Femme Fatale: The King's Deadly Temptress

It was already five o'clock in the afternoon when Felix drove Amelia towards the address that Damien had sent him. He didn't have to ask him what was there as it wasn't the first time he had been to that place. He had dropped off and picked up both Damien and Katherine in the area, but he'd never once gotten inside the shop.

"Are you sure this is where he said we go?" Amelia asked as they stepped out of the car and walked towards West Bespoke Tailor.

"Yup."

She zipped up her leather jacket and looked around. "What are we doing here?"

However, he also had no idea as Damien's instructions were just to bring his mother here and that they go to Crown Hotel afterward. So he could only shrug. 

Felix pushed the door open and they were greeted by a woman in a sophisticated suit dress with the name "Ava" pinned on the left of her chest. "Good afternoon. How may I help you?"

"I believe Mr. Park called earlier…" he answered.

"Ms. Silva?" asked Ava with a smile on her face.

Confused, Amelia stepped forward. "That's me."

"Very well. Please follow me to the fitting room."

Amelia exchanged looks with Felix and he lifted a shoulder before he held a hand out, gesturing her to follow the woman. "I'll just wait outside," he told her before turning on his heel.

"Um, excuse me, sir?" Ava called and checked the folder in her hand as if she was reading something. "Are you Mister…Jagger?"

Felix stopped in his tracks and turned around. "It's actually Jäger," he corrected, emphasizing the proper pronunciation of his surname which sounded like 'yeah-guh'. And then he nodded. "But yeah, that's me." He was puzzled that his name was recorded in the folder she's holding.

"My apologies Mr. Jäger." Ava bowed lightly and when she looked up again, a polite smile plastered on her face. "Please also follow me. Mr. George will be with you in the men's section. This way, please." She turned around and went deeper into the shop that's headed towards what looked like a private area.

As they followed Ava, Amelia leaned into Felix and whispered, "Jäger, huh? You didn't tell me you were German. It's the first time I've heard your last name."

"You never asked." He met her inquisitive eyes and looked away. "Only a few people know my real name here."

"Then I'm honored to know, Mr. Jäger." She smiled as she walked ahead of him.

Amelia was still unsure what they were doing. Perhaps they were here to pick up dresses and suits for Katherine and Damien? If so, then they didn't have much time. As far as she knew, Katherine should already be getting ready now, and rushing her dress through Harbor City's traffic on a Saturday evening didn't seem appealing. 

She was just about to ask Ava when they entered a huge area that had dresses hung on the racks to the sides near the walls and the words never left her mouth. The center had a platform where she imagined the customers would stand and their friends or family would sit on the luxe sofa in front of it. She got distracted that she didn't notice Ava had gone off somewhere and came back with a dress. Two women stood behind her.

"Miss Silva, here's the dress."

Amelia looked at the beautiful black dress and probed, "Thanks. Shouldn't this be in a garment bag? I don't want to ruin it during transport."

Ava blinked and looked between Amelia and the dress, looking slightly perplexed. "Oh, I was informed that you were going to get ready here. The makeup artists have already set up their station."

"You must be mistaken…" Amelia chuckled. "I'm not Mr. Park's fiancée."

"Yes, we are aware that Miss Young is Mr. Park's fiancée and Mr. West is with them at the hotel getting ready for the event. We're here to assist you, Miss Silva. Please take a seat so we can get started. We don't have much time."

Amelia's heart pounded in her chest. She hadn't expected this. Did Damien really do this for her? Before she knew it, the staff was already guiding her to the prep station and seated her to do her hair and makeup. It was as though everything happened in the blink of an eye as her mind wandered somewhere else while the artists worked on her.

By the time she came to and was starting to get a grip on herself, she was already standing in a full-length mirror and looking at her own reflection wearing one of Mr. West's creations. She wore a black laced formal gown with an iridescent nude lining underneath it—the lovely dress was form-fitting and classy. Soft black feathers were delicately hand-sewn on the outer banks of the cap sleeves and were fused with diamante stones all over. Her hair in a loose bun and diamond earrings completed her look.

Amelia had worn countless of beautiful dresses during her missions in Shadow, but this was by far, her most favorite. After all, her son picked it for her. Ava told her that they had sent the designs to Damien when he called to make the last-minute appointment and he had chosen this dress himself. A charming smile brightened her face and she looked even more stunning.

She sensed a familiar presence from the side and when she turned, Felix walked towards her in a black tuxedo, looking spruce and dapper. He halted and took her appearance in. He seemed as though he'd forgotten how to speak.

"Do I look like someone's mom?" she joked. "This dress makes me feel younger. Is it too much?"

Felix wordlessly shook his head, his eyes still scanning Amelia. "It's perf—" He coughed and cleared his throat. "You look nice."

"Thank you. You don't look too bad yourself. I didn't peg you as a tuxedo man."

He laughed. "You should see me in my uniform."

"I don't know… I'm not sure if I'm a fan of men in uniform." She looked amused as she picked up a paper bag from the table that contained her clothes. "But I'll give you points for cleaning up nicely."

"Ah… So your type are rich men with a CEO position and clandestine operations?" he questioned with a straight face and Amelia narrowed her eyes at him. He smiled. "Sorry. Too much?"

"A little bit." She chuckled.

Felix rolled his eyes yet a grin danced on his face. "Come on, Amelia. We don't want to get stuck in traffic." He offered his arm out for her.

Amelia took his arm and they walked out of the shop, thanking the staff on their way out. She began to feel nervous, knowing that she was about to show up at her son's engagement party in front of the Park family whom she hadn't talked to in so many years. It felt surreal as she was getting ready a while ago, and now that they were on their way, her chest was like a massive drum in a festival. She had been hiding for so long that suddenly appearing in a crowd where she didn't have to pretend made her anxious.