The exterior you see is not all that it is to it
Rachel's POV
It was already late afternoon by the time we had arrived in Paris and so we had a little over 2 hours to make it to his parents residence for dinner. That thought in mind, we had dropped by at the hotel Xander and Debby would be staying at.
After their rooms had been booked, I went with my luggage to Debby's room while Lorenzo accompanied Xander to his. We each had a shower and got changed into presentable clothes.
Lorenzo had instructed two of the guys to send our bags to his house which I was surprised to hear thus I thought we would be staying at his parents residence. We left after that and had only about 30 minutes to spare, if not we would be late for the planned dinner.
Paris was indeed a beautiful city. The sun was setting as Lorenzo steered us on the concrete roads.
My vision was glued to the passenger window as I drank in the buildings and cars, and all the beauty we drove past. The disappearing sun had painted the sky orange, adding a nice hue to the picture before me.
An unknown tune was playing through the car speaker, my left fingers held captive by Lorenzo's right ones as we covered several kilometers with the Bentley.
It had been barely two days since our drunk induced wedding, however it was a marvel how we had come to terms with the situation and decided to see how things panned out.
What surprised me more than our marriage was how we instantly clicked. If you asked me I would have said it all seemed like a scene from one of those movies Lorenzo loved acting.
There was this certain comfort and security I got when in his presence that I found myself wondering within the past 48 hours if it was alright to feel that way with someone who was still like a stranger to me.
Nonetheless whenever I thought that, I always came to realize that though he was a physical stranger, mentally he was not. It sounded weird even to my ear rather that was the truth.
I was one of those people you called a devoted fan to Lorenzo. Even when he hadn't become a global renowned actor I still fangirled over him. I always kept myself up to date with everything concerning his life and tried hard not to believe the rumors or information from blogs until they got confirmed by him, or Xander his manager.
When I discovered things had got called off with his Ex Linda, I was sad thus I knew how much he cherished the woman. I recalled thinking back then she was a fool to let a man like Lorenzo go just because things had gotten rocky.
Despite the fact I thought that, I concluded she might have her own reasons and so I didn't join in bashing her like the other fans did. Though she caused Lorenzo sadness I wished her happiness and prayed she didn't regret it.
When the news came a month prior to her ending things with the Italian man she was rumored with, I only shook my head and thought she shouldn't have left Lorenzo in the first place. Even then, I knew Lorenzo wouldn't accept her back and now I was in the picture I prayed he wouldn't.
"Rachel." A shake on my hand pulled me out of my thoughts and prompted me to whirl to my left to spot the handsome man seated there. Since it was confirmed by the priest that our wedding was legit, I found the reality hitting me every time that Lorenzo Caden Peters was indeed my husband.
He was dressed in a classic red button-up and black slacks, both bodice accentuating his attractive figure. His hair was in its signature rough but attractive style as he peered at me with his killer grey eyes. "Anything on your mind?"
"Mmmh," I cleared my throat and returned my gaze to the window as he happened to have caught me gawking at him. "Nothing."
"If I wasn't driving, I would have taken a picture," he murmured in a husky tone and my heartbeat accelerated. I didn't dare turn as my cheeks reddened, electricity pulsing in the spot our fingers were connected. "You have no idea how beautiful you are Rachel."
Luckily, we arrived at a huge gate in a quiet neighborhood that was totally different from the city. The horn Lorenzo blasted at the gates startled me and kept me from replying to the complement which had rendered me speechless.
The massive metal slid to the left, giving way for us to drive through as it revealed what was inside. A fancy two-storey white painted mansion stood in the center of the wide compound. As we approached the building, the entrance door opened and a man, woman, and a teenager stepped out.
Lorenzo parked at the foot of the stairs and another man appeared at the driver's door. He released my fingers from his hold and nodded at me "wait here babe."
He alighted after that and handed the key to the man who I was yet to get a glimpse of. I sat quietly and watched him round the front of the vehicle to my side of the car and pulled the door open.
Placing my hand in his, I stepped unto the gravel flooring in my 4inch black heels. It was the same shade as the ankle-length print skirt I had on below an off-the-shoulder red long-sleeved blouse.
Both clothes were made by our clothing line R&D designs and were yet to hit the market. The blouse had a black fishnet material lining the neckline in a print style that matched the skirt with a slit that was so high it halted inches below the waistband.
"Enzo darling," the woman whom I recognized as his mother from the rare pictures of her online was the first to rush forward the minute we had ascended unto the spacious veranda of the building.
She had blonde hair, blue eyes, pointed nose and a pucker lips that was shining from red lipstick. Her figure was a slightly curvy one that complemented the floor length nude butterfly styled dress she had on. A smile graced my lips as I caught sight of R&D sewed in black thread at the top of her left boob.
"Good evening mother," he gave a one-sided hug in greeting, his palm holding mine tightly as I fretted in my position, a simple smile on my lips.
"How have you been?" His mom implored as they disentangled from the embrace. Not waiting for his reply she directed her icy eyes to me and stretched out a hand. "Hello, I'm Laurel Peters."
Taking it with my right hence my left was in Lorenzo's grip, I bowed slightly and shook it. "Nice to meet you ma'am."
