Chapter Twenty Three: Charmed

The night of the party was finally here and also the last day of the year. It was 9:00 pm, just a few hours to the new year, the first of January which also happens to be Kristina's birthday.

It was like killing two birds with one stone, Regina always got the whole family together at this time every year to celebrate the new year and also Kristina's birthday at the same time.

As everyone who knew the Ramus family was aware that throwing lavish parties had always been Regina's specialty and this one wasn't any less grand than the ones she had thrown in the past. The large living room of the house was elegantly decorated, making it look like a fancy ballroom and the breathtakingly lit chandeliers looked dazzling. The table was set and low music played in the background.

Different cars made their way into the estate as guests wearing masks were being ushered into the mansion which was now made to look like a castle. Everything looked extremely wonderful as Becca walked hand in hand with Liam, talking and laughing. Then Becca saw Regina approaching them from a distance and stopped to wait for her.

Though it was a masquerade ball, Becca could still recognize her stepmother coming from a mile away. There was just something in the way Regina walked that dripped with elegance and grace. Regina also had an aura that screamed power, light blue eyes that commanded respect, and a flawless figure that could make kings renounce their thrones.

And after being raised in a family that treated her more like an ornament than a person, Regina learned to stand on her own and made people who tried to belittle her in the past bow before her feet. All in all, Regina looked like the prettiest flower in the forest but also could be a poisonous desert cactus.

" Becca darling, you look stunning." Regina squealed as she approached her stepdaughter and hugged her tightly. She then released Becca from her bone-crushing hug and stepped back a little to admire Becca's dress even more. " So beautiful," Regina added.

" So do you. Mother, you look amazing." Becca complimented with a smile and kissed Regina on the cheek.

" Thank you, baby, wait! What is he doing here?" Regina asked, pointing at Liam with a frown on her beautiful face.

" Ah Regina, it's pleasant to see you too. Honestly, you need to start smiling more because frowning doesn't suit you. It's only going to cause wrinkles on your flawless skin." Liam said with a charming yet teasing smile and Becca couldn't help giggling at her cousin's words.

" You know it's always a pleasure to see a graceful woman such as yourself, Regina." He added, spellbinding her with his charms like he always does.

" No offense if I don't feel the same." Regina retorted, making it look like she was angered by his presence when the truth stands that she was kinda fond of him.

Well, who wouldn't be? Liam was nice, easy to talk to, and also a self-made billionaire. Plus he had never given her a reason to dislike him before, if not she wouldn't have allowed her beloved daughters to associate themselves with the likes of him.

" None taken. By the way, you look ravishing." He gave her a charming smile which she rolled her eyes at, she rolled them so hard that he could see it even though she wore a mask. But despite Regina's rough behavior towards him, everyone knew she was charmed by his polite gestures towards her but Regina being the woman that she was, rather be petty than admit that she was impressed by him.

Although Regina hated his late aunt Amanda, Becca's real mother with a passion, she still was a firm believer of the saying ' The children shouldn't suffer for the mistakes or hate of their elders.'

" Well since you have successfully invaded this social gathering with your horrid presence, the least I could do is allow you to stay. Just try not to be an eyesore." Regina said, feigning irritation, and walked away.

Liam and Becca exchanged looks with each other and just laughed it off.

" Regina is being nice tonight, she must be in a good mood." He said in between his laughs.

" How wouldn't she be when you keep throwing her compliments from all directions," Becca said and noticed her cousin's eyes were now searching around the room for something, or should I say, someone. Becca shook her head at the realization of what he was searching for. It had to be Kristina, no doubt about it.

'The man had no shame. Even when I'm talking to him, his mind is still wherever Kristina was.' Becca said to herself.

" I have to, she is the mother of my future wife after all, isn't she?" Liam asked and Becca cocked her head to one side to stare at his face with a puzzled look on her face, feeling baffled by his brazenness to make such audacious statements.

It wasn't like Becca was against Liam loving her sister, not at all. She just wanted to be sure that he was serious about his feelings for her sister and wasn't going to play around with Kristina's heart.

