"This is different to my liking," he complained.

"Oh, common, honey, trust me, this one suits you. It will change your appearance. You look handsome on it," She smiled at him.

​​

Ethan rolled his eyes and grabbed her tiny waist. He sealed her lips with hers. "I rather want to stay home with you than going to a party,"

"Lord Ethan, they waited for us!" She pushed him immediately.

"Can we do it a little make out before we leave home?"

"He'll no! I can't stand longer with your energy in bed. I'm afraid, we can't attend your special event if I grant your request,"

She walked towards the door, and Ethan followed.

***

As soon as Nate Bass saw Ethan and Kylie, he got up and went to greet them. Once he got to them, they greeted each other, shook hands, and hugged each other – and then Nate offered to lead them to where they were expected to be. They nodded in agreement, and as he led them, he pondered Ethan's choice of outfits. What he was wearing seemed very different from what he usually wore.

Ethan was wearing old tattered jeans, cowboy boots, and a jean jacket with a smiley-faced button over the right side pocket. Set between the eyes on the button, there was a cartoon bullet hole that looked fascinating.

When Nate asked how he came up with the idea to wear that kind of dress, Kylie quickly explained that Ethan was dressed as Randall Flagg from Stephen King's novel, The Stand. Ethan still looked menacing, but in a way that complimented Kylie's outfit.

Once they were in the conference room, Kylie and Ethan split-up.

Dora Hilton was stunned when she saw the way that Ethan was dressed. He looked strong, handsome, approachable, but menacing. If she'd read The Stand, she would have thought that he looked exactly as she had imagined Randall Flagg might look, if he were real.

Dora approached Ethan cautiously, and once she had his attention, she said, "There is someone that I would like to introduce to you."

Ethan smiled amicably and said, "Lead the way."

Dora led him to where Kylie sat and said, "Kylie, I would like you to meet my friend, Ethan."

Because neither of them wanted Dora to feel dumb, they shook hands and pretended that they'd never met before. Nate, who was sitting opposite Kylie, pointed out two empty seats and invited Dora and Ethan to sit down. They sat down, and once they were settled, Kylie said, "This party is pretty quiet."

"Don't worry," Nate laughed. "The night is still young. Things will pick up. In no time, you will wish you'd taken the time to appreciate the quiet surroundings."

"Perhaps," Kylie muttered, obviously unconvinced. She was not used to this kind of party; however, her husband brought her here.

Suddenly, from the corner of her eye, she saw a man who she didn't like, and her whole body broke out in gooseflesh. She saw Duncan coming towards them. She had no idea what he was doing here, and she couldn't believe that anyone had actually invited him, as he was generally disliked. Most likely, she assumed, he was nothing but a bastard party crasher.

Nate leaned over and whispered, "You look angry, but it isn't what you think it is. It was Lord Ethan who invited him. I don't know why Ethan invited him, but he is not a party crasher. Perhaps he invited him in order to test your loyalty…"

Kylie turned around to glare at Ethan, and the more she thought about it, the angrier she became. Looking around the room, though, she suppressed her anger. She had no desire to make a spectacle of herself. Seeing Kylie looking in his direction, Ethan smiled. He hadn't been close enough to her and Nate to have heard what they were talking about.

The seat beside Ethan was empty, and he patted it as an invitation for Kylie to come and sit beside him. Kylie thought about what to do now, and as the solution appeared, a Cheshire's grin split her face. She stood up and walked over to Ethan. She sat down and called the waiter over and ordered wine for everyone. She will make fun tonight since her husband is trying to test her.

When the wine arrived, Kylie stood up and proposed a toast to Ethan. Dora, Nate, Duncan, and everyone in attendance raised their glasses in Ethan's direction. "To Ethan," they shouted as they touched glasses with each other.

Once the cheering died down, Kylie got everyone's attention once more. She lifted her glass in Dora's direction and said, "Things have been going so well lately for our company. Since we have you all here, it only seems appropriate that Dora should give us an update. I wanted to hear the new plan she had to expand our company,"

Dora frowned as she stood up. She hated being put on the spot, but she saw no way to get out of the spotlight that Kylie had put on her. She smiled and said, "The company has just signed a few new artists, and I have a promotional plan that is better than anything anyone has ever seen. Once it is fleshed out, there will be an unveiling party, not unlike this one. Maybe we could set another good party after our success,"

After saying her speech, she throws glances at Kylie's side. She felt annoyed by the way this woman treated her. She also felt jealous of the way Ethan threw several looks towards Kylie.

As soon as Dora was done, Nate stood up and proposed a toast to Kylie. Everyone cheered as they touched their glasses. When Nate sat back down, Kylie offered to bring Fannie over, but he didn't like the idea. He said that the girl was a naughty trouble maker and that he didn't want to see her stupid horse face. Kylie just laughed out.

Ethan took out a cigarette, and as he lit it, Kylie slid an ashtray to him.