Excelsior

Chapter 14: Golden considerations

While the night ended up being bitter for some, others let their forbidden desires come through. It was more than midnight, and it seemed that Mr. di Bardi hadn't had enough of his younger lover. They were both in his penthouse, and decided to take a breath in the terrace, where William served both a glass of red wine.

"This comes from the di Bardi's reserve in northern Lombardia." He added.

Lilly marveled at the drink and took a sip.

"We have a vineyard there." He continued. "We save wines up to a century old -it's been in my family for generations." He adjusted his robe.

Lilly seemed to be comfortable in spite of the cold wind. She wasn't wearing anything else but a babydoll.

"So tell me, Lilly, do you have a date for your wedding?"

Lilly hid her ring with the other hand.

"I have no idea," she shook her head, "why do you ask?"

"Nothing -just curious. I hope we will still meet after your great day."

"Have no doubt of that." She touched his lap with her feet.

"You are a naughty girl."

"We are naughty." She stated.

"You should be thinking of a dress."

"For the wedding?"

"No, for my party. Hasn't Dearick told you about it?"

She denied having any knowledge.

William explained

William announced that he would be throwing a white party at his house, and expressed his desire to see her beauty as they talked. Lilly assured him that she would find something for the occasion and they continued the rest of the evening with their affairs on what appeared to be an active night for the city.

Lilly got up early to get dressed and go to Sarah's apartment the next day. It was one of the many gifts that her attentive lover gave her, and despite its size it was well decorated. Light colors predominated and she enthusiastically introduced the rooms to them. After seeing the main room, she led them back to the living room, where the butler served them coffee.

"Enough of my relationship." She told her friends. "Lilly, how's your affair with Mr. Billionaire? Spill the tea, it must be hotter than my relationship."

The women also questioned Lilly and exclaimed in surprise demanding the details. The situation was a little overwhelmed for their friend.

"In fact," she answered, "I saw him yesterday. I spent the night in his penthouse, and Dearick thought I was having a slumber party with you girls."

Her friends laughed excitedly. Even with all of his training and wide experience, the butler couldn't help but to jump. Those scandalous screams would make anyone assume that they were some teens who just saw their idols; and to be fair, these men were idols for those women. Her friends begged her to share more details.

"He invited Dearick and I to a white party, and wants me to look stunning."

—De hecho, lo vi ayer. Pasé la noche en uno de sus apartamentos. Dearick piensa que pasé la noche con ustedes.

"You must be the sexiest one" Sarah said, "so you can get another rich man."

"I don't want another rich man," Lilly replied, "for the moment."

"Please," Danielle added, "Darling. You're that man's toy."

"It's true," Sarah added back, "he'll never marry you."

The young women made clever arguments to goad Lilly to keep her options open and not settle for one man.

"Men with the fortune of my lover are all married, and very few of them would be willing to leave their wives."

"Don't be so sure," Christine said, who kept her thoughts to herself until that moment, "don't you remember that billionaire who left her wife for a Latina? And that happened because the affair was discovered."

"Are you suggesting that I must make my affair public?"

Christine nodded and her friends sympathized with her comments.

"Those are very rare cases." Danielle said. "The man we are talking about is a nouveau riche, only those with the surname and social prominence of her lover cannot afford a divorce. It would be scandalous- it'd damage his image, his business. You know that nobody here wants to compromise their image in society."

"Then she should get a young rich man, they haven't yet been married."

"She should, but you know he likes them wrinkled and grey."

The group laughed and continued to debate until the visit could be concluded and decided to spend the rest of the day maxing out their partners' cards.

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Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed. English is not my native language, so any feedback, suggestion or advice to change the grammar would be really appreciated.