Chapter 22

22 The Perfect Girlfriend

“Hi! Elena...” she greeted me before smiling sweetly my way.

“Hi, Millie. Looking forward to the party?” I asked as I smiled back at her.

She’s such a cute girl, really. It took quite a while for her to warm up to me and come to terms with the fact that I’m dating her father. Now, I could proudly say that we are on very friendly terms.

“Yes! Let’s go!” Millie cried out cheerfully.

“Right. Let’s go!” I also cried out excitedly as I mimicked her cheerful pose.

Adrian took her hand and together the three of us walked to the car. The nanny helped put her backpack in the bag seat of the car along with Millie while Adrian and I rode in the front seats. At times like these, I couldn’t help but feel like we really were a family. Millie chatted away about some toys that she played with and what was happening at school with her friends.

Adrian made appropriate comments here and there while I listened to their conversation. I felt a small tug on my hand and realized that Adrian had started holding my hand in his. His hand around mine was warm and I couldn’t help but smile a little at him. The tender touch of his hand and the family-like atmosphere in the car reminded me that once, I too, had a family like this.

It was a short drive to Millie’s friend house where the party was taking place. My job for today was to act as Adrian’s girlfriend and Millie’s new mother. From what I’ve been told, Adrian and Millie’s mother divorced when she was just a baby. From then on, Adrian had been raising Millie as a single father. Now that Millie is growing up and socializing more with the people around her, Adrian’s family wanted him to remarry to find a new mother for Millie and to produce more children. The classic rich and demanding family story.

If your family isn’t perfect, it was very hard for you to avoid dark gossips in high society. Adrian’s divorce from his ex-wife was having many negative repercussions on Millie. Now that she has grown up enough to understand a bit of what was going on, she was feeling the negative impacts firsthand such as being teased at school for not having a mother. That was where I entered into the picture.

.....

“We’ve arrived,” Adrian said as he got out of the car and opened the door for Millie.

“Yay!” Millie cried out happily before laughing.

I offered the girl my hand and she took it while smiling up at me. We led her inside the house where her friends were already there playing with some games.

“Adrian, so happy that you and Millie could make it,” a woman with blonde hair and a very beautiful smile greeted us at the door.

This must be one of the hosts for today’s party. The mother of one of Millie’s friends, I quickly took mental note. She’s a target for me to impress as Adrian’s girlfriend and Millie’s mother.

“We’re glad to be here. Thanks so much for the invitation. Millie has been excited and looking forward to this party,” Adrian replied before smiling politely at her.

Her eyes were immediately on me, and I smiled at her while I waited for Adrian to introduce me. This is the first time that he’s introducing me into Millie’s world of acquaintances and failure on my part wasn’t an option.

“This is Elena, she’s my girlfriend,” Adrian introduced me with a proud smile before putting an arm around my waist.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” I said, my voice sweet and dripping with honey.

“Wow. I didn’t know that Adrian had a girlfriend. I’m Gemma, Isabelle’s mother. You two come inside,” Gemma said.

By this time, Millie had already rushed into the house to join the rest of her friends. We both followed Gemma inside of her house. The kids had formed their own group to play games and the parents had formed another group to socialize while they waited for their kids to be done. It was a simple and clean set up that allowed both age groups to past the time enjoyably.

“This way,” Gemma said as she led Adrian and I to the sofa where the other parents were chatting.

“I’m Adrian, Millie’s father and this is my girlfriend, Elena. Nice to meet you,” Adrian introduced us flawlessly as I plastered on one of my most charming smiles.

If nothing else, I knew that I was an easy sight on the eyes. It was common for people to think that I’m nothing more than a beautiful face and that worked in my favor most of the time. Honestly, you have to look at least above decent to date billionaires and Adrian was definitely one of them.

“So, Elena, what do you do?” one of the women in the group asked.

It was one of the most common questions that I would get whenever I went out with my clients. The way that everyone was looking at me made it clear that they were wondering how I managed to hook someone has handsome and rich as Adrian. The fact that he hasn’t been in a relationship for many years probably only added to the mystery.

“I’m a designer. I own my own line of clothes and accessories. I have a degree in business management, but I honestly feel more inclined towards design. So, combining my passion for fashion and my background in business, I somehow managed to launch my own fashion line,” I replied flawlessly before smiling warmly at my audiences.

It wasn’t a lie. I did own a small company that sells clothes and accessories produced based on my own original designs. Obviously, the company was small and couldn’t support my current lifestyle or the overwhelming amount of debt that I had on my shoulders. Obviously, these people didn’t need to know that.

“Wow...that’s amazing...” one of the men said as he smiled at me.

Some men are easy to bewitch and this gentleman here is definitely one of them. They asked me a couple of other questions before the conversation finally steered in a different direction. I could feel Adrian’s eyes on me as I conversed fluidly with the other parents. Whenever our eyes met, I would smile at him to assure him that I was fine and that everything was going according to plan.

“Why don’t we all head out to the garden for some drinks? I’ve already prepared everything outside,” Gemma suggested energetically.

“That’s a great idea,” another parent said.

“Yeah...let’s do that,” another woman readily agreed.

“We should have enough nannies to cover the kids,” another mother said before smiling brightly.

–To be continued...