Fiftysix - Seven Rue Page 0,74

for tonight.

This was exactly what I needed.

Della inviting friends and family on a Saturday night to celebrate her birthday which was last night.

To be exact, I needed Riggs to be in my house to continue my quest to get him back.

He’d be here with us as well, and it was the perfect opportunity for me to put on my best dress, highest heels, and most beautiful makeup to show him what he’d miss out on.

“Coming!” I called back, leaning in to get closer to the mirror and wiping my thumb along my bottom lip to perfect my wine-red lipstick matching my exposing dress.

I had curled my hair and pulled it back into a low, messy ponytail so Riggs would have something to grab on to if he did decide that I was what he wanted.

I had no doubt about that, but he was being stubborn and an ass, showing off how much of an alpha he really was.

Walking over to my bedroom door, I opened it and didn’t expect Della to still be standing there.

“Is there something you need?” I asked, closing the door behind me.

She let her eyes wander all over me, and with a sweet smile, she shook her head. “I wanted to see you before we headed downstairs. You look beautiful,” she complimented, hiding her disapproval of either my heels or the dress.

Maybe even both, but I ignored it.

“Thank you. You look gorgeous,” I replied, rubbing her upper arm before walking toward the stairs.

“I’ve invited a few of my girlfriends from college and they’re bringing their daughters. They are around your age so maybe you can talk to them and make new friends,” she suggested.

I didn’t have time to make new friends, and I also didn’t need any more.

I had Kennedy, who by the way was really hitting it off with Mason and having another date with him.

Good for her. She deserved a nice guy like him.

“I’ll see what I can do,” I told her as we reached the foyer to see Dad sitting on the couch, reading a newspaper.

“Andrew, look at how beautiful your daughter looks tonight,” Della said, changing the subject.

Dad turned around and put the newspaper down, then smiled at me but kept half of his stern facial expression.

“You both look wonderful. I’m the luckiest man alive,” he told us.

I smiled at him and walked over to the couch, leaning down to kiss the top of his head and immediately tasting all the hair gel he had used tonight.

“And you’re the most handsome man I’ve ever seen,” I told him, totally lying about it since Riggs was the literal definition of handsome.

Dad chuckled and got up from the couch to then pull Della into his arms, congratulating her once more for her birthday yesterday.

“It’s gonna be fun,” he promised her, and as they kissed, I turned to walk into the kitchen where three catering staff members were standing, waiting for guests to arrive.

Those were the usual ones Dad hired for parties, but I never had much to do with them.

Tonight, I decided to talk to them to make them feel welcome in our home as they always looked so tense.

“How are you this evening?” I asked, smiling at them and seeing their confusion as to why I was talking to them.

“Very well. Thank you, Miss Bentley. We’re happy to be here,” the woman on the far right said with a heavy, eastern-European accent.

“Have you had something to eat already? You know you can always come back here and take a little break if you need one,” I offered.

“Thank you, Miss Bentley,” another one of the women said, and the second my father walked in, their bodies tensed immediately.

I hated the impact Dad had on most people, but I hated it the most with people who worked for him.

“Ready? Guests arrived,” he said, meaning for them to take their trays and head out of the kitchen.

They did, and I smiled at them to remind them of what I had said seconds before.

“Did you invite Kennedy?” Dad asked.

“No. She’s on a date with someone she met a few weeks ago. But Della said her girlfriends will bring their daughters so…that’ll be fun.”

“Oh, don’t be like this, Val. You’ll have a great time. Get something to eat, drink, and talk to people.”

I would, while teasing Riggs and making sure we would never break eye-contact.

I sighed and nodded, then walked out to the foyer to greet our first guests who I’ve never met before.

Della’s friends and their daughters