Tonight is the night of reckoning and grandstanding for Tyler. The entire board will be present at the ball, he will obviously be present at the ball, and I will too. There will be food, socializing, dancing, drinking, and perhaps even more business talk.

I assumed that there would be business talk, because I just couldn’t imagine how a group of board members could get together and not discuss anything about it. I’m not so knowledgeable on the business aspect of Tyler’s goals, but I knew I could make a good impression and meet new people.

It might even be a situation where they could put me on a new job if mine ends up floundering. Franca is shrewd and tough, but I don’t know how much more she could actually take. Besides, it doesn’t hurt to have a backup plan. Maybe this ball would do it for me.

That being said, I would have to take this one step at a time. For starters, I had to make myself look dazzling. I started from the drawing board, but I couldn’t wait to get finished. When a woman looks like a princess, it just makes her feel marvelous. That’s what I was aiming for.

I took a nice, long shower and scrubbed my skin with Brimful Soothe – a natural series of soaps. I scrubbed myself so hard that my skin with mildly aching when I got done. Then of course, I did my shampoo and conditioner.

When I got out of the shower and touched my face, the skin was smooth and fresh. I had a nice scent too – smelled a little bit like honeydew.

I put on a plush, white robe after I stepped out of the shower onto the warm floor – which was heated. Whatever Tyler spent on this place, it was worth it. I hummed softly and sweetly to myself as I pulled out a bag of makeup.

The first thing I had to do was put on some nails. Yes, I cheated and bought the fake ones. A girl needs to look pretty, even if everything isn’t authentic. I pulled out a run of ten fingernails that looked sharp. They were dark blue at the fingertips and light blue toward the rear of the nail. They were also smooth and sharp.

Damn! I looked good. Then I focused on my other feminine beauty needs. I put on my eyeliner, and started getting frustrated because it wasn’t perfect. It was too thick, too dark, too light, and sometimes uneven.

I leaned closely to the mirror and closed only one eye. I dipped my brush into container. Very gently, I pressed it against the eyelashes on my closed eye. I got a little bit of the stuff on my eyelid, but I finally got it looking how I wanted it – as close to perfect as possible.

Now it was time for makeup. I had quite a few collections. I knew exactly what I wanted, but was torn because I wanted Tyler to like it, too. Also, the whole point of tonight (and the entire trip) was to impress the board. Would I impress them if I looked like shit? I think not!

I picked a somewhat neutral color that would just cover any blemishes on my face. It would help make me look a little smoother and young (not that I’m old). That would help me be noticeable and attractive. Looking attractive is important to me.

As I thought of being attractive, I considered Tyler. Okay, so we had sex. Did that mean I was his girlfriend, or that I wanted to marry him? Hell no! I was just having…fun. Yeah…fun.

I felt a little slutty for opening my legs for him and letting him go deep inside of me. I feel even more slutty for getting hot just by thinking about it. Still, a girl has needs – much like a man does. The only difference is that a girl has to balance a crazy act.

If a girl has sex too much, she’s a slut. If a girl doesn’t have sex too much, she’s a tease. If she’s a virgin, she’s a prude. How can a woman navigate a path like that? It’s almost impossible. I gave up years ago, and just take care of my ‘needs’ whenever it is necessary.

I opened the slightly-dusty, plastic container of makeup and firmly pressed my brush into it. I noticed that when I looked in the round piece, that I could see the plastic exposed in the middle of the inside of it. I was running out of makeup. I just hoped that I would have enough to finish this trip.

I put on my makeup, and just a little bit of blush. Blush is my favorite. It just makes the face look natural and lively. A person who blushes has emotions and feelings. That was me. I love feeling a certain way.

The best emotion is love. I really had a major crush on Tyler, but I wasn’t ready for him yet. Was he ready for me? Maybe. He wanted to have sex and was lustful about it. That doesn’t mean anything from a man. He might have just wanted a piece of ass.

Then again, it might have meant something. I was the first woman that stayed in his penthouse. I think he cares for me, too. We laughed and talked a lot. If we had just a cold relationship, that probably wouldn’t have happened.

“Whatever” I said to myself after I sighed. I clicked the makeup case and put it in my dirty and messy makeup bag. There was spilled power, a little mascara, and even a little lipstick. Oh, lipstick!

I was glad I remembered that, too. I pulled out a deep red lipstick that really accented my mouth and lips. I played a cute talking game with myself and acted dirty in front of the mirror.

I popped out my hip to the right, and blew a kiss. “Come here, big daddy” I said as I shot my eyebrows up and down. I inspected myself and I looked good – damn good. I was ready to roll, and just barely got done in time.

“Are you ready?” Said Tyler as he put on a Tom Ford suit that made him look really nice. It was wool that was dark grey – almost black. There were tiny stripes – just barely noticeable to the naked eye. That was complete with a dress vest of the same color, and a white, button up shirt.

Most women are ready an hour in advance of an important event. I guess I’m one of the exceptions. I’ll probably be late to my own funeral.

I put on my black, leather high heels, and took one last look at myself in the mirror as I readied to depart.

