Chapter nine

"Daxton Vice."

Daxton stretched his free hand to her. She took it without hesitation. 

"I didn't know you'd started attending business parties. I feel so loved." He teased.

"Oh, I attend these all the time." She said with a straight face, joining the fun. "Balls… birthday parties, dinner parties, tea parties, garden parties, basically anything soirée like." 

"So I'm not loved then. Ouch! Here I was thinking that Gwenevere Welch, the girl who deemed it necessary and was bold enough to make herself a social outcast, attended my congratulatory party because she thought she had to meet me. To meet the man who conquered London."

She smiled seductively.

This particular flirt… She did not mind. 

"Who said I made myself an outcast?"

"Right. Because a beautiful girl like you would be anything less than a sight for sore eyes. Being unattractive must be so strenuous. How do you cope?"

"What can I say? I'm smart, I'm tall, I'm rich, I excel in the business world.. I can't have it all, now can I?"

"And humble…" he added sarcastically.

"This is coming from the man who deems himself a God for conquering London, as he put it."

Daxton laughed. She joined him.

"I heard you bought Crane. That's impressive. The last time I checked, they weren't willing to sell."

"Not many can say no to a woman like me." She winked.

"That I do not doubt." He took a sip of his wine.

Gwen did the same, taking a good look at him from under her eyelashes. He was huge, the same height as Damian but more muscular. He worked out… a lot. She dared to envision the body inside that breasted suit. If she didn't have the wine glass on her lips, Daxton would have probably seen the saliva coming out of her mouth.

Her smile widened when the headline of every party Daxton attended popped into her mind. He was the only man who dared to wear sneakers with a double-breasted suit in the entire room.

She'd heard the stories of the one who disrespected fashion it became ludicrous.

Daxton dressed as he pleased and disregarded dress codes all the time. Sometimes, he wore a different color from the theme, and other times he wore a different shoe entirely. One time, he'd graced a ball with a tee shirt and jeans.

If Gwen was to attend parties, it would be for the entertainment Daxton Vice served.

She'd expected a bigger performance at his own party. The white sneakers would still give the news station and bloggers a field day.

"I was so close to wearing one of those." She said, pointing with her head to his leg.

He looked down, and a broad mischievous smile took a portion of the lower part of his face.

"What stopped you?"

"No. You weren't supposed to continue in that line of conversation. You were supposed to laugh and let it go. It was a joke. A fun way to bring up your… hobby."

"It's been brought. Now answer me this, why wouldn't you want wear something like this to somewhere like this?"

"I do wear sneakers, you know?"

"But you'd never be caught dead in them in a place like this?"

"'Never be caught dead'is a stretch, but you're spot on."

She laughed at her own joke. 

Daxton smiled while he watched her.

"Has anyone ever told you you look breathtaking when you laugh?"

She was taken aback. Damian had said the same thing once. 

She collected herself, her smile faltering. She'd had enough fun with Daxton for two lifetimes. She wasn't supposed to fraternize with him, and much worse, flirt with him after what she'd done to Damian. 

She was brutal, but she drew lines in certain places. Lines she couldn't allow herself to cross. Like flirting with the brother of the man she had tried to kill. Or genuinely enjoying his company. 

The first man that had flirted with her and she had not felt repulsed by him. 

The party was well into the night. It had been an hour, give or take, since the party started.

Gwen wondered why Daxton had not looked for his brother. Even though they'd had their fights, she assumed Damian would be the first person he went looking for when he came back. And it was well over twenty hours since he was back in the country.

She had to give it to Sigurd. He was good. Whatever he told Daxton seems to be working pretty well.

"I'm sorry. Did I say something wrong?"

She snapped out of her trance, coming back to the real world.

"No. No. No. I just have something very important on my mind."

"Ah! The important thing that girls use to blow guys they don't like away."

She couldn't help the small smile that appeared on her face. "Has anyone ever told you you're crazy? And not the good kind. Like, bat shit you shouldn't be allowed anywhere near people who are sane crazy."

"I get that all the time. My older brother was the first to notice it."

There it was. The talk about the older brother.

"This isn't the important thing that girls use to blow guys they don't like away, I promise. This is actually very important."

"I believe you."

She gave him one hard long look. Then she removed herself painfully from his presence. "If you'll excuse me."

Walking through the room, she searched aimlessly for Barbara. With the crowd of people standing and conversing, it was a little hard to find her. Thankfully, Gwen finally did. Barbara, in her black elegant silk dress with a stain of gold that was hardly noticeable on the hem of her gown, was standing with a crowd of people. They were all women. 

Gwen was made to understand from her parents' marriage that they were the whisperers, the controllers of the men that conquered the business world. Otherwise known as the wives of the moguls. These women were the benevolent aristocrats, the people who even though they had no standing in the offices, or contributed in any way to the growth of their husbands business squandered money like it waa their sweat and blood. These were the women who lived for the pleasures of having a good name in society by doing good and noble deeds. 

They were also the women who preached to the young girls growing up to allow the men take charge of the business because it was a man's world, and it was no place for a woman.

Gwen wasn't thrilled seeing Barbara with them, but unlike her, Barbara respected social settings and traditions. She may not like them, but she respected them.

"Excuse me ladies, I'd like to steal her for a while, if you don't mind."

They all smiled at Gwen, granting Barbara permission to leave. 

"What have you told Daxton?" Gwen said when they were safely inside a guest bedroom.