A Word of Praise
Chapter 23

Kiara was dumbstruck in the worst possible way. Did he really cave just like that? From what she gathered from the previous conversation, this was a project Chris invested a great amount of time and money on. He spoke of it with such conviction and pride that she thought it was his masterpiece within the company.

If she were in a similar situation, she'd probably tell his father to fuck off right away. Of course, that was not possible in corporate business but still, there were diplomatic strategies that could be used to convey the same message. She couldn't help herself and approached his ear to avoid being heard by other guests

"What the hell was that?" He surely had an explanation.

"What are you talking about?" He seemed genuinely confused and that only riled her up further.

"Why didn't you question him? His arguments were shit."

"You don't know what you are talking about, Kiara." His voice was angry, but it only served to get her incredibly frustrated. Keeping her tone down was getting harder by the minute.

"I might not, but you sure as hell did. I heard you talking about it earlier, but now you just budged like the whole thing meant nothing to you." Whisper-yelling was tough at that point, but she didn't care if people noticed anymore. Chris, on the other hand, was constantly looking around to see if anyone was staring.

"That's none of your business," he hissed back.

"That's bullshit, and you know it." She went back to eating her turkey, but it was harder to enjoy the perfectly cooked meal with the boiling frustration pilling up inside her.

She was not sure why it annoyed her so much since it really was none of her business. But she saw how enthusiastic he'd been about the project just minutes before, and her whole personality clashed against the idea of cowering away from passion.

She had only two explanations for that behavior, and both were pathetic. Either the man was afraid to upset his father, or he was willing to accept anything from the man that paid his bills. She didn't know which was even worse. Was he a daddy's boy or a greedy bastard?

The theme was still cooking up in her head when she heard someone saying her name. Patricia.

"Kiara? She's an artist!" Oh, she was talking to someone else. She kept paying attention but looked the other way so they wouldn't know she was prying.

"Really? And what can she do?" The other woman replied. Kiara recognized her as the wife of the chubbiest businessman, and she seemed oddly interested in the subject. "Yes, you might have seen her in Chris' promotion party last month. She was the performer."

"Oh, I see. That circus thing, right?" Kiara was already annoyed before, but now she felt nauseated by their tone. Patricia was talking about her like she was a new exotic pet she was allowed to play with, and the other woman had a creepy expression Kiara was having a hard time reading.

"Kiara, darling, Cynthia and I were talking about your performance at Chris' party!" She called her attention and Kiara cringed internally. She was fine dreading the conversation from afar, but now she'd have to school her disgusted reactions. The other woman extended her hand across the table to greet her.

"Cynthia Jackson, a pleasure to meet you, Kiara."

"Did you enjoy the performance, Mrs. Jackson?" Nice and pleasant.

"Yes, sure. I didn't get to see the whole thing though." Of course, she didn't. Nobody did, she remembered. Well, Chris did... but that was different.

"I hope you enjoyed the part you watched" She smiled but made sure to keep her eyes ice cold to let out a psychotic vibe only to the woman's eyes. She rejoiced when the once composed Mrs. Jackson widened her eyes in confused fear. "Kiara, what do you think about performing tonight at the party?" Patricia was oblivious to the unpleasant exchange between the two women. Was she kidding? She had to be. Kiara laughed, dismissing her invitation, and hoping the older woman got the message.

"I'm serious, I didn't get a performer for tonight so it would be lovely to have some sort of entertainment."

Hell no! There was no way she would perform to that bunch of snobs just for their leisure. Damn, she hated that word. Entertainment.

"I'm sorry Patricia, I can't. I don't have any of my stuff here."

"Nonsense! Make a list and give it to Gloria. She'll make sure to provide it before the party."

Kiara's eyes widened in desperation, searching for Chris for some sympathy. Unfortunately, his stare was as impassive as the beautiful marble statues in the garden and she knew he was holding a grudge because of their little fight minutes before. Well, she wasn't too keen to talk to him either after his stunt either.

She tried hard to replace a way out, but in her role as Chris' compliant and polite girlfriend, it was expected for her to accept Patricia's requests. As much as she loved to perform, it would be torture to do it for those soul-crushing reasons. For a paycheck? Needed. For the sake of art? Her ultimate passion. But for a bunch of loaded bastards that just wanted a peculiar touch to their phony party? Plain torture, with hints of sadism. And not the good kind.

"I didn't prepare anything." It was her Hail Mary. If that didn't work, she'd probably have to do it. She noticed another odd smile growing on Mrs. Jackson's face and before Patricia could seal the deal, that devilish woman intervened. "I'd love to see another performance from you, Kiara. I'm positive you don't need much preparation at all, just throw in a few tricks."

What was the problem with that woman? She was clearly trying to sabotage her, but Kiara had no idea why.

"Then it's settled!" Patricia clapped her hands, amused with the turn of events. Chris remained impassive. Kiara knew he noticed her distress and chose to ignore it. Prick.

"Now tell me, Cynthia, why didn't Felicia come today? It's Thanksgiving, it should be spent with family!" Was Kiara really the only one to notice the hypocrisy? She almost snorted but covered it with a cough and drank her water. "Actually, she's spending it with some friends in Cancun. Chris here was supposed to join them, but he didn't reply to the invitation." Her tone was acidic, and Kiara could feel the shade pouring out of her words. If Michael were there, they would have a blast adding her name to their ever-growing list of shady bitches to avoid.

When lunch was finally over, Kiara was led to that sympathetic maid that greeted them when they first arrived. Gloria was put in charge of arranging everything necessary for her performance and Kiara felt bad for the woman. Circus apparatus were not easily found commodities and time was not exactly on their side.

It was four in the afternoon and the show would take place at midnight, per Patricia's request. Kiara decided to take the opportunity to take a break from the opulent dynamic of the household and help Gloria out in the task.

The chief maid was pleasant, and her down to earth attitude would be a nice change for the zoo she found herself in. It was a zero-sum game; she could get a little room to breathe and the woman wouldn't be sunk into the task of replaceing all the items of Kiara's list alone.

Side bonus, she would avoid running into Chris before the party. She was clueless as to why he was so aggravated by her comments on his lack of spine. Oh well, maybe not clueless. But she expected him to defend his case, instead of letting her think he was a chicken.