Chapter 21: How about dinner?

Ashley's POV

"I'll do it," I answered.

Layla clapped her hands together, her eyes filled with excitement. "Okay, we should get started as soon as possible," Layla said.

She widened the door, allowing me into the suite.

I stepped into the suite.

On the table, a lobster was carefully arranged on the plate, accompanied by expensive French cuisine. Accompanied by an unopened wine bottle and an empty glass.

"We should get started on this as soon as possible. " She paused. "The plan is simple; you just have to destruct him long enough while I do the heavy lifting and get rid of Madison." She explained.

What did she mean by destruct Tristan? I hope it wasn't any of what I was thinking because I wouldn't do that.

"I'll follow along with the plan, but I won't be comfortable with..." I trailed off.

She got what I was thinking.

"Of course not." She answered. "If I thought you could do it, you could have been pregnant by now." She pointed out.

Was that supposed to be an insult? Either way, I was glad it wasn't part of her plan.

"Now, tomorrow at eight o'clock you should come over to my house and we'll be giving you a small makeover." She said enthusiastically.

Wait, tomorrow?

"I can't already be skipping work; I was just appointed," I answered.

"You really don't know how to use an opportunity when you get one, do you?" She sighed. "Just tell him you have morning sickness. If that manager of yours has a problem, we'll just have to get rid of him." She replied nonchalantly.

I hate Marcus but I didn't want anyone to lose their job over this.

"There will be no need for that," I answered.

"Good, I'll send my driver tomorrow morning to bring you to my house. We have a lot of work to do." She spoke. She looked at me again, shaking her head in disapproval.

"Don't you think a makeover would be a bit too much? I don't think it would be necessary," I said.

If anything, a makeover would just make this thing even more suspicious.

She let out another sigh.

"Look here Ashley, you are a beautiful girl. But if we are going to do this, it means that Tristan will have to be seen with you. Right now, I'd be embarrassed to be seen with you." She said.

Another insult. This time it felt like a punch in the gut.

My eyes widened at her words. I didn't have time to fully react to her insult because she was already planning another one.

"What do you wash your hair with? It looks really dry, and so do your lips." She pointed out. "I'll have my driver drop off some things for you. We'll pick this conversation up tomorrow. You should leave first. It's best if people don't see us together." She spoke.

Her comments made me conscious of my appearance. My hair could have used a little more moisture, but it was still perfectly healthy.

I ran my tongue across my lips. All it ever did was prove her point.

"We'll continue tomorrow. You should leave now. I'll leave a little bit later so no one sees us together." She spoke.

I nodded and made my way out of the suite. I checked in all directions before stepping out.

I continued walking down the hallway, unsure what the next task would be. Before, I had a schedule that told me what I needed to do.

That's when I saw Madison.

She was walking toward me, acting like she was on the runway with hair bouncing off her shoulders.

I didn't want her to see me. She would ask me about 'our' deal and I still wasn't sure what to say to her.

I turned around, heading in the opposite direction and to the elevator.

Luckily, she didn't see me.

I sighed in relief as the elevator doors closed.

I dodged a bullet with Madison.

I pressed the button for the next floor. Where was I even going?

With another sigh, I stepped out of the elevator, aimlessly walking down the hall.

Apparently, I had just dodged one bullet to walk into another because Tristan was heading toward me. I couldn't run away again because he saw me. His face lit up for a moment before his expression turned into one of confusion, followed by a threatening look of 'What are you doing here?'

I froze on the spot, terrified and just stared at him.

"Ashley," He spoke. "Aren't you supposed to be not working?" He asked.

"What are you doing here?" I avoided the question.

"I was just visiting a client but seeing as you are here, I might as well ask you a question." He paused. "Did you happen to see a crazy woman out here somewhere? Old. Dark hair, designer clothes, you know, the one who barged in the other day." He spoke.

My brow creased in thought. "You mean your mother?" I asked.

"Yes," he answered with a nod.

"Well, no. I didn't see her anywhere. I don't think she was here." I lied.

