Love's deception

Chapter 2

Emily’s pov:

I walk into my office and head straight to my boss's office. Mr Smith,that’s my boss."I'm back," I say, I take a deep breath, preparing to tell him about my interaction with Christian. "I went to see Christian wood as you asked”

My boss looks at me, his expression unreadable. "And?".

"He didn't say anything worth it ," "I tried to get him to open up, but he was very guarded.

“And you just left???”he asked

“Well,I didn’t have much thing to say,but he asked me to have dinner with him”

My boss looks at me,his eyes narrowing

“And you accepted to go on the dinner right”

“Well,I did say I will go”

“Good,you need to go and draw his attention,I heard he likes girls a lot”

“Sure boss”I said

As I was about to leave

“And Amelia,if you're going to be meeting with Christian Wood, you need to dress the part," my boss says, his tone firm. "I want you to look like you are going to dinner date. Not like you're just coming from the gym."

I can’t help but think to myself

“Is there a nice way to say that I dress like a zero?" But I don't let my irritation show on my face. I just nod and say, "I'll do better."

I walk through the door of my apartment, exhausted from my long day. I'm greeted by the sound of my dog, Tatty, barking excitedly as he runs to greet me. I give him a pat on the head and smile, grateful for his unconditional love.

But as I make my way into the kitchen, I'm surprised to see my best friend, Kate , sitting at my kitchen table, a worried look on her face.

"Kate, what are you doing here?" I ask, surprised and a little concerned.

"I'm sorry to barge in on you like this," Kate says. "But I was worried about you. You haven't been answering my calls, and I thought something might be wrong. Are you okay?"

I sigh, feeling guilty for making my friend worry. "I'm sorry for not responding to your calls," I say. "I've just been really busy with work, and I haven't had a chance to check my phone."

Kate’s expression softens, and she reaches out to give me a hug. "It's okay," she says. "I understand.

Kate pulls back and looks at me, her eyes full of concern. "But I'm still worried about you," she says. "You seem so stressed lately, and I don't like seeing you this way. Is it because of work?"

I hesitate, not sure how much I want to share with Kate. But her compassion and concern make me feel like I can trust her with the truth. "It's partly because of work," I say.

"Have you heard of Christian Wood?" I ask Kate, knowing that she's more up to date on celebrity gossip than I am.

"Are you kidding?" Kate asks, laughing. "Who hasn't heard of Christian Wood? He's one of the richest men in the world, and he's always in the tabloids. Plus, his step brother is considered to be one of the hottest bachelors in the world as we heard though”.

I rolled my eyes.

"So what's the story?" Kate asks,I knew she wanted to know more. "Are you just interviewing him for a story, or is there something more going on?"

I hesitate, I know I can't tell her the truth - that I'm investigating Nathan for possible illegal activity because she would discourage me. But I don't want to lie to her either.

I decide to tell a little lie, saying, "It's just an interview, nothing more."

Kate gives me a skeptical look, not quite believing my answer. But she doesn't press the issue, instead changing the subject. "So how's the rest of your life going?" she asks. "Any new guys on the horizon?"

I laugh, grateful for the change of topic. "No, no guys on the horizon," I say. "I've been too busy with work to even think about dating."

Kate shakes her head. "You can't let work take over your whole life," she says. "You need to make time for yourself, and for fun.

"I know, I know," I say, even though I'm not sure I really do. "It's just hard to find the balance sometimes. But I'll try to do better."

Kate smiles at me, clearly not convinced, but willing to let it go for now. "Well, in the meantime, how about we go out and do something fun?" she suggests. "We could go to a movie, or out for drinks, or even just get some ice cream.

As we were preparing to leave, my phone buzzes with a new message. I pick it up, and I rolled my eyes l when I saw that it's from Christian’s secretary, reminding me about the dinner with the location.

"Is everything okay?" Kate asks, sensing my sudden change in mood.

"I just got a message about a dinner I have to go to tonight," I say, my voice low.

"Is it with Christian Wood?" Kate asks, her eyebrows raised.

I nod,feeling too tired to talk about it .

"You've got to be kidding me," Kate says, her eyes wide. "You can't go to a dinner with a billionaire without the right outfit. We need to go shopping right now."

"I don't have time," I protest, feeling stressed by the thought of adding one more thing to my to-do list.

"You've got to make time," Kate insists. "You can't show up at a dinner with a billionaire looking like you just rolled out of bed.

