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Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.


CHAPTER 19

 

The originality, creativity and romanticism of the show has garnered her much attention from all over.

Lace is the main component of all her coutures, and every detailed inch of it symbolises the beauty and grace only a woman of class can wear.

Overnight she has become the sweetheart of Napoli. Her husband is one of Europe's wealthiest men, CEO of Roux corporation a brick manufacturing and distributing company. He also has his own brand of wine and has several investments in real estate and else where.

Italy might have just got its own Madame Coco Chanel.

“Saint-Luc you're my trophy husband now,” she said smiling appreciating the approaching figure of her husband who wearing a plain white top, dark blue shorts and white leather boat shoes not looking a day over thirty.

Chuckling at her statement, he sat down on the sun lounger next to her as she passed him her phone to read the reviews. Passing the phone back to her, he said, “Madmoiselle, for you I'd be a toilet seat husband.”

“Ew Saint, that's disgusting. Though you're the only one who seems to be able to put up my shit,” she said it jokingly but she meant it with all seriousness.

“Oui, how do the English say it – you like to take the piss, but I'm not perfect either,” he replied his eyes telling a story his mouth didn't want to recount but Naomi understood.

Patting the wide gap between his legs, he invited her over to sit with him. Naomi more than willingly accepted the invite. His legs were on either side of the lounger and Naomi wanting to be comfortable sat facing him, with each of her legs on top of his laps, so her foot dangled on either side of him.

It was just past seven in the evening, the intensity of the sun was not as scalding as it was in the afternoon because of the gentle breeze that flowed allowing Naomi to revel in the heat on her partly naked back.

“Oh my gosh Saint, you're so tanned. You're looking more Arab now, ” she said as she took in her husband's darkened features.

“I tan easily, that's why, ” he said leaning back on the lounger using his arms as support.

“I wasn't complaining.”

“Okay good,” he replied smiling back at her that Naomi knew was forced not because of the conversation but because he seemed to have a lot on his mind.

She'd been waiting all day for his return brimming with excitement at the news she'd received earlier in the day and was barely capable of stopping herself from texting or calling her husband, insisting the moment she announced her news would be much better enjoyed face to face. Saint-Luc had flown in to Rome in the morning to visit his branch office but now that he was back all thoughts of her news came second seeing the dejected look on his face.

“How was your day Saint?”

“Tiring.”

“Why, what happened?” Naomi asked concern etched on her face, briefly distracted feeling water splash on her back and turned her head to see a group of some bikini clad girls sqealing as they jumped in the hotel pool.

With an annoyed look she turned around to Saint-Luc waiting for his answer.

“I have to go back to Paris on Thursday.”

The look of displeasure at the news was immediately effective on Naomi's face. “That's two days away. Why do you have to leave so early?”

“I would love to have stayed here until next week, but there's a lot of headache going on in the company.”

On the day after the fashion show, Saint-Luc had insisted that they discuss their living arrangements. After much negotiation on both sides, they'd agreed that for the time being they will live in separate cities but will each take turns to fly out to see the other every week and after three months they would re-evaluate their situation.

But Naomi didn't expect to part soon and that was evident on her face. “What exactly is happening that is stressing out?”

“Naomi I don't really want to be talking about that right now. So let's just move on to your day,” seeing the displeased look on her face, he sat up holding her hands in his, “please.”

Even though she wanted to insist and probe further, the pleading in the hypnotic swirls of his eyes, gave Naomi no choice but to give in. She wanted Saint-Luc to feel like she was the wife he could talk to about anything but when it came to such things, he was old-fashioned in the sense he believed a man should handle his own problems and not divulge to his partner like a woman would typically do with her husband.

“Fine but I want to remind you that I'm your wife, in case you forgot.”

“That's signed, sealed and delivered. Even if I forgot, the whole of Naples would remind me.”

At this, Naomi couldn't help but laugh. “True, but I want you to want to tell me about your good and bad days.”

“Okay madmoiselle,” he said and though Naomi was not the least bit convinced in him adherring to her words she let him be.

“Are you going to finally tell me what the good news is?” he asked referring to the message he'd received from her when he was on his way back to the hotel and she told him to meet her in the hotel's rooftop pool as she had something she wanted to tell him.

Jumping up and down and clapping her hands, like a child, she grasped Saint's shoulders and with all the excitement she could muster, she told him.

“The Mayor of Napoli wants to honour me! Like are you kidding me Saint-Luc, I'm only 19!”

“You've accomplished more than a lot of people your age have. You more than deserve it.”

“You think so?”

“Oui, I know so.”

Naomi could not believe the series of events that had unfolded since her fashion show had taken place four days ago. It seemed that from that moment on someone had pressed the forward button to a video of her life.

She'd been invited on local radio stations, news channels for interviews, fashion bloggers had reviewed her clothes. The one question that they'd all had on their lips is when her collection was going to be put up for sale and where. Her inbox was full daily of people asking her the price of different pieces of her collection when she had not even put a price tag on any of them.

The truth of the matter is that Naomi did not have any definite answers so she gave a response that danced around the questions and left ther interviewers in suspense.

The couture in question was safely locked in the hotel's vault. Even though she was still mostly unknown with her growing popularity she took no chances when it came to her clothes.

At first she had wanted to decline all the interviews but thought better of it after seeking advice from Saint and him telling her it would be good to reach her potential customers or at least be interested with the brand with all the free publicity it was attracting.

At the end of each day Naomi had a hundred questions that sexing Saint didn't answer but left her head clearer to think out her options.

Knowing she was with someone who was well versed when it came to anything business was an extra re-assurance for her. Though with all the media engagements she'd had she'd barely even had time to figure out what her next step was.

