Chapter 7: Moving Day Part 2
1725 Words
Rosalyn followed them down the hallway and through each room. Each one was bigger than the next and it blew her mind. Ariana kept her gaze on Lucky as they walked, not really paying attention to his home. She didn't really care about the fancy stuff. She wanted to know more about him, especially this Dom thing.
They walked through every single room except for one and Ariana only noticed in passing. Everyone had a room to hold a mess and that must have been his since his house was so pristine.
"And this is your room. I hope you like it. If there is anything you want. Let me know. I can have it ordered for you. Paint color... furniture... name it." Carter smiled and opened the door for them.
The room had white walls and her bed was in place against a solid wall. Double doors with paned glass sat off to the side and led to a massive patio. Flowers and lush green plants filled the place with torch lights made from stained glass. A couple of comfortable outdoor chairs sat outside with a small table between them. If she looked further there was a jacuzzi off to the side surrounded by greenery. It was too much.
The room had its own ensuite bathroom and she found her thoughts wandering to how many subs had lived there with him, if any. There was a porcelain clawfoot tub in the center of the bathroom and the toilet had its own room, but the thing that really made her mouth fall open was the walk-in closet.
Carter hit the switch and Rosalyn gasped beside Ariana. "Girl... I am so jealous right now."
"I- Car- Mr. Anderson..." Ariana got lost in the shelves upon shelves of shoes and racks of clothing. It was colorized and organized.
"I'm not the best at organizing, but I tried. Like I said... you are the expert with such things. I just try. You don't want to see the state of my closet. I was hoping you could help me with that." Carter rubbed the back of his neck as Ariana stared at everything. She walked inside and Rosalyn moved out of the way as Lucky ran past her to join Ariana.
"Are these colorized and organized by event? Like by what I would need to wear for certain things?" Ariana ran her hand along one of the racks and Carter nodded.
"Mostly. I kind of got sidetracked on the last two racks of clothing. And the shoes could be done better." Carter rubbed the back of his neck.
"You didn't have to buy me all of this. I brought my own clothes." Ariana turned around to face him.
"I left four racks empty for that. I figured you would bring your own. There should be a couple of shelves left empty for shoes as well." Carter blushed and Rosalyn took note of how he watched her with more interest than she thought he would.
She gave them a knowing smile. "I'm just going to go back to the kitchen and check it out some more."
"Be my guest." Carter smiled as he kept his gaze on Ariana, ignoring her best friend.
"Mr. Anderson. This is- this is too much." Ariana touched her chest for a moment.
"Is it? I'm sorry. I'm terrible at knowing what people want." Carter grabbed the back of his neck. "My father's biggest way of showing he cared for someone was to buy them things. I warned you that I was sheltered right?"
"Yes you did, but this. THIS. Mr. Anderson." Ariana gasped and softly laughed, as she looked around herself. "This is way too much. This whole thing is way too much. You didn't have to go through all the trouble."
"I know. I know." Carter brought his hand down beside his thigh and opened a drawer. "If you want I can return it all. And please... call me Carter. My father was Mr. Anderson. I'd rather reserve that pleasantry for the office alone. Here you may call me Carter."
"No, not- I mean no it's okay. I'm just- I need a moment to process all of this." Ariana sat down on the velvet bench that was in the middle of the closet. Calling him Carter was an added challenge that she was not ready for either.
"Take your time. Do you want me to go join your friend and give you a moment? Lucky can keep you company. She seems to love you already." Carter peered down at his dog and how she was laying at her feet with her nose on Ariana's shoe.
"You don't have to. Actually... maybe yes. I'm so sorry." Ariana felt guilty making him leave, but she watched him raise his hands and back out of her closet and room without so much as a complaint.
