[Ballroom]
She was dressed in open-back, shimmering coral, the color carefully chosen to brighten. And, oh, she didn't feel well at all. But this was the largest charity function of the new year, and Selina was as stubborn as anyone could possibly be. There was no sign of fatigue or pain on her perfectly done-up face, and her loose hair added to the illusion that she was young, bright and healthy.
After all, she was always young, bright and healthy.
And she liked these affairs. She liked the opulent dress, the designer shoes, the lights off the chandeliers. And the jewels. She liked the jewels very, very much.
But this was her world, and she was accustomed to it. There was no reason to listen to the clink of her heels on the ballroom floor like it was anything new. And she stopped, and she stopped, smiling a lush and red smile at everyone who wanted to say hello. Oh, she knew the attention had begun as a required tithe, a respect shown to the man whose arm she was usually holding onto. But she'd done a lot of work to win these people over herself, and she lingered and talked about their children, their grandchildren, their pet dogs.
She knew where Bruce was. Oh, of course she did. She'd spotted him as soon as she'd walked in. But she did like it when he chased her down. So, she took an offered glass of champagne, and she continued a perfectly mindless conversation with the president of this bank or that bank.