"Well, I saw her driver earlier. Past experiences tell me that she is up to something." He said.

"Maybe you are just overreacting," I suggested.

"Maybe," he answered.

He took a moment to think.

I guess he really knew his mother.

"You know, I think we should really get to know one another. How about we have dinner tonight?" He suggested.

Diner alone with Tristan? I couldn't look at him for an entire night while lying to him.

"I'm really tired, maybe another day," I replied.

He let out a small smile, not protesting any further about my decision.

I turned around, preparing to leave.

Did I see a look of hurt on his face?

Today, I must have been a magnate for trouble because Madison was heading in our direction.

A smile formed on her face as she spotted Tristan.

I noticed the change in Tristan's mood as his body stiffened. I could tell he wasn't happy to see her either.

"Tristan," Madison came roaring in. "There you are," Madison sang.

"Now I'm leaving," Tristan answered.

He made an attempt to leave but Madison stopped him in his tracks.

All the while, I stood there on the spot with my arms crossed, looking at them angrily. I'm sure I'm invisible to them right now.

"We should meet again tonight, you know, we really need to start working on that side project we have." Madison flirted.

She made an attempt to jokingly slap his arm, but Tristan quickly moved away.

I couldn't watch this.

Layla would kill me if she found out I let an opportunity like this slip away and drove him right into her arms.

"Sorry sir," I interrupted.

Madison's expression changed abruptly when she noticed my presence for the first time.

"I just wanted to remind you of that dinner you have tonight," I spoke

Tristen stared at me puzzled.

Madison shot me a stern look, her lips pressed together in a thin line. But I didn't care.

"You know, the one you just asked about?" I continued.

Tristen looked at me in realization.

"Oh yes, at six thirty." He confirmed, running his hands through his hair. "I won't be able to work on the project tonight. Who knows how long that dinner will last." He paused. "But if you want to talk about the project, you can meet me in my office during office hours. There is a panel of people we can discuss the project with. That will help move things forward" He suggested.

I could tell Madison wasn't too pleased with the suggestion.

That made me very happy.

"That would be great," Madison faked a smile. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow then," she suggested.

"I'll be busy," Tristan replied, slipping his hands into his pockets.

Madison faked another smile before walking away disappointed.

There was no stopping the wide smile that spread across my face. I can't believe I had just done that.

I needed to get back to reality because Tristan now had all his attention directed at me.

I cleared my throat in an attempt to wipe away my smile. "Five-thirty sharp. I don't like it when people are late. We'll meet at the back entrance,"." I said.

Tristan looked at me puzzled, wondering if I had been joking or not.

Before he could say anything, I turned around and walked away, not taking the time to regret my decision.

What was I thinking? Going out with Tristan. All the women that are going to hate me.

Why five-thirty? That didn't give me any time to go home and change into something more decent. My work clothes weren't exactly 'date ready' not that it was a date.

Before I took the time to think about this further, I got a text from Marcus. He was calling me to his office.

I expected a long list of errands to run, but instead, Marcus sat me down, giving me some insight into his job as a manager. We called some florists for the flowers we needed in the lobby for next week. We also made some calls to the catering service and made sure that next week's work schedule had been finalized. It turned out Marcus had a lot more to do than watch Ivy and me all day.

After hours of working, finally, it was five p.m., which meant my shift had ended. And only half an hour till my date.

I stepped out of Marcus's office in a panic. What was I doing asking Tristan to meet me at five-thirty?

Maybe Ivy could help me out.

I knew Ivy would probably be in the women's locker room preparing to go home. Our shift ends at the same time today.

I rushed to the locker room hoping I wouldn't bump into Tristan or Madison.

Sure enough, Ivy was in the locker room.

She was struggling with some paper bags, probably with the food she ordered from the restaurant.

"Do you need any help?" Maggie offered Ivy.

"Just back off," she replied defensively.

Maggie backed away, walking away from Ivy and out of the locker room.

Other women looked weirdly at Ivy as they too walked out of the locker room.

I approached Ivy.

