Chapter 12.

"No, we won't get divorced. He loves me. Didn't you see how he proved it to you that day in front of the house?" I smirked and she furiously raised her hand to slap me. As I was raising mine to block her, someone's hand already did the job. Being shocked, I turned and was met with David Patrick.

"Let go of me, David." Danielle glared at him.

"I'm disappointed in you, Danielle. You are supposed to protect your fellow woman, not hurt her." David replied as he released her hand.

"You're only saying that because you don't know who this rag really is and I'll advise you to stay away from her." She smirked and walked away, swaying her hips seductively for David to see.

"Are you alright?" David asked me with concern.

"Yes, thank you for your help." I smiled gratefully.

"It's nothing." He replied.

He took out his phone and began doing God knows what. Not wanting to disturb him, I attempted to walk away, but then his voice, "hold on", halted me.

"Come with me to the restroom." He said and my eyes widened in horror as I stepped backwards.

"No, no, please don't get the wrong impression. We have to wait for my sister at the door of the women's restroom so it would be easy for her to locate us", he explained.

Putting the figures together, I understood. "No, please, don't worry about me, I can fix myself. Don't bother your sister."

"Too late, I already contacted her and she's on the job." He said, showing me his phone and I could only see the heading of the text he sent to his sister, before he put the phone back into his jacket.

"Shall we?" He said and I nodded.

"So how come you have a quarrel with Danielle?" He asked as we walked to the restroom.

"Well I don't have a problem with her, but she does with me." I replied.

"Why?" He asked and I was quiet. There's no need telling someone that I'm married when the marriage will come to an end soon.

"Don't worry, you can trust me", David said. He could sense my hesitation.

"She feels threatened by me." I said.

"Why will Danielle feel threatened by you?" He asked.

"Well that's because she's dating my husband", I replied and he paused in his steps and gave out a little laugh.

"Dating your husband? If she's dating your husband then he must be wealthy", he said.

"Yeah, he's stinkingly wealthy." I replied.

"Stinkingly wealthy? Only Ivan Blake matches that description and..." he looked at me from head to toes.

"...you don't look like someone who'll ever get the chance to marry him and besides that punk is still single", he continued and we began walking again.

I don't blame him, looking at me, I'm no match for Ivan.

"What if I prove it to you?" I said and he looked at me skeptically and nodded.

I brought out my phone from my purse and dialed Ivan's number. I know he'll pick, because he never ignores my calls. He'll pick it up and tell me bullshit that will make me cry.

Ivan picked and I spoke, "hey, Ivan what kind of husband are you who invites his wife to a party and leaves her all alone."

"I'm sorry, B. I've been busy. But don't worry, I'll be with you soon", Ivan said and I ended the call. David was shocked, but I'm more shocked than him. Now I'm convinced, Ivan definitely hurt his head.

"That really is his voice." He said, surprised and I smirked.

"You believe me now?" I said and he nodded.

We reached the restroom and waited, neither of us said a word until I saw, good Lord, Disha Patrick approaching us. This is another great deal in the entertainment world. She's a famous model.

"Disha Patrick? Oh, my, I'm your huge fan." I said excitedly and she smiled.

"Thank you. But who on earth did this to you?" She said as she looked at my dress.

"Danielle Dover." David replied.

"That cruel woman. Eeeew. I don't even know how she's got fans." Disha said with irritation in her voice. One could tell that she really despises Danielle.

"Why did she do this to you?" She asked me.

"Well as we all know, Danielle is dating Ivan Blake and it turns out that he's her husband." David replied and just as Disha was about to speak, her phone rang, so she answered it instead.

A minute later, "I'm sorry, whose husband did you say Ivan Blake is?" She said, putting her phone in her purse.

"The woman standing right in front of you." David replied.

"But you don't look..." Disha's eyes ran through my head to my toes.

"Yeah, that's what I thought too until she proved it to me", David interrupted her and she gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Oh, my God, Ivan is married and he hid it from the whole world? This is serious headline", she said.

"Real headline, sis." He said.

A lady came to us with two large paper bags and Disha pulled me into the restroom. "Let's fix you up." She said and gave me a dress.

"I hope this fits you because my clown brother didn't give me your description. This is my measurement, go check it."

I went into one cubicle and changed into the dress and came out.

"Oh, thank goodness, it fits you perfectly." She said pulling me to stand before a mirror. She opened a make-up kit and picked a brush. "Close your eyes." She said and I did so. While she worked on my face, I could feel the other lady wearing a pair of shoes on my feet.

"You're all set." She said and I opened my eyes and I was about to cry from my reflection that I saw in the mirror. She transformed me into a totally different person, my beauty shining through. She combed my hair and let it fall to my back, removing my bangs. The make-up was light, but transformative. Then the dress was a knee-length gold dress made of luxurious silk, showcasing my straight fair legs. The dress hugged my body elegantly, bringing my hourglass shape in view. The dress featured a subtle sweetheart neckline, delicate cap sleeves and gold sash cinching at my waist, shiny gold beads covered the whole dress. Gold heels on my feet.

"You look preety, what's your name?" Disha said.

"Blair." I replied.

"You look pretty, Blair." She said.

"Thank you so much for your help." I said, still staring at my reflection.

"That's nothing. Let's go, the program will be starting soon. Your husband who's the special guest of honour has arrived." She said pulling me out of the restroom and David stared at me, mouth opened.

"You're beautiful." He said with admiration in his eyes.

"Here's my autograph." Disha said, giving me her business card with a smile.

"Okay, I'll leave you two. My boyfriend is waiting for me." She said hurriedly and left with the other lady.

"Shall we?" David asked and I nodded. We walked back into the hall and I could see heads turning in my direction and whispers going on. Looks like the program already started because someone was already standing in the little elevated balcony, giving a speech. David and I found a place to sit, and the next thing I heard was, "and now we invite our special guest of honor to launch the book, Ivan Blake!"

Everyone applauded and cheered as Ivan stood up and made his way to the staircase to go to the balcony. "Hold on, Mr Blake, let's make things more fun. Why don't you go around and pick a lady to accompany you for the launch." The man said and Ivan's laugh could be heard everywhere in the room. He was putting on a microphone.

"Okay." He said and made his way into the crowd. All the women began adjusting themselves, putting on many poses for Ivan to see. As he made his way, he paused as our eyes met and I quickly looked away. By the time I looked back at him, he was already walking in my direction. The whole crowd were expecting him to go to Danielle who was just a seat before me. Danielle herself was already smiling, knowing that definitely he'll choose her. But Ivan disappointed everyone as he stopped in front of me. His face expressing shock, surprise and admiration. He stretched his hand to me which surprised me. I was about refusing him, but then the crowd began clapping and cheering so I had to accept his hand. He smiled at me and we walked to the balcony.

"You look stunning." He said sexily and winked at me and the crowd screamed and applauded. Everyone could hear him because of the mic and I shook my head. This guy is the master when it comes to the art of flirting. We launched the book together and the dance floor was open after that. We descended the stairs and as soon as my feet touched plain floor, David pulled me with him to the dance floor.

"May I have this dance?" He asked politely.

"I'm a bad dancer." I replied timidly.

"I'll teach you." He said, placing my hand on his shoulder and his hand on my waist. He held my hand and we began swaying to the music. I stepped on his feet many times, but he didn't pick offense and just taught me slowly. I know how to dance, but I pretended not to and deliberately stepped on his feet, just to test his patience and temperance. It turns out he's a nice person.

"Good, you're getting it now." He smiled at me and I smiled back.

After the dance, David excused himself to the restroom. And I seized the time to leave the party. I entered into the car and the chauffeur drove me home.