@touchedhearts
elizabeth’s family had numerous employees, not to mention her father’s dozens upon dozens of work colleagues. she was used to them marching in and out of the house, her father’s upbringing meaning he valued making them feel welcome. her mother despised the near-constant presence of relative strangers, but elizabeth didn’t really care either way. she had a personal suite where no one ever set foot unless given express permission, so the hordes of men milling about downstairs with briefcases and meticulously-tailored suits didn’t faze her. it was rare, however, for her father to invite anyone to join them for a family meal. so when his latest favorite, alex kahn, was set to attend that night’s dinner, elizabeth was surprised. she did some googling, and to her even greater shock, found that this alex was actually young and good-looking, rather than the boring, stuffy middle-aged man she’d originally pictured him as. naturally, she’d pulled out all the stops—a gold embellished headband placed over freshly blown-out locks, and a long, sheer gown that showed off her curves. she descended the sweeping staircase to join her parents in greeting alex by the door before they entered the dining room, where, underneath a glittering crystal chandelier, they were served platters of delicious appetizers as elizabeth’s father began to pelt poor alex with questions about his past. “so, where did you grow up?” he asked, barely pausing for breath before firing off: “tell us about yourself. we want to get to know you. what are your parents like? what do they do?” a small smirk tugged at elizabeth’s lips as she lifted her glass of white wine to them. she had sympathy for anyone on the receiving end of her father’s spanish inquisition, but it would be interesting to see how alex handled it.