Christmas Eve

I introduce myself I am Angelica my father is a duke even if everyone at home calls me princess I'm barely 17 and I've already met the love of my life only no one knows and I haven't seen him for a while and we can't write to each other because I don't want my father to know at least until my debut in society which will be in the summer. I'm lying here on my four-poster bed, daydreaming, when there's a knock at the door: "Miss, is it still like that? The guests are arriving soon and you won't come down to welcome them."My nanny Agnes scolded me "but there's still so much time" I answered, lost in my own world "no, get up, we only have half an hour" at hearing these words I jumped up and told them to go get the dress I had measured the day before with the seamstresses "I recommend the one with the bordeaux and the jewels" I recommended.After a short time she came back with everything and helped me dress and do my hair, after which I left her free to do the make-up and the jewellery. I'm tall and thin, but that evening, maybe it was the effect of the dress, I saw myself differently. I looked at the dress, it was made of bordeaux velvet with a gold embroidered bodice and a wide flounced skirt, and I thought to myself, I'm really beautiful, who knows what Fabrizio will say?I was putting on my ruby earrings when Agnese appeared again, "Miss, the guests are arriving.

"Yes, I'm coming" I answered and went down the stairs almost flying, also because she had told me

"If I'm not the first to arrive, I'll be one of the first,' but at the bottom of the stairs Fabian was waiting for me in his uniform, and I went down the last few steps calmly. Slowly they all arrived, my excitement grew each time a carriage arrived and yet he didn't arrive at the end we were about to go inside when I saw a carriage rushing up I immediately looked at the door and there was the coat of arms of his family, that's all it took to excite me, he first greeted my parents then Fabian and when he came to me he murmured an 'excuse' and left with my brother.

"And no" I think to myself "you don't get off that easy" I went to the kitchen first and said to Agnes

"If anyone's looking for me, I'll be in my room".

"alright don't make a mess" he recommends me and I go out to look for him I find him in the living room a bit apart talking very seriously with my brother I had to find a plausible excuse to make Fabian go away for a while out of the corner of my eye I saw my father locking himself in the study with the administrators so I approached him and said

"Fabian, there's dad waiting for you in his study, there's a meeting".

He immediately left, apologising. I turned to him and looked at him.

"come with me" I said and I put him in the library and I close the door we look at each other and he kisses me but I'm angry and worried because he's so late everyone makes fun of him because he's always very precise so I pull back

"I didn't come here for that"

"no,? I thought you did" he said continuing to kiss me

"no first ...you have...to tell me something.... "he managed to say between kisses so he pauses for a moment

"what do you want to know? "I look at him hoping he will notice how angry I am

"why are you so late "instead of answering right away he takes me by the hand and leads me over to a couch he sits down and makes me sit on his lap and lightly licks his lips before answering

"well you know there was a beautiful blonde in my house I couldn't leave her alone, could I?"

I looked at him, he was serious.

and that only made me more angry I try to get up but he doesn't let me get up "leave me"

I said and he burst out laughing "What are you doing, you're making fun of me," I said and he laughed again.

"Of course you're beautiful when you're jealous".

"I'm not jealous," he winks and raises an eyebrow, "all right, just a little," I confess almost reluctantly.

"now that's better" he says with a smile that gets on my nerves

"yes but you still haven't answered my question"

"alright my father wasn't well and I waited for the doctor to leave... am I forgiven?"

"this time yes"

"ok then prove it" he answered me and I stretched out with the intention of giving him a quick kiss and then go to the guests but he didn't let me go his lips went down to my neck to my shoulders to my breasts I was all on fire and I didn't realise what he was doing suddenly I felt free I was breathing differently I felt his hands on my naked back and only then I realised he had opened the corset of my dress and immediately I freed myself "but what are you doing"

"God love you are so beautiful ...I want you now ..."

she said almost begging me and I reluctantly answered

"no we can't we have guests" and he rolled his eyes and snorted

"come on help me get dressed".

I helped myself unwillingly when he had finished I turned towards him his sky-blue eyes were almost black like every time we made love I kissed him again and again I wanted to make him understand that I also wanted to be there with him.

I wanted him to tear off my dress and make me his right there on the couch or on the carpet it didn't matter what was important was to be his but today it couldn't happen there was a reception going on and a lot of people if someone would have opened the door who knows what would have happened.

I looked in the mirror for a moment to see that everything was in order and I saw another person.

"Oh my God!"

"What is it?"

"look what you've done" I said pointing to him my lips were swollen and red from his kisses "it'll pass" he said condescendingly "let's go, they won't notice anyway" I continued saying proudly

"Let's hope so" and we went to our friends I hoped that they wouldn't understand or at least have the decency not to comment and in fact no one spoke only Valentina gave a mischievous smile as she watched us arrive together. we started chatting until the servants called us that it was time for dinner. There was a huge table in the dining room, we were sitting 40 people, but I must admit that the cook surpassed himself with his 25 courses, which I only tasted, and Fabrizio, who was sitting opposite me, noticed and without speaking, just moving his lips, said "Aren't you eating?"I answered him in the same way and it was true, my hunger had passed as soon as I saw Marica flirting with him, even if he didn't give her any importance, she didn't stop paying him compliments and playing the fool with him.He's over 1.90 m tall, with very long legs, a narrow waist and broad shoulders, a face that's always sculpted, full lips, a thin, straight nose, immense eyes that I could drown in, they're usually blue but when he gets angry they become hard as ice and when he has strong emotions they darken until they look black, his hair is black and straight, making him a bit human, and his forelock is a bit rebellious, and he was mine, mine alone, I felt like I was in a dream.

