"That will not be necessary." Zaria shuddered at the thought of her friend locking fists with Desmond.

"What? Are you scared that I will beat the crap out of him?" Ximena taunted as she readied her fists as though Desmond was in front of her, and she was ready to start beating him up.

Zaria shook her head and sat down in front of the mirror. She then took out her makeup kit. "I'm just scared of the repercussions. He is my boss, after all."

"Right, that." Ximena felt bummed that she had to miss out on so much fun, but she could only bite her tongue and do Zaria's makeup. Thanks to years of practice, she was done in just a few minutes.

"You look so beautiful that I'm about to fall in love with you." She complimented as she took Zaria's photos to admire later.

"It's thanks to your magic hands, but please don't. I'm afraid I will not be able to reciprocate the feelings." Zaria laughed, and Ximena feigned heartbreak.

"You heartless creature. Take care, okay? Otherwise, all the men will fight over who gets to steal you. I don't want my most perfect muse stolen away." She so badly wished she could accompany Zaria as her bodyguard. She was most worried about Zaria's boss. Having heard the infamous tales of his debauchery, she was certain that he would go crazy seeing Zaria looking this beautiful.

"I will take care." Zaria laughed at her friend, who looked like she was losing ten years of her life.

She took out a box of chocolates from a drawer and gave it to Ximena, who sulked in response. "This is not enough to placate me. If you don't want me to worry to death, give me a call later to tell me you're alright."

"Will do." Zaria promised.

Since Ximena was on her way out, the two left the house together.

…

Ximena was about to say goodbye as she saw her friend in the parking lot when she noticed a black car that looked out of place. She was just about to gush about it when the door opened, and a man stepped out of it.

The man was wearing a black suit with a blue tie, and his dark hair was combed back, displaying his charmingly handsome face. It was someone she had never met before, but she knew him from all the photos of him posted in business magazines.

"What is this man doing here?" She shifted her gaze between him and Zaria.

Desmond's blue eyes lit up when he saw how beautiful Zaria looked. He knew that the dress would look lovely on her, but seeing her in the flesh, a smile formed on his lips. However, he was distracted from his pink bubble by the woman next to Zara, who was asking a silly question. "Picking her up. Don't tell me she was supposed to drive in her high heels?"

As he spoke, his eyes trailed to her leg that was exposed by the high slit. Was it a bad idea to buy her the dress? He could bet that the entire male population at the banquet would be drooling at her. The thought of it made him so jealous that he almost cancelled his plans of attending the banquet and took her to his mansion instead. He stretched out a hand to take hers. "Ready?"

Ximena saw that the man was absent-minded and took a deep breath. He better not take advantage of Zaria.

She was just about to tell Zaria to call her if the man tried to do anything against her wish when her eyes landed on Desmond's wrist. She frowned at the golden watch he was wearing. Wasn't that the watch that Zaria bought a few days ago—the one she thought was for Theodore? How did it end up on Desmond's wrist?

It didn't take long for her to realize that she was mistaken. It was not for Theodore, but it was for Desmond all along!

"Just so you know, I don't like you. You are not a good choice for Zaria." She spoke up blatantly, and Zaria's eyes went wide.

"Just so you know, that will not change anything. I will take good care of her." Desmond countered with a grin.

Ximena looked defeated and was about to say something mean when she caught Zaria's pleading gaze. She finally understood it. Were these two a thing already? She glanced at the man who was the city's most infamous playboy and her eyes surged with anger. "I don't care whether you are a thing or not. If you dare cheat on my friend or make her sad in any way, I will beat the hell out of you."

He pulled Zaria to his side with a smile. "Don't worry. You won't need to trouble your delicate hands."

He helped Zaria into his car and left behind an enraged Ximena. Who did he just call delicate?!

…

Soon after the chauffeur drove off, Zaria finally turned to look at Desmond. "Xim likes to speak her mind and doesn't hold back, but she means no harm. Please don't mind her."

"How can I? She is a loyal friend." Desmond laughed, amused at how angry the woman looked as she warned him.

Zaria was relieved that he was not upset. Having friends with unfiltered mouths could cause one's brain to explode from nervousness. As soon as they opened their mouths, heaven knew which big shot they would offend.

"You look beautiful." He bit out the words, resisting the urge to pull her into his arms and kiss the breath out of her.

"Thank you." She half-whispered, her eyes trailing to his tie which was of the same shade and material of her dress, and so was his pocket square.

"Do you like it?" He asked while gazing down at her.

She nodded honestly. She continued staring at him, and then out of the blue, she tilted her head upwards and pecked his lips.

He was shocked, but before he could properly register what she had done, they had arrived at the venue of the banquet and her hand was already holding the door handle. This was not the first time that she kissed him, but she always did it when he least expected it. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her for a few seconds. Only then did he let go and get down from the car.

…

The banquet hall was flocking with exquisitely dressed men and women—most of whom frequented the high-end magazines. It was not a walk in the park to be able to invite a single one of them, so it was impressive that Samantha had so many of them under the same roof.

She made small talk with some women in her circle and her attention was piqued when she heard someone mention the arrival of Desmond. She looked over at the entrance from the mezzanine and frowned in the next second.

She then walked downstairs to meet her brother and greeted him indifferently. She then looked at the beautifully dressed Zaria. "Oh, the mistress is here too."

"Samantha." Desmond frowned at her words.

The woman shrugged. "Isn't she? Don't worry. I won't tell anyone."

Desmond ignored her and focused on Zaria who was holding his arm. "Many of the guests here are partners of Preston and Fort Group. Do you want to say hi to them?"

"Okay." She followed his lead into the crowd.

Samantha picked a glass of champagne from the table of drinks and sipped it as she chuckled to the woman beside her. "How ironic it is for Desmond to bring another woman as a female companion when he is engaged."

As soon as she spoke, she noticed that Natalie was just making her way past her. She tapped the other woman with a kind smile. "Natalie, if you mind, I will have a word with him."

"I'm not that petty." Dismissed Natalie, then she went to say hi to Zaria.

"I'm glad you came. You look so beautiful." She hugged Zaria, and although the latter found it unexpected, she could only return the hug.

Samantha was within earshot and she rolled her eyes at the two women's interaction. "If a woman is friendly to her rival, it's either because she is cheating or she is pretentious."

Zaria did not mind Samantha's words even though she heard them. She offered Natalie a smile. "You look so beautiful yourself."

The latter was wearing a backless silver-grey gown and had her hair in an elegant updo.

"Come, let's take a walk." She suggested, much to Desmond's chagrin.

"I'm still here." He announced his presence to Natalie, who was trying to steal his companion.

"Continue staying here for a while. I'm only borrowing her for a few minutes." She did not pay any heed to Desmond's words and led Zaria away.

The hotel where the banquet was being held had a beautiful garden behind it, and Natalie led her over for a walk.