Nelson’s mind conjured up Callie’s sarcastic expression, truly infuriating yet vivid.
“You don’t need to handle these things personally,” Nelson said coldly, as if discussing something ordinary.
“It’s okay. Marriage is a lifelong matter, I should be more attentive,” Charlotte replied calmly. “Can you take me home? My car broke down and the driver took it for repairs.”
In the elevator mirror, the woman’s vulnerable and pleading expression was reflected.
Nelson glanced indifferently, as if he didn’t care. “I’ll have Kieran take you.”
They had already reached the parking lot. Hearing this, Charlotte immediately became displeased and wrapped her hands around his arm. “No, I want you to take me. Besides, father has been talking about you.”
The latter half of her sentence struck a chord with the man. He neither agreed nor refused, merely glancing at her hands.
That look made her instinctively withdraw her hands, her smile turning somewhat bitter. “In the photos sent by the tailor this morning, she was in them. Did you allow it?”
She still asked.
Nelson didn’t even react much; he had no intention of explaining.
They got into the same car, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense. Charlotte regretted it a little and cautiously observed the man’s profile. “…I’m sorry, it’s just that I’m your fiancee. If the media catches you and her, it would be very embarrassing for me.”
She was on the verge of tears as she spoke.
Nelson rubbed his temples, feeling nothing but irritation from the white figure in his peripheral vision.
“You deliberately embarrassed her. Do you think she won’t retaliate given her character?”
Charlotte raised her voice slightly. “She embarrassed me first, knowing our relationship and still shamelessly…”
“Maeve!” Nelson gave her a stern look.
Charlotte pursed her lips and adjusted her breathing.
The rest of the journey was silent.
When Charlotte arrived at the Ellison family home, Nelson didn’t get out to visit Ahmad. He turned around and left without looking at the solitary woman in the rearview mirror.
Tears welled up in her eyes. She sniffed, and the vulnerability in her gaze turned to determination.
…
Pepper was a large dog, even in its old age, it exuded a powerful presence by Callie’s side.
She had never felt so secure.
“Pepper, when I raised you as a child, you were only this small,” Callie squatted down and gestured with her hands. “Back then, I thought that when you grew up, you could protect me and be very majestic!”
But later… Callie thought about the past years and her smile dimmed. Then she regained her confidence and patted its head. “But it’s not too late now, right?”
Not far from the road, a black Maybach was parked. Nelson sat in the back seat, watching this scene.
The woman squatted down to talk to the dog, her face relaxed like never before.
The man fiddled absentmindedly with the prayer beads in his hand, his gaze affectionate.
He didn’t know how long he watched before instructing Kieran to approach.
Callie was startled by the sudden arrival of the vehicle, and so was Pepper, barking furiously at the man who rolled down the window.
Nelson’s eyes were indifferent. “Where did you get this dog?”
Callie tried hard to pull Pepper behind her and lied without blinking. “I bought it from a street vendor. I felt sorry for it. You wouldn’t forbid me from keeping a dog, would you?”
The man raised an eyebrow, his gaze falling on Pepper’s LV collar. He enunciated each word slowly. “Street vendor.”
Callie felt guilty too and stiffened her neck. “It’s… it’s a knockoff.”