Black dress with authentic velvet and small bow on it? Check. Pantyhose that are completely run-free and smooth? Check. Small purse with gold-color latch and soft leopard skin? Check. Very hot looking girl ready for a party? Super-check!

I walked through the exit door first – because Tyler, the gentleman, let me walk ahead of him. My heels loudly clicked while I was walking. I looked hot and I was confident. A woman gets a lot of confidence from looking beautiful.

We got into his BMW after I stepped into a small puddle and got a little dirt on my shoe. “Agh! I said and then looked for something to wipe it with. Something as simple as a puddle made me look less attractive. I didn’t like that – not at all.

“We’ll find something for you to use when we get there” said Tyler as he snickered over at me. He started up the car, and we took off within just a few minutes. We would soon be at the ball. The closest thing to a real ball that I had even been to, was my high school prom.

I sighed to myself as I was thinking about it. Many years had already passed since then. And here I was, with a wealthy guy who was taking me to a ball. The only real difference between Tyler and my high school boyfriend is that Tyler is loaded with money. At times, he’s still a jerk like my boyfriend was.

Just by looking at the front door, I knew this place would be amazing. The front door was huge – perhaps ten feet tall. It was thick wood that I didn’t recognize – it might have been something exotic. It had etched glass on it. It was really pretty.

In fact, I pulled out my iPhone and got a picture of it. *snap* I smiled after I took the picture and Tyler just rolled his eyes at me. He was probably used to seeing this kind of stuff all the time. He is, after all, wealthy. “Come on. You’re making a scene” he groaned as he gently pushed my back while walking beside me.

We opened the door to get inside, and this place was loaded with awesome stuff. Obviously, I wasn’t a passenger on the Titanic, but I bet this is what a lot of it looked like. Though, hopefully this night would go a bit better. Everyone – without exception – was wearing beautiful things.

Some outfits were animal fur, some were sparkling, and others were plain but very pretty. Before I had left the penthouse, I thought I would be the most beautiful person at the ball. After just a few minutes there, I grew far less certain of that.

“Maya, come this way. This is an important person that I want you to meet” muttered Tyler as he took my hand and walked me toward a large and wide staircase. Even the staircase was nice – it had a red carpet with stone tiles.

“Maya, this is Herb. Herb, this is my girlfriend, Maya” he said as he smiled and looked over at me.

I looked at Herb and quickly got the impression that he was an important guy. For starters, he was talking to a group of three people and was very confident and entertaining to them. I’m not sure what he was saying or doing, but they kept laughing.

He also had two women on both sides of him, with his arm cupped around both of their waists. Was he in one of those ‘open relationships’, or were the women so attracted to him that they were competing with each other for him?

“It’s nice to meet you, Maya. My name is Herb, and I’m one of the board members where your boyfriend works.” said the grey-haired man who smiled over at me. His teeth were very white (almost too white) and straight. He had an apparent pocket watch with a gold chain coming from inside his suit. His lips were a little bigger than the norm. In a way, his lips looked a little bit like what would be found on a goldfish. His smile was great, though.

“I’m actually going to go get a scotch. I’ll be back in a few minutes” Tyler said as he smiled and kissed my cheek. He then strolled away toward the mini-bar.

He made a mistake of etiquette when he didn’t ask if I wanted a drink. If he really was my boyfriend and cared, he would have asked me before he walked off. I suppose that in a game of pretend, there will eventually come signs that it is fake.

Thank God that Herb didn’t notice or get suspicious. He just asked about me, and how I met Tyler. “So, this is the first time we’ve met and I know nothing about you. Tell me, how did you meet Tyler? How long have you two been together?”

I smiled over at him and did the best I could at manufacturing the bullshit. I’m not good at it, because I usually don’t have to do this kind of silly thing. “Well, my company was giving a presentation that he was at. We were talking about décor options for the Seattle hotel. Anyway, we talked after the presentation and we’ve been together ever since.”

Right after I said that, I knew I screwed it up. In my mind I was saying “fuck! Now they know our relationship started after his scandals. In turn, they might see it as a fake relationship.”

“Well, good for you guys. I’m glad he’s finally settling down. We, at the board, have been worried about him being too wild at times” he said, and followed with a sip of a glass. I think it had scotch in it.

It actually worked. The cunning plan that Tyler put into place was actually working. Right after I realized it had been working, I calculated that my comment might not be that bad after all. In fact, it might have been a good move – even if it was accidental.

If I told the board that we were together before his sex scandals, they might lose respect for me. They might conclude that a woman who tolerates a cheating man, is a pushover. If we had been together before the scandals, he would be a cheater. Therefore, I might not get much respect for not standing up for myself.

I conversed with Herb for about ten minutes, and he was making me laugh, too. He told me about how he had gone on fishing trip when he was a kid, and the canoe had a leak in it. By the time the leak was discovered, he hurriedly tried to paddle back to shore. He made it back, but the canoe didn’t.

Tyler was standing there and talking with us, too. He would occasionally laugh. After about ten minutes, he leaned over and whispered into my ear. “I need you to meet a few other members of the board. Come on, this way.”