I hesitate, torn between the need to look my best and the desire to just get everything done. But Kate's determination is infectious, and I find myself agreeing to go shopping with her. We head out the door, and I try to push all thoughts of the dinner out of my mind, focusing instead on finding the perfect outfit.

But as we browse through the racks of clothing, my anxiety about the dinner starts to creep back in.

Kate pulls a sleek red dress off the rack, and holds it up in front of me. "What about this?" she asks. "I think it would look great on you."

I study the dress, a slinky sheath that would show off my curves. It's definitely not something I would usually wear, but there's something about it that appeals to me. "It's gorgeous," I say. "But is it too much?"

Kate laughs. "There's no such thing as too much when you're going to meet a billionaire," she says.

I look at myself in the mirror, admiring the way the dress hugs my curves. But I still feel nervous about the dinner. "What if I can't handle it?" I ask, my voice wavering. "What if I make a fool of myself?"

Kate gives me a reassuring smile. "You're stronger than you think," she says. "And besides, even if it doesn't go perfectly, you'll have had an experience you'll never forget.

"You're right," I say. "I'm here to do a job, and I'm not going to let anything else get in the way of that." I take a deep breath, letting the confidence sink in. "Okay, let's do this."

"That's the spirit!" Kate exclaims, clapping her hands. "Now, let's find you some killer shoes to go with that dress."

Kate leads me to the shoe department, and we begin going through the dress. I try on a few different styles, but none of them feel quite right. Just when I'm about to give up, Kate holds up a pair of red stilettos, their heels sky-high. "These will be perfect," she says.

I take the shoes from her, a bit stressed with the thought of walking in them. "I don't know if I can walk in those," I admit.

Kate gives me a sly grin. "You don't have to walk in them," she says.

I raise an eyebrow, wondering what she means. "You'll be sitting down most of the time," she says, her voice convincing. "And when you're not, you can hold onto the arms of the chair. No one will know that you're not wearing the shoes."

I laugh, her words making me feel a little less nervous. "I guess that's true," I say. "But what if I have to walk to the bathroom?"

Kate shrugs. "Just kick the shoes off under the table and go barefoot," she says. "No one will notice."

So we laughed over what she said

"What time is the dinner, anyway?" Kate asks, and I pull out the email with the details. "It's at seven o'clock," I say. "At a restaurant downtown called The Ivy."

"The Ivy!" Kate exclaims. "You lucky girl, that place is great. You're going to need more than just a dress and shoes for that place."

"What else do I need?" I ask.

"Well, you'll need a jacket, for one thing," Kate says. "And maybe some jewelry. Oh, and a clutch. We'll need to find you a nice purse, too."

I feel stressed by the list of things I apparently need to buy. "I don't have the budget for all that," I say.

Kate places a hand on my arm, her expression reassuring. "Don't worry," she says. "I've got some ideas that won't break the bank

“Or we can just go home and use what I have”

“What you have??”she asked laughing

“Girl,your accessories looks like you are a going for a pyjamas party”she said laughing

“That’s not true”I retaliated

“I think I have some accessories I can help you with”she said

“Let’s go home then”

So we paid for the shoe we got and headed home

As soon as we got back to my apartment, Kate gets to work on getting me ready for the dinner. She starts by helping me to do my hair, using a curling iron to add some waves and body. "You have such pretty hair," she says. "It will look so elegant in this style."

I look at myself in the mirror, and I have to admit that I like what I see. My hair is a warm, medium brown, with just a hint of red highlights. Kate runs her fingers through it, fluffing it up a bit.Kate is an expert when it comes to styling hair

. "You've got such gorgeous hair," she says. "You just need to learn to style it right, and you'll look like a million bucks."

I smile at Kate, feeling grateful for her help. "You're the best," I say, giving her a hug. "Thank you for doing this."

"Don't mention it," Kate says, grinning. "I'm just happy to help. Now, let's get you dressed."

I put on the dress, and I'm amazed at how good it looks. It fits like a glove, and the style is simple and elegant. I feel like a million bucks, just like Kate promised. I put on the shoes and clutch, and I start to feel like I might actually be able to pull this off.

"You look amazing," Kate says,smiling at me. "I'm so proud of you. Now, just try to relax and enjoy yourself. The most important thing is to be yourself and be confident."

I take a deep breath, trying to take in her words. "I'll do my best," I say. "Thanks for everything."

"You're welcome," she says, giving me one last hug. "Now, go blow his mind"