Garden of Whitney

Chapter 4.

The wetness between her thighs started to rise as soon as she said that since it seemed to manage to focus those green eyes back on me, there was a barely perceptible quiver at the corner of his lips. I wasn't sure if it was purposely flashed at me or not.

Stupid Whitney! "Whitney is still as cute as she was," you remark. As he leaned on the counter and stared at me while eating an apple he pulled out of the basket and said, "Still somewhere the same....little girl."

Holy!

It was difficult to determine at this point if the strangeness was coming from my head or from his words.

Yes, you won't believe how much she still behaves like a child. My father appeared to enjoy it very much when he made fun of me, saying, "Her childish habits are still there."

Festus continued to look at me and said, "Old habits are hard to let go just, of course." He was not at all lowering his gaze. One by one, I could feel my self-control weakening.

If I stayed much longer, this was not going to go well.

I hastily spat, "I'll...I'll just go to my room," and turning around, I started to leave the kitchen.

But your breakfast," Jane said, starting.

I cut her off and said, "I'll take it later, Jane," tucking a hair strand behind my ears and giving her a short glance before leaving the kitchen.

"Hold on, Whitney," You stated you're hungry, my dad's voice trailed behind me as he tried to argue.

I yelled back, "Just bring it to my room," accelerating my steps as I mounted the stairs and sought safety in my own locked chamber.Finally, by myself, I let go of the heavy breath I had been holding. The strain that had been building up inside of me was visible in the lone droplet of sweat that was making its way down the side of my forehead.

I commanded myself to "calm down, Whitney."

The same emotions were rekindled in me by Festus Adriano. I had believed that my desire to him had subsided over the years, but all of my plans changed the moment I laid eyes on him.

It was undoubtedly bad news.

Today..... It may have been my own hallucination, but there was something in his stare that I hadn't noticed in the previous five years.

I didn't think it was just a hallucination, though.

Whitney.

I drank my coffee while leaning against the balcony railing, its bittersweet flavour giving me a much-needed break from the stress that was threatening to overwhelm me. I skillfully avoided Festus by pretendeding to have a headache so I could avoid the formalities of welcoming the arriving guests one at a time.

Damn, that man's ever-increasing good looks seemed to defy reason.

From where I was standing, I could see the group gathered by the pool. It resembled a scene from a movie about a poolside party. There were several attractive men, some of whom were the sons of Dad's business colleagues and others worked on behalf of their fathers.

My eyes, however, were only interested in sneaking looks at the green-eyed Italian man sitting on a chaise lounge in this sea of lovely people. He maintained a different level of casual elegance than the rest, undoing only a few buttons to show the gold chain around his neck. I occasionally caught a tantalising glimpse of his tattoo, an artistic creation that unmistakably began on his left side of the chest and extended down his arm.

What was God contemplating as He was working on this masterpiece? Too good to be true, he is.

I forced myself to look away from him and up at the sky. Today's weather was pleasant enough for me to want to take a walk, which was something I didn't do very often.

What on earth are you doing outside, Whitney? I was startled by Jane's abruptly loud voice, which made me gasp and turn around. My hands instinctively closed around the coffee mug, making sure it wouldn't escape my grasp.

"Jane...you nearly killed me!" My heart continued to beat wildly, so I put a hand over my chest.

She rolled her eyes and walked over to me while wearing a bikini and a poolside robe. "For heaven's sake, everyone's by the pool having a good time, and here you are, acting like a lone ghost," she said. "Continue to change!"

I shrugged and said, "I didn't bring any swimwear," thinking my little white lie would stick. You little liar, I say. I packed your suitcase with you, so I don't think your weak justification will convince me. She naturally detected my ruse. What exactly did I anticipate?

"B-but..."

She interrupted me, "No buts, go and get ready, otherwise I might have to drag your ass there, regrettably."

I finally let out a dejected sigh after realising that continuing to resist would be pointless. Okay, I'll prepare myself.

She nodded, a triumphant smile tugging at the edges of her lips. "Good. If you don't go downstairs soon, I'll have to come back up here to check on you. I rolled my eyes and said, "Okay," before entering the closet.

Thanks to the fact that I had unpacked my suitcase the night before, finding my swimsuit turned out to be a reasonably simple process.

I chose to wear a flowing white chiffon sheer robe with a black triangle bikini. I purposely left a few strands of hair hanging loosely about my face while I pulled my hair back into a bun. I changed into the swimsuit and covered it with the robe before giving myself one last once-over in the mirror to make sure I looked acceptable. I moved in the direction of the pool after I was satisfied with how I looked.

I wished that my depraved mind would stop forcing me to keep looking at Festus. After only one day, he had already managed to bring my sanity dangerously close to collapse.

The noise of the guests' laughter and the clinking of glasses mingled with the din of their conversations. Everyone was getting drinks and other treats from the waitstaff.

The gathering began to reveal recognisable faces, including those of the people I deeply loathed. One of them just so happened to be connected to my dad's business, and she was Gloria Henderson, a person who really irritated me. A truly evil b***h. Despite being married to a military husband who probably bought into her false pretence of unwavering love, she was a crafty and promiscuous lady who shamelessly sought any guy within her grasp. She personified everything repugnant. I was irritated just by Gloria's cunning behaviour, which was obvious to everyone. How could she openly manipulate and deceive her husband while putting on the façade of a loving and faithful wife? Being forced to observe her dishonest behaviour made me feel repulsed, and my contempt for her peaked.

I gritted my teeth in rage.

Fucking b***h!