Black Jewel

Chapter 26 - Saturday: New York

It was Lola's actual birthday. She woke up very excited. She could hardly wait to get to New York to see her surprise. The flight time was about four hours. So, they got up early to make their scheduled arrival time of noon.

On the plane, everyone sang 'Happy Birthday' and toasted with glasses of champagne. Lola was too excited to sleep, so they watched videos from the past few days of island hopping. They laughed as they reminisced.

When they landed, there were four black executive Suburbans parked. And like before, they pulled up to the red carpet one after another as each couple exited the aircraft.

Mauricio reserved the Royal Plaza Suite for his queen at the Plaza Hotel as suggested. He also arranged for Lola to spend the next couple of hours getting pampered at the spa. He needed to keep her busy while he ran some last minute errands.

After the spa, Lola had a glam squad waiting for her in the suite. All the ladies, including Blair, got their hair and make-up done.

Lola was almost done when Mauricio came through the door with a big box and some bags. He had several surprises for Lola, but he needed to start getting ready. So, he went to shower while the ladies finished up.

Lola opened her gifts once everyone left. She opened the biggest one first. Her eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store. It was a beautiful red, satin mermaid dress. The corset top was strapless, gathered at the waist and was embellished with jewels and sequin. The skirt hugged her body just right and flared out at the bottom nicely. It went perfect with the new pair of red Louboutin peep toe heels and matching clutch.

"Oh my God! Baby, it's beautiful," said Lola as she changed into it.

"I knew you'd like it. Blair helped Camelia design it."

"She made this?"

"Yep."

"I love it! I need to talk to her."

"I knew you would. It's an original," teased Mauricio.

Then, Mauricio approached her with a jewelry box.

"This was my grandmother's. I'd like you to have it," he said handing it to her.

Lola was taken aback when she saw what was inside.

It was a 23-carat gold and ruby necklace set with matching bracelet and chandelier earrings. The necklace had flower clusters with ½ carat rubies in each one. Smaller rubies were situated throughout making it sparkle. The bracelet and earrings matched the design.

"I don't know what to say."

"May I?"

She allowed him to put the jewelry on.

"You look beautiful, Baby Girl," he said kissing her on her cheek.

"Thank you, Baby. I mean for everything," she said touching the necklace.

As they walked through the lobby of the hotel, she felt like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. Everyone looked at them. She was stunning! She grinned from ear to ear walking on Mauricio's arm.

They pulled up to Pier 17. Mauricio escorted her out of the car and down the dock. She saw this beautifully decorated white yacht with four decks and tons of windows. The name on the side said 'Amelia'. There were balloons and fabric draping all over the outside.

Photographers and videographers took pictures and videos of her arrival. The guests whistled, screamed her name and cheered her on as she approached the vessel. All she could do was smile and wave.