tenderly on his lips. His hand slides gently to the nape of my neck, while his other curves around my waist, the corsage still clutched in his hand. The kiss intensifies when at the same time, our tongues meet, dancing around each other sweetly.

After a few long, breathless moments, we pull apart finally, both of us blushing. Leon uncurls his arm from my waist and without a word, extends my arm, slipping the elegant corsage on my wrist.

I gaze at it for a moment, smiling at the simple, yet amazingly thoughtful gift, when he kisses my cheek.

"Well, it's your birthday, so I got you something too," I say to him, smirking.

"Babe, you didn't have to get me anything!" Leon protests as I turn my back to him, picking up a small box wrapped in shiny blue paper. I smile as I hand it to him and he takes it, kissing my cheek softly.

"Open it," I say softly.

He slowly unwraps the gift, handing me the discarded paper and holding the black velvet box in his hand. He opens the lid, revealing the sleek platinum watch that I ordered along with my dress. The watch face is pale blue with diamonds around the bezel. This is one time in my life that I'm thankful to have a wealthy family. My monthly allowances made it possible for me to purchase his gift at the last minute.