Chapter Ten: In Which She Deserves an Emmy

Glory ran her finger around the outline of her lips to wipe away the excess lipstick, popping her lips one last time before she flip the visor closed. She tossed her head to the side to look out the window of Lucy's car. She could see the camera and media personal mulling about the entrance to Morgan and Beck tower. A small bubble of nervous energy began to form in her stomach as she thought about the fact that she was about to enter the limelight.

"You've got this! You're Gloriana Marie Novacek, you eat people like Arden Fox for dinner. Dealing with a couple of annoying press people will be nothing." Lucy tried to give her a pep talk. Glory threw a look over her shoulder at her best friend before opening the door and stepping out of the car. She ran her hand over her dress straightening out the wrinkles before she spun back around, "I'll park this hunk of junk and be watching from the crowd" Lucy gave Glory an enthusiastic thumbs up as she shut the door.

She had reached the press conference with only moments to spare. Glory reach up and ran her hand over her pristine high ponytail. The one thing she had learned to do well from her parents was make a good first impression, even if she rarely held to her youthful indoctrination. As she strutted towards the crowd on her stilettos she thanked her mother for forcing her to spend hours parading around in the uncomfortable things when she was a younger woman.

Frankie spotted her manuvering around the crowding press personal. He moved towards her with his confident, long strides, "Wow, you look—" His eyes moved down the length of her. She snapped her fingers in front of his face and his gaze moved back to her face. Glory smirked at his obvious ogling, "You can admire my form later Frankie, right now we have a press conference to attend." His cheeks turned a slight pink as he offered her his arm. Glory placed her hand in the crook of his elbow and allowed him to lead her through the crowd towards the front where there was a tiny podium.

Glory felt a moment of nervousness as she looked out at the crowd. As if sensing that Frankie placed his hand over hers and patted it gently, "Don't worry you'll be fine. They'll probably only ask you a couple of questions. Mostly you're here to look pretty and make Arden look more approachable to the public."

"Oh that I can do—I'm a natural accessory, ask my parents. I made them look great for years." Glory commented under her breath. When the crowd surged forward and began flashing cameras, she could only suspect that the man of the hour had arrived. She chanced a glance over her shoulder to see Arden Fox moving towards them with his usual frown and smoldering bedroom eyes. Glory clenched her legs together and frowned as a wave of desire rushed through her. Apparently her body still wanted a piece of the man even if her brain had come to it's senses.

He reached there tiny pow wow and lifted a hand as a greeting to the onlookers, while he pressed another hand to the small of her back. She jumped slightly at the contact before forcing a smile to her lips. Arden dipped his head down, "I'm glad to see you decided to show up—try not to embarrass yourself or me further. If that's possible..." Glory gritted her teeth together to hold back a rush of insults that sprang to the tip of her tongue.

"You two keep it together for fifteen minutes and we are well on our way to correcting the damage that was done." Frankie said to them before he released Glory. Arden moved them to the podium, camera flashes practically blinding Glory until all she saw was black spots every time she blinked. Mr. Fox lift his hands as if to settle down the crowd which seemed to work quite well, it was as if he truly was a god amongst me the way they responded to his presence.

"I appreciate your questions and interest in my personal life—" Arden began but was quickly interrupted by an over eager journalist.

"The public was shocked to find out that your long engagement to socialite Isobel Carthwright had ended, reports say she left you for your close family friend Brendon Moore. Is this true?" The crowd became quite but as Glory stared out at them, they looked more like hungry sharks waiting to feed. She glanced at Arden out of the corner of her eye and she noticed how tense his body was. His hand was clenched into a fist behind the podium.

"Isobel and I came to the decision together that we had grown apart as—" Before he could finish his reply another journalist jumped in over him, "Reports say that you and Miss Carthwright were seen having a very heated argument outside The Landon saturday afternoon and that she left with Brendon Moore..."

Glory reached out and grabbed his fisted hand in her behind the podium stepping forward, "I've had the privilege of meeting Miss Carthwright and I can say that her and Mr. Fox are on very amiable terms. In fact she gave him her blessing on his endeavor of finding someone with whom to share his life with and I know Mr. Fox wishes her the best in her future as well."

She could feel the heat of Arden's gaze on her but she smiled brightly at the crowd who seemed mesmerized by her presence, as if they hadn't even noticed her until that moment. The journalist who had been fishing for a story made a disgruntled face but backed up, allowing another to step forward, "Miss—"

"Novacek" Glory filled in with her continued smile, she was certain by the end of this her cheek were going to be sore for a week. The friendly looking woman smiled back at her, "Miss Novacek, you were the author of the article that had women everywhere lining up to get their chance with Billionaire Arden Fox?"

Glory chuckled at the question as if she was truly amused, "Guilty." The crowd found her response amusing and laughed along with her.

"In all honesty it was something Mr. Fox and I had discussed during the interview. Though I believe he meant it more as a joke between the two of us—I took the opportunity to help out a man who to me was like any other person on this planet. He just wanted to be love and to be loved." She peered over at Arden who peered down at her. There was a silent moment that stretched between them that was ladened with strange tension. A flash of a camera brought Glory back into herself and she turned her attention back to the crowd, "Neither one of us expected the response it garnished but never-the-less we are pleased, and look forward to the journey ahead of us. I will say this—I do have my work cut out for me." She winked playfully at the crowd, who seemed quite taken with her at the moment.

Frankie approached the podium as the Journalists began to let more questions fly from their lips. Arden and Glory slowly backpedal until they disappeared back into the lobby of Morgan and Beck. Glory let out a small breath as a small tremor worked its way out of her body from excess nerves.

"I suppose for once I should thank you for your quick tongue Miss Novacek—it seems that there is more to you then I first realized." Arden commented. She flipped her gaze toward him to find him looking at her with subtle amusement.

Frankie came in through the doors a moment later, striding towards Glory and picking her up, "You were brilliant out there Glory!" He spun her around once before setting her back down on her feet. She staggered as she dealt with the small wave of dizziness, "Thank you—"

A shriek had them all spinning to the door to find Lucy moving toward Glory with a giant smile, "Girl you were fucking amazing!" Mr. Fox's dry cleaned suit lay gently folded over her arm, "I mean who would have known this morning that—" Glory shook her head quickly to silence her friend.

Lucy lifted a brow before turning her attention toward the two males in the space. Glory noticed the way her friends eyes raked over Frankie in a slow and sensual manner, before she graced him with her award winning smile. When she flipped her eyes to Mr. Fox she lost her smile and her eyes narrowed, "Oh it's you—"

Arden fixed the lapels of his suit, "I can see Glory has been talking about me again..."

Lucy closed the distance between them and shoved the dry cleaned suit at Arden, "This is yours. Next time you want your clothes dry cleaned get a maid." Mr. Fox grabbed the suit, his eyebrows shot up high into his hairline clearly surprised by Lucy's hostile actions. Frankie was wearing an expression of confusion at the interaction. Lucy spun around on her heels, snapping her fingers, "Let's get your fine ass outta' her mama. You've done your charity work for the week."

Glory squared her shoulders and glanced toward her new employers. She knew she should leave now while Arden was recovering from Lucy's blow to his ego, "Call me later this week and we can get dinner somewhere and start going over the application." With that said the two woman strutted out of the building with mirrored smirks of satisfaction. Glory had come, seen and conquered. She was leaving with all her dignity in tact which was more then she could say about her last run in with Mr. Fox.