Two nights ago, after a round of their nocturnal activities, Naomi had admitted this to Saint-Luc. And staring into his wondering eyes at that moment that questioned her silence and repeated sighs,she cast down her eyes, playing with the hem of his shirt.

“Saint, I'm overwhelmed.”

“Hey,” the gentleness in his voice forced her eyes back to him, “remember I told you to take your time to figure out what you want.”

“I know. I would love to have my own fashion house. That's my dream but I'm only 19 and most designers I know first started off working for another designer before venturing on their own. I feel like I would be jumping the gun too quick if I struck out on my own.”

“Naomi in case you haven't noticed ADE is already a fashion house. You just need to get rid off this belief you have that you're not capable enough. You're more than capable, you've shown it to me, you've shown it to the children and teens who you provide hope for, you've shown it to Napoli but most importantly you've shown it to yourself.”

She could vow that everytime Saint-Luc opened his mouth to say something to her she fell deeper in love with him.

It was when she'd gone to the church earlier in the day after Father Giamoco's secretary called requiring her presence, that he'd told her about the mayor wanting to honour her for her contribution in the arts and community in two weeks.

It would be the longest time that she'd been away from the church to teach her lessons, so when she saw all her students, she was overcome with joy and especially at how happy they were at seeing her. Together they'd all become a family.

Unknowingly to them, they'd been her saving grace, just like they thought of her as their saving grace. In the times when she still was trying to figure out if there was marriage worth saving, they'd been right there. In the times when the depression wanted her to be chained to her bed the thought of the students coming to the classes to escape their nightmare at home and have a chance at improving their lives, was what forced her out of bed.

Seeing eveyone's excited faces talking about the fashion show, asking about her husbandeveryone was so pleasantly surprised to see her. The classes were getting bigger, and the space to accommodate them all was getting smaller. She knew that would be something that she needed to figure out soon.

Three of the teenagers who had walked in her show had ran up to her; two girls and one boy and to her amazement, they said that they'd been scouted out by a modelling agency, and they were going to Milan the following week to take pictures for their portfolio.

At this news, they'd jumped-hug in celebration but out of nowhere one of the girls suddenly burst out crying. Taking her to the side to comfort her Naomi knew why. Although the girl was just fifteen she'd experienced a lifetime of heartache. Her father was in prison serving life for Mafia-related crimes and her mother had died a year earlier from a brain tumour, leaving her to live with her aunt and her family, so it was a bittersweet moment for her.

She knew what she wanted: to heal people with fashion.

“You're so lost in your thoughts right now madmoiselle. What's going on?”

“Nothing. Just thinking.”

A slow smile appeared on his face as he leaned into her, grasping her head to meet her lips for a kiss. The kiss turned passionate, as their legs entangled, Naomi in a semi- straddling position with both their groins pressed.

The kiss had been for her than for him to make her stop thinking and overthinking whatever was on her mind, but with the stroke of her tongue on his lips, it became more about his constant need for her.

After a few moments, he withdrew wanting to reign in some control and whispered close to her ears, “D'you want to go back to my place?”

“Oh my gosh, Saint Luc you sound like those fuckboys in clubs trying to chat up a girl for a one night stand,” Naomi couldn't help but laugh out loud and thanked God that fuckboys were a thing of the past for her.

“Ha ha, I know. But I'm not them, I'm your toilet seat husband, remember?”

They laughed together at this and grasped her hand, urging her to get up. “Come on let's go upstairs and celebrate our win.”

“Our win?”

“Yes your wins are my wins and vice versa.”

“I like the sound of that.”

Just as Saint was about to say something, they both heard the ringing tone of Naomi's phone on the table next to them. Stretching a little to reach it, Saint passed the phone to Naomi.

A glance at the number caused the grimace on her face and with heaviness she had not experienced in a long time she accepted the call. “Hello?”

Mouthing to Saint-Luc that she would be back, she excused herself and walked inside the part that led to the hotel spa.

As soon as she left, Saint missed the skin-to-skin contact that he'd been enjoying with his wife. The eagerness to know who she was talking to was on his mind but the day he'd had overshadowed that.

Crossing his arms across his forehead, he laid his legs on the lounger, closing his eyes to rest his brain, even for just a little bit.

But he couldn't. An environmental charity group had made a documentary,“The Mices Who Work for The Men” showing the working conditions of several big corporations with factories in developing countries and their mistreatment of their employees - Roux's company had been featured. Specifically, the plant in India that Saint had purchased a several months ago and had caused him a lot of money to rectify the situation.

The video was circulating really fast and Saint-Luc was beyond livid that this charity was out to damage his reputation, when there was no truth to the sights shown but many will choose to believe that as the current reality.

As much as he wanted to be with his wife, he couldn't let the situation fester. He had too much to lose for that to happen.

He wasn't looking forward to sleeping alone on his bed and their living arrangement wasn't one that he was satisfied with but he agreed to appease his wife. But he prayed that before the three months she would change her mind.

Even though he had been extremely happy for his wife at her news, for some reason, he thought she was going to tell him that she was with child. He knew it would be illogical since they'd been apart for three months and even though they'd been recently unprotected in their intimacy it would still would have been early to know. But if she was, Saint-Luc's happiness would have been unrivalled.

Before his thoughts could wander too deep on being a father, he saw Naomi sitting back down on the lounger.

With a sunken look on her face, she drops her phone carelessly besides her. “That was my sister. She's in England for two weeks and wants to see me.”






Chapter End Notes:

A.N: Hey everyone, my blog post for the month is out now, "When Friends are Bad Company". You can read it here:

http://theefectivetimes.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/efes-thoughts-in-october.html

Thank you all for your support.







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Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.