A small part of her insisted she deserved happiness, as well, but she pushed that down. She'd someday find her own path. She just had to find the will to get over Damien and move on with her life.
"You're late. I thought I was going to have to drag you here, Sierra," Bree said with exasperation.
"I'm only a half hour late, and that's actually on time for one of your Uncle's parties, because it takes him two hours to greet everyone before anything actually begins," Sierra replied with a smile.
"You are certainly correct," Bree said as she led Sierra into the room.
There had to be a couple hundred people there, all dressed to perfection. Sierra was wearing a new dress she felt confident in. She was working for a small marketing company, making a great salary, and had spent the entire afternoon shopping for the perfect dress. She tried to convince herself she was doing it solely for her own pleasure and not because she knew Damien would be in attendance.
She'd told herself repeatedly that she'd be polite if they ran into each other, offer him well-wishes, then confidently sashay in the opposite direction. She didn't want him thinking she was pining over him after three months.
The music started and couples began filling the enormous dance floor. Sierra's stomach tightened as her gaze roamed the room. There was no sign of Damien anywhere. She told herself that was a good thing.
"Would you care to dance?" a gentleman asked as he approached.
"That would be lovely," she responded as she followed him to the center of the dance floor. One dance let into several others as she was asked by different strangers, and a few acquaintances she recognized from other functions.
When the song, You Are So Beautiful, came on and a man asked her to dance, she paused as her throat clogged with tears. It was the first song she'd danced to with Damien when she'd been slowly falling in love with him. He'd glided across the floor with her, her feet barely touching the ground as his hands caressed her back.
She couldn't accept the man's invitation; the song was much too personal for her. Before she had a chance to reply, he was interrupted.
"She's already taken for this dance."
Sierra looked up into Damien's intense face, his features so familiar, so stunningly handsome. He was wearing his tux, looking even better than she remembered. Her breath hitched as her body reacted. She felt herself wanting to fall into his arms.
Without giving her a chance to refuse him, he pulled her into his arms and started moving in a slow circle, his hands positioned on her hips, his fingers caressing the sensitive dent of her back. Goosebumps appeared on her skin as his breath whispered across her face and he looked into her eyes, his own filled with intensity. The room faded away until it became just the two of them, the sound of the music guiding them along.
When he started singing the words of the song while still looking deep in her eyes, her knees nearly buckled. She'd done so well at convincing herself she was healing, and in the matter of a few moments, she was falling over a cliff – ready to crash in a heap she'd never be able to stand up from.
The song ended and the room grew quiet as Joseph walked to the stage and stood gazing out at the crowd with a microphone in his hand. He spotted Damien and smiled.
"As you all know, we have much to celebrate with the spring of a new year upon us. My long lost nephew has been found, and we're so pleased to have him as a part of our family. He's been in Seattle the whole time, but circumstances kept us from each other. Because of a beautiful young woman in the crowd, we connected and have spent the last few months getting to know each other. It's been a joy and filled this old heart of mine with overwhelming happiness. Whenever I think my life can't possibly get any greater than it already has, our family is blessed with even more," Joseph said.
Sierra felt tears sting her eyes as she listened to the joy and pride in Joseph's voice.
"I'll be back," Damien whispered before he released her and moved toward the stage.
Sierra decided not to stick around. She couldn't bear any more that night and still have any of her heart left intact. Before she was able to make a retreat she was caged in. She looked up to find Damien's best friend, Trinity on one side of her, and Bree on the other.
"I need to use the restroom," Sierra told them in a desperate attempt at escape.
"It can wait," the two women said in unison before they looked at each other and giggled.
Damien approached the stage with confidence and gave Joseph a hug before he turned to the crowd. His eyes scanned the room before settling on Sierra.
"I've made many mistakes in life. I don't regret them, because they've shaped me into the man I am now, however, I wish I wouldn't have been such a fool for so many years. My best friend gave me some beautiful advice, of which I took some, and ignored the rest," he said as he sent a wink toward Trinity.