<b>Chapter </b><b>52 </b>
-CELINE- <fnafbb> This update is avable on find~novel</fnafbb>
“Miss Crawford is here to see you,” Sally announces, poking her head into the kitchen where I’m washing the breakfast dishes.
I dry my hands quickly on my apron. Caroline visiting the mansion is unusual the normally just texts me to meet somewhere. Behind me, I hear Ana scoff.
“Of course she is,” Ana mutters. “The maid with special privileges
ignore herment, but my cheeks bum. Since I started working here, Ana has made it clear the resents me. it got worse after Hunter started showing interest in Caesar.
“Thank you, Sally,” I say, following her to the main entrance.
Caroline stands in the foyer, dressed in designer jeans and a flowing silk blouse that probably costs more than my monthly rent. When she spots me, she <b>waves </b>enthusiastically.
“Celine! There you are! We’re going shopping!”
Before I can respond, I hear the patter of small feet on the marble floor.
“Caroline!” Caesar shouts, running toward her with arms outstretched.
Caroline scoops him up, spinning him around. “There’s my favorite little man!”
Caesar giggles, and my heart warms watching them. Caroline has been so good with him, never treating him differently because he’s the son of a maid.
“Shopping?” I ask uncertainly. “But I’m working”
“Already taken care of,” Caroline says, setting Caesar down. “Right, Sally?”
Sally nods. “Mr. Reid <b>has </b>approved your day off.”
My eyebrows shoot up in surprise. Did Hunter give me the day off? Without telling me?
“See?” Caroline grins. “All arranged!”
From the corner of my eye, I notice Ana hovering nearby, pretending to dust a vase while listening to our conversation
“Must be nice,” she says under her breath. “Some of us have to work our full shifts.”
Caroline’s smile turns <b>sharp </b>as she looks over at Ana. “Did you <b>have </b>something to say?”
Ana freezes, clearly not expecting to be called out. “No, Miss Crawford.”
“Are you sure? You seemed quite… vocal just now.”
Ana’s face flushes. “I <b>was </b>justmenting that some staff get special treatment.”
“Is that right?” Caroline steps closer to her. “And you think that’s unfair?”
Chapter <b>52 </b>
The tension in the foyer thickens. I step forward quickly.
<b>“</b>Caroline, it’s fine,” I say quietly. “Let’s just go.”
Ana smirks, taking my intervention as a weakness.
Caroline ignores me. “No, I want to hear what Ana thinks is unfair. Please, enlighten us.”
Ana shifts ufortably under Caroline’s gaze. “I just think we should all follow the same rules.”
“Interesting.” Caroline says coolly. “And I think people should mind their own business, especially when they don’t have all the facts. But that’s just me.”
Ana’s lips press into a thin line, but she says nothing more.
“Sally,” I say, desperate to change the subject, “are you sure it’s okay for me to go<b>?</b>”
Sally gives me a kind smile. “Absolutely. Enjoy your day off, Celine. You’ve earned it.”
My phone buzzes in my pocket. It’s <b>a </b>text from ke: “Where should we met? I’m free all day!”
“Caroline, would it be okay if my friend ke joined us?” I ask.
“ke? The coffee shop girl?” Caroline ps her hands. “Yes! The more the merrier. Tell her to meet us at the Gallena in an hour”
Caesar jumps up and down, though I’m sure he has no idea what’s going on. “We go shopping?”
I kneel to his level. “Yes, baby. We’re going shopping with Caroline. Isn’t that exciting?”
He nods vigorously, his blue eyes–Hunter’s eyes–shining with excitement.
“Let’s get you both ready,” Caroline says, already heading toward the staff quarters. “We have a full day ahead!”
<i>myb </i>
I follow her, trying to ignore Ana’s re boring into my back.
Two hourster, I stand in a dressing room of a store I would normally walk past without even daring to lock in the windows. The price tags make me dizzy.
“Caroline,” I call through the door, “I can’t <b>ept </b>these clothes. They’re too expensive.”
“Nonsense,” she replies. “Consider it an early birthday present. Nowe out and let me see that ck dress.””
I stare at my reflection. The ck dress hugs my curves in a way my usual clothes never do. It’s elegant <b>yet </b>sexy, with a modest neckline but a daring slit up one leg. I’ve never owned anything like it.
Reluctantly, I step out of the dressing room.
ke, who’s been trying on clothes too,/whistles. “Damn, girl! You’re hiding all that under those maid uniforms?”