We had been at the table for more than two hours my legs and my bottom were numb and at the end when we got up Fabian helped both me and Lucia to get up as we were sitting on either side of him Valentina who was sitting on Fabrizio's left made this gesture in a court if he didn't like it because she got up in a hurry to go around the table and take my brother under her arm so that he could get up. and took my brother under the arm in such a rude way that he turned around surprised and we started laughing Alessandro a family friend said "Fabian next time bring a rope or the poodle will lose you" she turns around and looks at him in a bad way Fabian calmly "don't you think you are exaggerating".

I said, "come on, let's go dance, I can't sit anymore," and so we went to the hall where the orchestra was, the furniture had been placed on the sides and there was a huge dance floor. The first dance I had to do with my father, the second with Fabian and the third and all the others with.... As soon as I was able to dance with him and I was wrapped in his arms I felt a warmth in my whole body and I couldn't help but lean on his shoulder and intoxicate myself with his perfume it was a special perfume made with jasmine, pine and spices that a master perfumer made just for him.

"Yes, it's just that if I could I would stay like this forever" without answering he kissed me on the forehead every now and then I looked up to look at him and I noticed that he didn't take his eyes off me.

We danced so much that in the end my feet ached "let's go and sit down for a while" I told him.

"Are you tired of me already?" he replied mischievously.

"No, my feet hurt. Come on, let's go and rest a bit, then we'll be back."

"Alright I don't want you to feel bad for me" he says and looks around furtively when he sees that no one is looking at us he gives me a kiss on the lips and that contact is enough to make my legs so soft that he has to hold me up by the waist. To be inconspicuous I sat on the sofa next to Lucia and he on the armchair a little later the servant arrives and asks if we want something to drink we all say yes and Fabrizio adds

"as the servant withdrew Marica's vain and rightly so because she was beautiful with her red hair and green eyes she wasn't very tall but she had a perfect physique she said wide-open her green eyes "do you want us to put on weight?

"of course" he said quietly looking at me "during dinner you never eat anything"

even though he had spoken in general, I had the impression that he was speaking only for me.

"you understand" I answer "we have the guardian who checks whether we eat or not" I try to joke

"of course being a friend also means that"

FRIEND?

HE WASN'T MY FRIEND HE'S THE MAN I LOVE

I think to myself as I hear the reply

"then I don't want you as a friend anymore I don't want to get fat because of you" he says, sticking his tongue out at him and Marica joking and we all burst out laughing in the meantime the waiter arrived to bring what we had asked for so we tasted both the sweets and the champagne even if at the second glass he turned my head. I thought that maybe a breath of fresh air would do me good so I asked "who wants to go for a walk with me outside" Fabian looks at me as if I had gone crazy "Angelica but it's so cold outside it snowed".

"yes I know but I want to go out. "As soon as I passed a servant I told him to go and get Agnes to get my dress cloak.

A little later I see her coming in a hurry, or rather I think it's her because I can see double "Miss, everything's fine" she asks in a low voice, she was my nurse and she understands me better than my mother on many things "I drank too much champagne and now I can see double" I say in a low voice, hoping that Fabrizio doesn't hear but he hears everything without being noticed "it's better to go to my room" she says in a whisper

"no I don't want to" she looks me in the eyes and understands everything

"here's my cloak" she says, raising her voice a little and then again in a low voice "if you need anything call me" and she goes away I nod my head without replying my head hurts and I can see everything spinning "then who's coming with me"

I ask again

"I'll come" says Fabrizio

"and then" I ask again, I didn't want to go out alone with him, I had already danced the whole evening together and I didn't want to attract too much attention from my father, also because I don't know how, but he always knew everything, even if he wasn't there, Lucia said to Leonardo, "come on, let's go with them" so they came with us.

As soon as we went outside, we were greeted by an icy wind, it was so cold that I wanted to walk around the garden, but after a couple of steps we had to turn back, my satin shoes were all wet and even though my cloak was lined with fur I had the shivers I looked at Lucia to see if it was me who was sick or if it was really cold she was in the same condition as me "let's go inside" said Fabrizio

"no, let's wait a little longer" "no" he said authoritatively and added, looking at his friend "let's go inside or the girls will catch pneumonia".

I would have liked to stay outside again, but it was so cold, but at least I was no longer dizzy. When we went inside I was so cold that even though all the fireplaces in the castle were lit I couldn't get warm, so I asked the cook to make some hot chocolate and she brought a cup for each of us. It was almost dawn then they had to go back to their homes to see us in the evening at Fabrizio's for the big Christmas dance, one by one our friends left, the last one was Fabrizio before leaving, hiding in a dark corner, he gave me a passionate kiss and said "bring some change for tonight because there's a surprise".

"what do you have in mind"

"you'll see" and left laughing.

I followed him with my eyes barely shaking my head as I thought

"I'll never understand this guy '"