I waved goodbye to Herb and his feminine ‘partners’, and let Tyler lead me by the hand over to two others that were much different. These two were quieter, and still. They didn’t have any women around them.

They were the same age though – maybe early to mid 60’s. I smiled Tyler led me over to them, but they didn’t smile back. They just looked at me and waited for either Tyler or I to say something.

Even though they had the same kind of personalities, they looked much different. One was tall, and one was short. The tall guy had a long nose and a little bit of visible ear hair. He kept his hands folded behind his back. His eyes were dark brown, and his shoulders were wide. He was clean shaven, and didn’t smile or hint his emotions.

The shorter guy was holding a glass of what looked like soda. He looked about the same age, and had also didn’t hint whether he was happy or sad. One major difference with him was that he was wearing his suit jacket, while the other man was not. One thing that was odd about him, was that he was in a suit, with a jacket, but he was also barefoot.

Tyler waved over at them and smiled as he pulled me close to them. “Hi guys. This is Maya, my girlfriend. I wanted you two to meet her.”

They both drew their eyes onto me, and didn’t say anything. It felt weird…really weird. I tried to break the ice by introducing myself. “Hi. It’s nice to meet you both. This is a nice place, isn’t it?”

The short guy took his turn to speak and reply. “Thanks for coming. Yes, this place is nice. Herb is one of the largest shareholders and is a successful real estate investor.”

Once I broke the ice, they slowly started to share their lives with me. They were both fathers and shared stories about their children, their wives, and goals for the company. When I told them how Tyler and I met, they perked up once they learned who I worked for.

Within just fifteen minutes, I had both of their business cards and respect. That was two more in the bag, so to speak. They liked me. That probably meant that they felt a little better about Tyler. That was the point of this whole trip, so I’m glad I could make it work.

I excused myself from the group after my stomach gave me a little grumble. Before I left, I just had to ask. I felt rude about it, but I went for it. “Can I ask you a question?” I said as I looked at the guy with bare feet.

“Sure” he said as he paused and waited.

“I’m just curious about why you are barefooted?” I said as I looked at his feet with a partly-embarrassed face since I was so nosey.

He smiled over at me let out just a few, quiet laughs. “I’m bare footed because my shoes aren’t very comfortable. That’s it. Nothing really exceptional or exciting.”

I laughed after he said that. I wasn’t going to make fun of him, or rag on him for being barefoot. I just had never seen that before – at least not with a man, who was fully dressed. “Okay. I’m sorry for being nosey. It was nice meeting you gentlemen.”

They waved goodbye, and both smiled at me. As I walked over to the buffet table, I realized that I hadn’t heard from Tyler in a while. Where did he go? I was on a hot streak with the board members, so I would meet another if he really wanted me to do that.

“No matter” I thought to myself as I found some caviar and a piece of herbed bread. I took a little nibble just to test it. It passed. It more than passed because it was delicious.

A Latina woman walked up to the table beside me and smiled over at me. She was pretty, and looked beautiful. She looked like she was in her mid 40’s – perhaps a little younger. I thought it was strange that she didn’t try to pick up any food. In a few minutes, I found out why.

“Hi, Maya. How are you?”

I looked at her and paused because I didn’t know who she was, but she knew who I was. “Do I know you?” I asked her while keeping my eyes on her pretty, auburn eyes.

“No. I’m actually an interior designer, but I’ve heard all about you. You’re dating Tyler, correct?” she said as he rubbed her pretty fingers together. They had dark green polish.

“Yes. That’s kind of funny. I do interior decorating as well” I said to her after a small smile. I didn’t think I would end up meeting anyone in my profession, but I did.

We started a nice conversation about decorative pieces that we both like. She’s really into flowers. I think flowers are nice, but they can’t be used for anything. Like pretty much everything else in life, they have their place.

We talked about decorating and the hotel in Seattle. She said that she was excited that it was being built, and looked forward to staying there. She likes to travel, I found out, and does it all the time. I don’t always get to travel much, so I got a little jealous.

Jealousy was only one negative emotion I started to get from her. After about ten minutes of talking, she started asking about Tyler. It started out as innocent and talkative, but it got worse. Much worse.

She asked how we met and how long we had been dating. That part was okay. Then she asked if we planned on getting married, and what fetishes he has. Then she moved on to discussing different romantic gestures and gifts to buy him.

Finally, she got to the point where she was pressing me for details, and information. She asked where I lived, and where I spent most of my free time. Then she asked if Tyler and I ever slept together, then wanted to know how many times we did that. She inquired about whether we planned on having any kids.

I was starting to sweat a little around my neck, not because she scared me, but because she was making me a little uncomfortable. Then as the conversation went on, I even began to stutter a little. I said a lot of ‘uh’ and ‘umm’.

At last, Tyler showed up and then she quickly departed. I knew something was going on, or at least there was some discomfort between him. Maybe she was a contractor that he once used, and then fired because he wasn’t satisfied with her work.

He looked concerned and contemplative. I wanted to know why, and I wanted to know why that lady was so nosey. She should just mind her own business and be respectful that Tyler and I have some private issues in our life.