Caroline circles me, nodding approvingly. “Perfect. We’re getting this one.”
“I can’t, I protest. “Where would I even wear it?”
apter 52
“Tonight,” Caroline says simply. “We’re going somewhere special.”
I look over to where Caesar sits on a cushioned bench, happily ying with a toy car Caroline bought him earlier.
“I don’t think a fancy dress is appropriate for drinks with a three–year–old in tow.”
Caroline just winks, “Trust me.”
ke holds up a silky blue top against herself. “So, Celine, you said Caroline is rted to your boss?” She checks the price tag and gasps, pulling me aside to show <b>me</b>. “Holy cow, this costs more than my rent!”
Iugh nervously. “She’s his cousin.”
ke raises her eyebrows. “The Reid family must be blessed then…?
“I guess,” I say quietly.
ke’s eyes widen. “Reid? Owner of Aruelia Hotels? The billionaire family?”
Inod, watching as Caroline kneels beside Caesar, cing a tiny pair of designer sunsses on his nose. They bothugh at his new
look.
“Girl,” ke whispers, “I am jealous, and you get to see Hunter–freaking–Reid’s face every day, He’s in the magazines all the time!”
I shrug ufortably. “I never thought of it that way<i>?</i>”
ke shakes her head in disbelief. “No wonder his cousin shops like money doesn’t exist.”
I turn back to the ck dress in the mirror. It is beautiful. For a moment, I imagine wearing it for Hunter, wondering what he’d think if he saw me in something other than my uniform….
I quickly push the thought away and change back into my clothes..
After shopping, Caroline takes us to an upscale salon. I sit nervously as a stylist works on my hair while another woman does my nails. Caesar is happily ying in the children’s area with other kids, supervised by salon staff.
“So,” Caroline says from the chair next to me, “let’s talk men.”
keughs from her seat. “My favorite subject!”
“Thest guy I was with,” Caroline shares, lowering her voice dramatically, “was packing serious heat, if you know what I mean.”
ke snorts withughter. “Size isn’t everything. My ex was huge but had no <b>idea </b><b>what </b>to do with it.”
Theyunch into a detailed discussion about their past lovers,paring sizes and techniques. The stylist working on my hair smirks, clearly enjoying the conversation.
I sit silently, my face burning. I’ve only been with one man–the nameless stranger from that night at the club. The night that <b>gave </b>me Caesar. The night I can barely remember.
My mind drifts to Hunter again. To his powerful body. To those intense blue eyes that seem to see right through me. What would it be like to be with someone like him? Someone who knows exactly what he wants and how to get it?
“Earth to Celine,” Caroline waves her hand in front of my face. “You’re a million miles away Care to share what or who you’re thinking about?”
I blush deeper. “Nothing, Just wondering if Caesar is okay.”
Caroline’s knowing smile says she doesn’t believe me for a second.
After the salon, we have lunch at a <b>restaurant </b>so fancy the menu doesn’t even list prices. Caroline orders champagne for the table.
“Should we be drinking? We still have Caesar with us,” I remind her,
“Just one ss,” Caroline insists. “To celebrate.”
“Celebrate what?” I ask suspiciously.
She grins. “Life! Friendship! The fact that we all look fabulous after our makeovers!”
ke raises her ss. “I’ll drink to that!”
I take a small sip, the bubbles tickling my nose. Caesar sits beside me, coloring on the children’s menu the waiter brought him.
After lunch, Caroline announces, “Now for the final surprise. Tonight, we’re not going to some noisy bar. We’re going to a private cabin by theke.”
“A cabin?” I repeat.
ke looks intrigued. “Fancy! Whose cabin?”
<b>“</b>Just a ce I have ess to,” Caroline says vaguely, “it’s beautiful, right on the water. Trust me, it’s the perfect spot.”
Something about her tone makes me suspicious, but I can’t put my finger on what. She’s been unusually secretive about our evening ns.
“We should head back to get ready,” Caroline continues. “I’ll pick you both up at seven.”
As we walk back to Caroline’s car, Caesar skipping ahead with ke, I catch Caroline checking her phone, smiling at whatever message she’s received.
“Everything <b>okay</b>?” I <b>ask </b>
She quickly puts her phone away, “Perfect. Tonight is going to be amazing, Celine. I promise.”
Inod, trying to ignore the flutter of nerves in my stomach. Something tells me this isn’t just a casual night out with friends.
And
E