Chapter 347: house party XVII

Chapter 347: Chapter 347: house party XVII

The game continued.

But Vivienne barely heard it anymore.

People were talking.

Someone laughed.

William made another joke.

Scott and Leo were arguing about something.

The party continued around them.

But Vivienne couldn’t concentrate.

She stared at the table.

Christopher knew.

That was the problem.

He knew now.

Not everything.

But enough.

And if he thought about it for even a few minutes, he could probably work out the timeline.

Vivienne’s stomach tightened.

She and Christopher had only been together since yesterday.

But she had known him for a little over a month.

They had met shortly after she and Anthony ended their engagement.

They had started texting.

They had gotten closer.

And during that same period...

There had been Damian.

And reality was, she had been having sex with Damian since Saturday upto just Yesterday.

Yesterday, the same day she had confessed her feelings to Christopher.

He had agreed to be with her.

And now it was Wednesday.

Their first day as boyfriend and girlfriend.

And Christopher had just learned that Damian had been the man before him.

Vivienne’s face grew hot.

Oh God.

He could figure it out.

He could realize that while she had been getting closer to him...

She had also been sleeping with Damian.

It wasn’t technically cheating.

She and Christopher hadn’t been together yet.

She knew that.

But would he see it that way?

Would he wonder whether she had been playing with both of them?

Or would he think it had happened before she ever started talking to him?

That would be another problem.

Because then he might wonder whether she had been seeing Damian while she was still engaged to Anthony.

Vivienne closed her eyes for a moment.

Either possibility was terrible.

And the worst part was that she couldn’t even tell herself Christopher was imagining something that hadn’t happened.

The truth was complicated enough.

She had been with Damian.

Right up until yesterday.

And then she had confessed to Christopher and somehow managed to get him to be her boyfriend.

She swallowed.

What if Christopher thought differently about her now?

What if he wondered why she had never told him?

What if he thought she had been playing with him and Damian?

Her chest tightened.

No.

She had to explain.

She couldn’t leave him to make his own assumptions.

Especially not now.

Not on their first day together.

She looked at Christopher.

He was sitting beside her.

Calm.

Quiet.

She couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

That made her even more nervous.

She still didn’t know him well enough.

They had only been a couple for one day.

She couldn’t assume that his silence meant everything was fine.

Maybe he was simply being polite.

Maybe he didn’t want to embarrass her in front of everyone.

Maybe he was waiting until they were alone.

Vivienne glanced toward the door.

When could they leave?

She wanted to leave now.

She needed to explain.

But leaving immediately would make it obvious.

Everyone would know something was wrong.

She looked down at Christopher’s hand around hers.

Then she gently tugged at it.

Christopher looked at her.

Vivienne gave him a small smile.

"You have a polo match tomorrow..."

Christopher raised an eyebrow.

"Mm."

She hesitated.

"Would you like to rest early?"

Christopher looked at her for a moment.

Vivienne’s heart beat faster.

Then he simply nodded.

"Let’s stay a few more minutes. Then we’ll go."

She nodded.

"Okay."

Her shoulders relaxed slightly.

At least they were leaving.

She still had no idea what Christopher was thinking.

But she knew what she had to do.

She had to tell him the truth.

The whole truth.

She swallowed hard.

What if he didn’t want to hear it?

What if he had already made up his mind?

What if, by the time they were alone, he simply told her that this wasn’t going to work?

Vivienne’s eyes began to sting.

No.

She didn’t want that.

Not now.

Not after finally getting him.

They had been together for one day.

One day.

And she was already terrified that she was going to lose him.

She looked down at their joined hands.

Christopher was still holding hers.

She held on a little tighter.

Please.

Just let me explain.

She didn’t want him to leave her before she had the chance to tell him everything.

Because she loved him.

And the thought that he might already be done with her made her want to cry.

--

For another few minutes, they remained at the table.

Vivienne tried to follow the conversation.

She laughed when everyone else laughed.

She answered when someone spoke to her.

But she was mostly waiting.

Eventually, Christopher gently pulled at her hand.

Vivienne looked at him.

He stood.

"I think I should head back."

William looked up.

"Already?"

Christopher nodded.

"I have a polo match tomorrow."

William immediately nodded.

"Ah. Right."

He smiled.

"Of course."

Then he raised his glass slightly.

"Thanks for joining us tonight."

Christopher smiled.

"Thank you for having me."

William’s eyes flickered briefly toward Vivienne.

He was still hoping the evening had gone well.

At least, as far as he was concerned, the important thing was that Christopher had actually come.

Vivienne stood beside Christopher.

"Me too."

She smiled at William.

"I think I’ll head back as well."

Claire looked at her.

There was a brief pause.

Then she smiled.

"Okay."

Eleanor gave her a small, understanding smile.

"See you tomorrow."

Amelia smiled too.

"Goodnight."

Vivienne smiled back.

"Goodnight."

They didn’t ask questions.

They didn’t need to.

Christopher was already holding Vivienne’s hand.

And everyone could see that she wanted to leave with him.

The two of them walked toward the door.

As soon as they stepped into the hallway, the noise of the party grew louder.

They headed downstairs.

The party was still going strong.

Music played from somewhere deeper inside the house.

People were talking everywhere.

Someone laughed loudly near the staircase.

It was only eleven fifteen.

Vivienne had been there for less than two hours.

And yet, somehow, it felt like the night had lasted much longer.

She barely noticed any of it.

Then someone spotted Christopher.

Marcus.

He immediately made his way toward them.

A grin spread across his face.

"There he is."

Christopher looked at him.

Marcus glanced at Vivienne.

Then back at Christopher.

His eyebrows rose.

"So this is the girlfriend."

Vivienne’s heart skipped.

Girlfriend.

The word sounded strange now.

Not because she didn’t like it.

She loved it.

But after everything that had happened upstairs...

She didn’t know if it would still be true an hour from now.

Marcus smiled at her.

"Hello, Lady Beaumont."

Vivienne managed a polite smile.

"Hello."

He extended his hand.

"I’m Marcus. Christopher’s best friend."

Vivienne shook his hand.

"It’s nice to meet you."

Marcus looked at Christopher.

Then back at Vivienne.

Then at Christopher again.

His eyebrows moved up and down.

Christopher noticed.

A small smile appeared on his lips.

But then he looked at Marcus.

"We’re heading back."

Marcus blinked.

"Already?"

Christopher nodded.

"I have a match tomorrow."

Marcus raised an eyebrow.

He knew perfectly well the match wasn’t until the afternoon.

But then he looked at Vivienne.

Then at Christopher.

A small smile appeared.

"Ah."

He understood.

He stepped aside.

"Okay."

He waved them off.

"You two run along."

Christopher laughed softly.

"Goodnight, Marcus."

"Goodnight."

Vivienne gave him another polite smile.

"Goodnight."

Marcus watched them walk away.

Christopher’s hand remained around Vivienne’s.

They crossed the entrance hall.

Then stepped outside.

The door closed behind them.

The music became quieter.

The noise of the party faded.

And finally...

It was just the two of them.

--

Tbc