"There you are!" she exclaimed.

"I need your help," I whispered to her.

I looked around the room happy to see that no one was looking at us.

"What is it?" Ivy asked trying to sort through the food so it would be a bit more manageable to hold.

"Tristan and I are going out tonight," I answered.

Ivy dropped everything she was holding. She stared at me with her eyes widened, her face lit up in surprise.

"We have a lot of work to do," Ivy whispered.

Ivy shoved me onto the bench right in front of our lockers.

She opened her locker, searching for a make-up bag.

The room had cleared with just Ivy, and I left. If anything was clear, it was that no one wanted to be at work any second more than necessary.

"Why do you even have all of those things in your locker?" I asked.

"In case I meet a handsome rich guy who happens to be here on holiday and asks me out on a date." She explained. "Why don't you keep anything in your locker?" she asked.

She looked at me, probably wondering what needed to be fixed.

"Loosen the hair," Ivy pointed out.

"My hair looks just fine," I answered running my hands through my neat low ponytail.

"You look like someone who works for him instead of his date. People will ask you if you are his assistant." She answered. "If you don't loosen that hair, I'll pull that hair and do it myself." She threatened. I don't think she was kidding.

I loosened my hair allowing it to fall over my shoulders.

"There is so much to do, the hair, the makeup, you have to find something else to wear, shave your legs, there is so much to do." Ivy rumbled.

"I don't have time for all that. We are meeting at five thirty," I said.

"Why couldn't you have suggested eight o'clock? You look like a mess!" Ivy exclaimed.

She turned to her locker, taking out the makeup bag which she then handed to me.

"You do something with your face while I try and get you something to wear," she said.

She then hurried out of the locker room.

I looked at the contents of the makeup bag.

I settled for a simple look, using mascara and some lip gloss. I was never good at makeup. I was still scared I'd poke my eyes out.

Minutes later, Ivy was back holding a black dress. It was short with straps. It always had a heart neckline. The dress would hug every curve on my body. It was beautiful.

"I got you this dress. One of the hotel guests left it months ago. I'm sure no one is looking for it. It's your size too." Ivy spoke breathlessly.

There were only five minutes before I was officially late.

Changing into the dress was a lot more difficult, especially because Ivy was trying to brush my hair at the same time.

Because of my poor make-up skills, Ivy added a few touch-ups of her own, giving my eyes a smoky look. It made my blue eyes pop.

Ivy smiled as she looked at the results. "My beautiful caterpillar turned into an even prettier butterfly."

"You are a lifesaver, thank you so much," I said looking at my reflection in Ivy's mirror.

"Don't worry, I'm going to get a front-row seat at your wedding." She answered. "You are going to need this." She handed me the lip gloss.

Before I got the chance to admire Ivy's handy work any further, she was already rushing me out.

I placed both my work uniform and the dress I wore earlier in my locker. That was the final stroll before Ivy dragged me out of the room.

Remember, always act interested, no matter how boring he sounds. You don't want to eat too much because we don't want the dress to break," Ivy rumbled.

"Relax," I whispered to Ivy. "We are not actually going on a date. Besides, I got this," I reassured her.

"Fine, just be yourself. He too will see just how wonderful you are." She answered. "Come on, I'll walk you to the back entrance door. I want to see what car he is driving."

She hocked my arm into hers as the two of us walked together.

What if I wasted my time? What if Tristan didn't show up? After all, I had told him no at first.

I shouldn't have thought about him because he suddenly appeared.

With one hand in his pocket, he walked toward us. He was now dressed in a royal blue suit with his hair neatly brushed back.

Ivy hadn't seen Tristan because she had her eyes looking down while she rumbled about her grandmother.

But Tristan saw us.

This couldn't be happening. I couldn't let Tristan see Ivy. Not after the way they acted toward each other the last time.

If Tristan found out about Ivy, he might figure out that the whole hospital act was a lie. There is no telling what he would do.

I might have been spared from his wrath but will Ivy be spared?

This day was about to end in a disaster.

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading, please vote and comment.