" Moving a little bit faster than your shadow, are you?" Becca asked after hearing Liam's rather bold statement but also knew that he didn't even hear anything that she just said because as soon as those words left her mouth, Kristina walked into the room, looking like a fairy tale princess wearing a peach-colored dress that stood out in the crowd.

A million watts smile that nearly blinked her appeared on Liam's face as Kristina approached they stood and Becca was certain that if all the lights were turned off, his smile alone would be enough to light up the entire house.

" Becca, hold my drink," Liam said, still gazing upon Kristina's approaching figure and without even looking at Becca, he gave her his glass of wine to hold then walked towards Kristina. Completely abandoning Becca all on her own like the lovesick fool he was.

Becca saw Liam talking to Kristina and the almost too visible blush that tainted her sister's cheeks. She saw Liam take her sister's hand and place a kiss on it with the friendly smile he once had on his face being long replaced with an extremely flirtatious one.

Becca just stared at the scene in front of her with her jaw almost touching the floor. Her cousin was such a natural-born flirt and was currently breaking his record time for making a woman blush by making Kristina blush in just two seconds after approaching her.

Like who does that?

Becca then walked to where they stood and the three talked, shared some laughs before Liam decided in his mind that it would be a wonderful idea to steal her sister away by asking Kristina for a dance but when one dance turned to two and two to three, Becca soon realized that she had truly been ditched and left all alone.

And it was all because of Liam! She would make him pay for this!

Becca went to the serving table with her mask in her hand and grabbed a glass of Martini then gulped it down. She reached out for another and drank it even faster than the first then eyed the third one. she took the third glass and stared at it for a while before drinking it as well but slower than the first two. She gently sipped the liquid in the glass while scanning the faces of the people in the room then realized that she hadn't seen Johnny all night and it was already two hours till midnight.

'Oh well, he's a grown man for a reason.' She said to herself and shrugged before finishing her drink. Then she soon started feeling a little lightheaded from how fast she had taken those drinks.

Becca looked over to where Liam and Kristina were and saw him whisper something into her ear that made her giggle while blushing profusely

' Liam, you sly snake! What are you telling my sister?!' Becca shot him a glare but he wasn't even looking her way to see it.

'Maybe Navaya was right, perhaps I was too single for my good.' She thought.

She decided that she needed fresh air, the room was kinda crowded and was getting too stuffy for her anyway. Becca turned to look at another glass of alcohol and a little voice in her head was telling her to take it easy with the alcohol or she would get drunk but she stubbornly ignored it and drank the entire shot of tequila in one gulp. Becca went to the balcony and stood alone there looking at the night sky. It was a starless sky and only the moon could be seen shining all so brightly. She shivered a little bit when she felt the cold night breeze caress her skin.

Becca stood rooted to the spot, just taking in the beautiful scenery. Then she closed her eyes and could still hear the low sound of the music that was being played in the living room. She felt relaxed and calm at that moment but then her eyes shot open when she heard a deep voice speak from behind her.

" What's a beautiful woman like you doing out here all alone?" The person's voice asked. Becca turned around and gasped when she almost bumped into his hard chest.

From how his voice sounded, she knew he stood close to her but didn't know he was that close. Becca saw that the person who stood in front of her was tall, very tall in fact that even while she was on heels, her head still stopped at his shoulders.

Becca felt her head spinning, she was drunk and tried gazing up to take a good look at the man who stood tall in front of her. He wore an all-black suit, probably Armani but she wasn't too sure. He wore a black mask that covered half his face and Becca felt relatively small in front of his tall well-built frame

" I know this song." She said in a low voice to no one in particular, just rambling to herself.

" May I have this dance?" He asked and without even waiting for her response, he took her hand in his.

With his hand firmly holding her around her waist, he guided her drunken clumsy steps, taking one at a time. Becca stared into his dark blue eyes then the rest of his half-covered face and saw that he had a faint smile resting on his lips.

She knew he was a very handsome man, even with the black mask on, it was still very evident how good-looking he was. Becca felt herself floating on air as they danced into the night with all his steps being very precise and graceful like he had been doing this all his life.

It all felt like a dream, a very good-looking one at that, one she didn't want to wake up from but something about him seemed all so familiar like she knew him from somewhere.