Chapter 3
The mall was lit up, every corner sparkling under the lights.
Louise tried on a bunch of gorgeous dresses, but none of them really caught her eye.
Just as she was about to give up, she spotted a minimalist yet chic beige mini dress in the display case. Louise's eyes sparkled. "This one. I'll take it."
"Simon, this one's gorgeous. I want it." Haley's voice sounded, and Louise froze at once.
She instinctively glanced toward the entrance, only to meet those deep eyes of Simon.
"Hey, Louise?" Haley exclaimed, her face brightening as she moved closer.
Then she pouted, pretending to be annoyed. "Simon's been holed up at work for three days because of some data, and you don't even care? Still got the mood to go shopping?"
Louise shook off her hand, her face cold. "What's it to you?"
Haley let out a startled yelp and stumbled backward, but Simon's arm shot out and caught her by the waist.
Louise's eyes burned with anger when she saw the two of them getting all cozy. She snatched the dress from the salesgirl and made for the register, but Simon grabbed her wrist, holding it tight.
He said, "Give Haley the dress. Consider it your apology."
His grip hurt, but it was nothing compared to the ache in Louise's chest.
She gritted her teeth, enunciating every word. "I like this dress."
After changing into the dress in the fitting room, Louise stepped out just as Wendy finished picking out her own clothes.
Wendy's eyes lit up the moment she saw Louise, and she circled Louise, exclaiming, "Wow, girl, you're gonna make me jealous with that look."
Simon's eyes darkened for a split second as he took in Louise's appearance.
Noticing the change in Simon, Haley lowered her gaze, acting all gracious. "Louise, you look amazing. You'll definitely turn heads out there.
"No wonder you were Royal College's campus belle for years, and so many guys still can't get over you."
Her words made Louise's skin crawl. Sure enough, Simon's face darkened at once, and then he repeated his demand. "Take off the dress and give it to Haley," he said, pausing for a beat before adding, "Don't make me mad."
Wendy stepped in front of Louise, her face full of mockery. "So what if Louise takes it off? That dress costs 13,000 dollars. Can Ms. Carter afford that as a student?
"Or are you trying to get Lulu to pay for it again? Have you no shame?"
Haley's face went pale, and tears welled up in her eyes.
She tugged at Simon's sleeve. "Simon, forget about it. Don't fight with Louise because of me. She likes to look nice, and she's already mad at you for spending so much time helping me with experiments lately."
Simon patted her hand to comfort her, and then turned to the salesgirl. "Charge it to my card. Give the dress to Haley."
As Haley watched Simon swipe his card without blinking, her eyes sparkled with more desire.
She knew she hadn't misjudged him.
Watching Simon defend Haley like that, Louise felt like she was wearing a dress made of knives. Every edge was cutting into her heart, and she could barely keep herself from shaking.
She quickly changed back into her own clothes, grabbed Wendy's hand, and turned to leave.
Simon watched her walk away, her red-rimmed eyes and the look of humiliation on her face burned into his mind.
"Get me another one of this dress. Same size as the girl who just walked out," he told the salesgirl.
*****
Louise kept her emotions in check, walking in silence all the way to the restaurant they'd booked.
Wendy snapped, "Simon didn't even blink at dropping 13,000 dollars on a dress. Louise, you've been with him for five years. Has he ever given you anything worth more than 300 bucks?"
Wendy's eyes were red with anger as she spat, "That jerk. Seriously, what a piece of shit!"
Louise dug her nails into her palm, refusing to let the tears fall.
Seeing how upset Louise was, Wendy didn't say anything more.
Just as they were about to head into the restaurant, Simon showed up with Haley, like they were haunting Louise.
"Wow, what a coincidence, Louise." Haley grinned with a playful mix of shyness and excitement in her eyes. "I just casually mentioned this place, and Simon went ahead and booked it three months ago.
"You guys probably won't get a table on such short notice. Why don't we share one?"
Simon, seeing Louise stay silent, was about to hand her the shopping bag, but Haley cut in.
"Louise, stop being mad at Simon, okay? Right after you left, he had the salesgirl get another one for you. He really cares about your feelings," Haley said, all sweet and eager, as she took the bag and held it out to Louise.
Louise glanced at the dress in the bag, and her lips curled into a sarcastic smile. "Sorry, but as a VIP and a shareholder of this restaurant, I don't think I need to share a table with strangers." She arched her brow and sneered.
The restaurant manager hurried over, beaming at her. "Ms. Turner, please come in. Your private room is ready for you."
Haley's eyes burned with jealousy as she dug her nails into her palm. "Louise, do you really have to embarrass Simon like this?"
"Embarrass him?" Louise glanced at Simon's sullen face and smirked quietly. "You asked for it, didn't you?"
Simon felt a tightness in his chest. For the first time, Louise had embarrassed him in public.
He was so choked up that he couldn't get a single word out.
"Louise, I know you don't like me, but Simon does all this for you. He stays late at work every night, and he's always the best in the lab. It's all for you." Haley piped up in his defense.
Louise was even more repulsed by that.
She suddenly stood up and looked down at Haley, her gaze dripping with disdain. "If skipping our anniversary to go hiking and have dinner at a romantic restaurant with you counts as 'doing it for me', then yeah, he's really working hard."