"Good to see you son," His father's gruff voice spoke taking the spot his mother was seconds ago and clapped his back. His hair was the same shade as his son's and they shared similar features like their eyes only that the man's own was duller. "Let's go inside."
Mr Cameron Peters was clad in a casual dress code of black slacks and a white shirt. Lorenzo smiled at his father and said. "Same Dad, you look more healthier and stronger than before."
The young female didn't utter a word and so I kept mute. The interior was striking. We stepped straight into the living room which had a high ceiling, and a spiral staircase to the right that led to the floors above. The walls were painted in a milk hue, gold antiques and structures scattered around the perimeter.
Modern styled brown leather couches were arranged in a rectangular like form which faced the fireplace that was a foot or two beneath the large screen TV. The floor was designed with plain white tiles that produced a sound as my heels clicked on it.
Lorenzo guided me to one of the couches as his parents settled on the largest one and the girl whom I guessed as his sister sat in the one beside theirs. "Sit babe."
"Caden who is this?" She questioned as Lorenzo's mother returned to her husband's side after she departed for a moment through a side door which I presumed led to the kitchen.
My vision snapped to the girl. She had strawberry blonde hair, green eyes, a pointed nose and a slender figure. She appeared to be in her late teens and was adorned in black pants and a furry pink blouse. She gave the vibe of a spoilt brat from the way she happened to be eying me up and down with an expression of disgust on her face.
'Bitch where I come from, we were taught to greet and respect our elders,' I murmured in my head as I matched her stare with mine to which she seemed taken aback for a second before she recovered, though that simple action was enough to bring a satisfied smile to my lips.
"Mom, Dad, Annabelle," Lorenzo called their attention and pulled me to his side while I thought 'The perfect name to match her attitude.'
"Meet my wife, Rachel," he declared, and left a kiss on my cheek, his hand clamping mine.
Silence reigned in that moment. They all seemed frozen as they gaped at me in surprise while I fidgeted under their stare. The first to snap out of it was his father who turned to his son and beamed "You have eyes for beauty son. What's your name dear?"
"My name is Rachel, Sir," I introduced in a smile as Lorenzo squeezed my palm affectionately, reminding me he was there.
"Let's drop the formalities," the man laughed and shook his head. "We are a family now so feel free to call me Cameron. God knows I'm tired of being called Sir all the time."
I nodded at his words as I started to feel a little bit at ease. "Thank you Mr. Cameron." At that he tsked and so I corrected myself. "Thank you Cameron."
"So the rumors are true," Annabelle his sister let out, her arms folded in front of her as that degrading expression remained on her face. "And you are the wife."
"Do you have a problem with that dear sister?" Lorenzo questioned in a cool tone as I made a move to speak.
"Not really." She wrinkled her nose and that made me lift a brow at her attitude and release a quiet laugh as I began to get slightly agitated. "Just that your standard happened to have dropped since Linda."
'Breathe, Rachel, breathe,' I said to myself and briefly shut my lids in a bid to calm my growing anger.
"Oh really," Lorenzo scoffed. "It's a shame I don't take your words seriously then."
"Is that an R&D logo on your blouse?" His mother inquired, putting an end to the sibling banter, her eyes narrowing on my chest. "And on your skirt?"
"Please, it's obviously a knock off," Anabelle snorted, her lips tilted to the side. "I check their website everyday and nothing of this design has been released yet."
It was Lorenzo's turn to let out a quiet laugh hence he knew where the talk was leading. Feeling like the ball was now in my court, I relaxed into the seat and tilted my head to gape pointedly at the blonde girl. I noticed a flash of surprise run through her face at my change in posture.
"It doesn't look fake though," Laurel Peters mused, sitting forward as her vision remained focused on my attire. "Do you by any chance know R&D personally?"
"You could say that," I declared, my lips parting slightly. "Do you like their designs?"
"Who doesn't?" She raised a question. "They are a new clothing line but they sure know what they are doing. Their designs have a classic and artistic sense and are so unique that you can never get the same from other clothing lines. Because they are new, their products are so rare that people sought after them like gold.
"Their prices too are somewhat affordable that anyone from any work of life can purchase it with a few months savings and end up being the star of any occasion they attend," she continued, the smile I wore stretching into a grin. "There is just something about their clothes that stand out in the crowd."
"Which is why I'm wondering why and how you are wearing a design I haven't gotten hint of yet, thus as I'm one of their VIP customers," Laurel mused.
"I'm a VIP too which is why I certainly think it's a knock off," Annabelle inputed. "Plus I'm in charge of shipping some of our textile products to them."
By now Lorenzo and his father Cameron were quiet as we the ladies discussed. Cameron appeared interested in our conversation while Lorenzo had a proud smile on his face.
"This is nice," I murmured. At their perplexed glances I went on. "I mean hearing feedback directly from customers. I think I should do this more often."
"What do you mean?" Annabelle implored, her tone going high pitched as she happened to have picked up something.
"No offense Mrs. Peters, I would like to reintroduce myself," I mumbled sweetly, eyes twinkling. "I'm Rachel Suzy Daniel and together with my bestfriend Debby Vivianna Hawkins, we formed and own R&D clothing line."
Freshy❤️