Enraptured

Chapter 32

The little bell above the door rang as I entered the hole-in-the-wall boutique.

I planned to propose to Belle today and worked extra hard to finish my work early, but she was nowhere to be seen when I finally left my office.

But based on Lukas's information, my mother had run off with Belle in the middle of the workday to come to Monique's boutique to try on her custom dress for the last time in preparation for tomorrow's gala.

The moment I walked in, I was greeted with the familiar sight of gold detailings lining the shop's walls with rolls of fabrics scattered all over the place and the usual musky scent that clung to every inch of the wall. It was something I had often seen as a child whenever my mother insisted on dragging me here to play dress up.

"Oh, hello, Demetrius. I wasn't expecting to see you today. Do you need to get something altered at the last minute?" pipped Monique as she lifted her glasses off of her face and rounded the corner to greet me.

I shook my head and glanced around the seemingly empty shop. "I'm just looking for Arabelle. I heard that my mother dragged her here."

A look of realization flashed across her face. "Ah, yes! They're trying on the dress in the back right now. I'm sure you know where the changing room is, so feel free to go ahead of me. I still need to find a couple more lace options for them to pick from."

I nodded stiffly, not sure of what they would need lace for, but continued on anyway. I walked over to the back of the boutique and parted the curtains at the doorway to enter the backroom. But before I could enter, I was suddenly shoved back out of the room with a pair of small hands pushing against my stomach, not even reaching my chest.

"What are you doing here, Demetrius? You can't see her in her dress yet."

I raised an eyebrow at my mother as she stood in front of me with her arms held out in front of the doorway protectively. "It's not a wedding dressing, though..."

She huffed, "It's supposed to be a surprise for tomorrow, so no peeking!"

I rolled my eyes. "Fine, but I still need to talk to Belle about something."

"No, we're busy. Come back later."

I pursued my lips as irritation started to settle in due to my stubborn mother. In a raised voice, "Mother, it's wonderful that you like Belle as much as you do, but—"

"Demetri," a familiar dulcet voice called out.

I looked up in recognition and immediately softened at the sight of Belle's adorable little face poking out from between the curtains. I walked up to her, ignoring my mother's mumbles as she scurried over to Monique to give us some privacy.

I gently hooked my finger around one of her loose strands and pushed it back behind her ear. Her hair was pinned up, but there were a few strands falling out of place, perfectly framing her bright violet eyes. I mumbled softly to myself, "You're not wearing your glasses..."

She flushed under my touch and lowered her eyes, making her long lashes flutter dangerously enticingly. "Mrs. Nikolaos is having me use c-contacts tomorrow, so she wanted to see me in the dress without them..."

"Hm... You know that I don't mind your glasses, right? I think they are actually quite cute..."

She pouted, "But I wanted to look mature and elegant... not just cute..."

I chuckled at her adorable expression and leaned down to press a kiss on the corner of her eye, making her squeeze her eyes shut and a small smile appear on her lip. "I already think you're beautiful, so please don't feel inclined to change yourself."