Excelsior

Chapter 16: Trust fund girl

Villa Magnífica was located in a way that enjoyed a privileged panoramic of the city; and while it was the first to be built in that street, it was certainly not the last one. A few houses higher up, the famous Villa del Bardo, inhabited by the di Bardi family, perched on a mountain well above where the Russells lived in.

The mansion, of an Italian neoclassical style and peach color, had an even more privileged panoramic than their banking neighbors, yet, this didn't belittle Villa Magnífica. It also enjoyed manicured gardens with a wide viewpoint, that were usually empty.

That afternoon, several limousines could be seen around Villa del Bardo's roundabout, and the gardens, full of guests. The color that stood out the most was white. The guests socialized, and from the bustle of their conversations, the music could not be appreciated. Despite that, the orchestra would not stop playing.

Mrs. di Bardi was talking to some of her most distinguished friends, such as Mr. and Mrs. Cornell, and Dearick, who was introduced to prominent people in society, such as the extravagant Catrine D'Latour, the most famous fashion designer in that circle, wearing feathers in her hairdo, very characteristic of her. Her face, which was already pale, looked indifferent with her white dress, so she applied more blush to her cheek than what she usually accepts.

On the singles side, there was Miss Evelyn Cabot, whose great-grandmother left her a trust fun when she was fifteen as she was her favorite of them all, as long as she graduated from Yale before turning twenty-two. As expected, the very first day after her graduation ceremony, Miss Cabot ran to her attorneys to get her slice.

And while she was in her late twenties, she was talking to Angelica and Sabrina, who was holding Gay's arm. Ever since rumors regarding her sexuality had broken out, she avoided socializing with older adults; and for that reason, she also refused to be seen in public with her friend, whom she convinced not to attend the di Bardi party.

Meanwhile, El Bardo, how the press usually mentioned him, had sneaked out of the crowd to get some intimacy: he was sitting on his bed, holding a drink, as Lilly was unzipping her dress and showing him her body. The bedroom's doors were locked up, and proceeded to kiss passionately while joking about how risky and exciting the meeting was.

Unfortunately, not all of the guests were enjoying the event like William and Lilly. Evelyn's frustration had made her take another drink, which was commented on by Sabrina:

"Are you okay? It is the third one you take.

"Yes, Sabrina." Evelyn replied, "I just happen to resist them."

"You should get an appetizer with that." Angelica said.

"Believe me, everything is under control."

To prevent any mean-intentioned rumor, she decided not to drink more and instead, she enjoyed the sunset with the other guests before returning home. The pressure continued the next day to the point that she felt forced to call a masseur for her feet while she unburdened herself to her friend at one of the tables in the gardens. After all, the life of an heiress can be very complicated enough, as she usually thought.

The glasses were not lacking, and her problems disappeared until she saw an elderly woman of delicate elegance walk towards her with a serious face. Her friend suddenly fell silent.

""I wanted to talk to you," Mrs. Cabot said, looking suspiciously at her granddaughter's guest.

"Sure. Did you want to apologize for coming to my house without calling beforehand? Or for not greeting me and my friend first?"

"I am your grandmother."

"That is no excuse for your bad manners, dear grandmother. Why don't you take a seat next to Katlyn?" she pointed to the table. "There is wine for you to help yourself, and, if Kat agrees, you could be the next one to receive this wonderful massage that was scheduled for her after me."

Henrietta watched closely the guest. The same reason society rumored that her granddaughter was having an affair with a woman was sitting there, in front of her, while her Evelyn received a massage a few feet away, which seemed impersonal to her. Some blossoms of the cherry tree, that acted as an umbrella, over them fell on her white hair.

This was the second time she visited the house in that week, and fifth in the month, to convince her to get married as soon as possible, and to stop her friendship with Katlyn, for the sake of their last name. To his misfortune, he could not talk about such a sensitive subject in front of the guest, and she limited herself to talking about trivial subjects. Her granddaughter's plan to have her friend in the house as often as possible had worked.

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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.