She didn't know what to think about all of this or how she should react. She was grateful. So damn grateful, but she was also overwhelmed. This whole thing was so different, and she wasn't used to it. Should she be happy or sad? Should she feel special and like she was being favorited? Is that an okay feeling to have? She was lost and didn't know what to do or how to take it. Ariana sighed and held her head in her hands as she pressed her elbows into her thighs. Lucky whined and took her nose from her shoe to peer up at her with an eyebrow raised in concern.
Ariana warmly smiled and reached down to pet her. "It's okay girl. I love it here. I do. This room is gorgeous, your owner is gorgeous, but I- I don't know if I deserve all of this. What did I do to deserve all of this?"
His dog jumped up onto the bench beside her and put her paws onto her lap, working her face between her arm and side. Lucky nuzzled her and gave her the best hug a dog could. Ariana softly giggled and wrapped her hands around her to pet her and give her tons of love. "You're such a sweet puppy."
Lucky yawned and closed her eyes as she laid on Ariana's lap. She ran her fingers through the dog's soft curly hair and stared up at the ceiling. She searched around her at all of the racks of clothing and thought for a moment. She gently moved his dog's head from her lap and stood up to go through the drawers. He had opened one like he wanted to show her what was inside of it. It was still cracked, and a sliver of light was peeking out from it.
Ariana slowly opened the drawer and gasped as she was face to face with a row of necklaces, bracelets, and rings. All of them weren't cheap. Even the basic ones were made from white and rose gold. She quickly shut the drawer and was afraid to keep going down the row. She stepped away from it and headed to the bedroom, where her suitcases now sat near her old bed. She really... needed to get rid of it now. The bedding on it was new, but the frame and mattress were still the same. Her desk was sitting against the window so that she could look out of it as she worked on her hobbies. She had too many if she was honest. Sir Ham Ham was hiding within the bedding of his home, which was currently sitting on her desk.
A knock sounded on the doorframe and she turned around, startled with her hand on her chest.
"Sorry... um... I know you wanted to be alone, but Rosalyn is saying she has plans and needs to head out. I figured I would let you know." Carter sheepishly smiled at her and rubbed the back of his neck, as he rocked back and forth on his heels.
Ariana let her hands relax near her thighs as she pursed her lips and walked towards him. He backed up and nearly tripped. His fingers touched the doorframe to catch himself.
"Yes?" Carter peered down at her. She was a short little thing and something about it made his heart melt.
"You don't have to have an excuse to talk to me. It's fine. I'm okay now. Thank you. Although, you could have warned a girl that the drawer you were about to open had jewelry in it worth more than her apartment." Ariana picked on him and a smile crept onto his lips.
"Did you like them?" Carter stood up straight and crossed his arms over his chest.
"More than liked them, but it was definitely shocking." Ariana sighed as she touched his forearm and pulled his arm loose from the other one. She softly smiled up at him and made her voice calm. "You don't need to buy me things to make me stay, or make me happy. You do know that right?"
Carter's shoulders relaxed and he licked his lips as he stared at her. "I don't?"
"No. I'm here to help you. So! I'm going to say good-bye to my best friend and... start unpacking." Ariana warmly smiled at him and watched him nod.
"Sounds good." Carter smiled at her and stepped out of her way for her to walk past him.
She walked down the stairs to find Rosalyn waiting at the bottom talking to Jameson about something random. Ariana smiled at her as Lucky came bolting down the stairs to lick Rosalyn to death.
"Have plans with Cruz?" Ariana smirked at Rosalyn and watched her laugh.
"You got it! He's DJing over at the club near the main park we used to meet up at all the time." Rosalyn flashed her phone at Ariana and watched her nod.
"Have fun and tell him hi for me." Ariana gave her best friend a huge hug.
Rosalyn hugged her friend hard and whispered into her ear, "He's a good man. We had a great conversation in the kitchen."
Ariana's cheeks became warm as she let her best friend's words register. "Wait. What did he say?"
"Nothing. Sworn to secrecy. Bye! Be safe." Rosalyn winked as she pulled away and Ariana groaned.
"COME ON... ROSE!" Ariana called after her and she just waved and left.
- Writer
