Scarlett's POV:
After dinner, William and I chatted all the way to the parking lot.
While we were walking, my car, which was being driven by Janet, stopped in front of me.I turned to
William to say goodbye, but I saw that his face had turned dark and gloomy.
"I forgot to call my driver.I shouldn't have drunk," he said glumly.
"Still, you can call your driver now," I reminded him.
William looked at me and sighed.
"Actually, I'm meeting someone later.I'm afraid I'll be running late if I call my driver over now.Would you
be so kind as to give me a ride? Our meeting place isn't far from here."
I was hesitant at first, but I agreed in the end.
William got into my car and told Janet the address.
Just as he had said, it was not that far.His eyes were glued to his phone along the way.
Neither of us spoke the whole ride.
A few moments later, we stopped at a red light, and a brightly lit ice cream parlor caught my attention.I
had seen many netizens' recommendations for this shop.They said that it was a nice place to hang out.
William must have sensed what I was thinking.
"Do you want to go there?" he asked with a gentle smile.
I shook my head.
"I don't think now's the right time.You're meeting someone, remember? Let's get you there first."
William raised his phone and explained, "Well, the person I'm meeting will arrive an hour later.Flight
delays.Why don't we eat ice cream first?"
Well, it was not a bad idea, so I nodded in agreement.
I turned to look at Janet and said, "Let's go to the ice cream store."
We sat by the window and chatted while we ate ice cream.
William was very knowledgeable.
Apparently, he had been to many countries.And now, he was telling me enthusiastically the fascinating
things he had encountered abroad.
"I envy you.You've traveled the world," I said with a sigh, Charles shrugged.
"You can do it too."
"Sadly, I have lots of things to worry about, so I can't just go."
I took a spoonful of ice cream and put it into my mouth absentmindedly.
"Scarlett…" William called me.
I looked up and looked into his eyes.
"What is it?"
"You're so careless.Look.You have ice cream at the corner of your mouth."
Then a hand wiped the melted ice cream off my mouth, and the warmth of his hand brought me back to
my senses.
My heart fluttered wildly in my chest.I raised my head and saw Charles standing beside me.
"Charles, what are you doing here?" I asked, bewildered.
As soon as I uttered these words, I realized that I had said them so many times these past few days.
Charles was everywhere.
"Well, I happened to see you when I passed by."
He sat down next to me, took my spoon, and ate my ice cream.His handsome face was very close to
mine, and his gaze were tantalizing.
"Wow.This is good.If you want, I can buy the whole store for you," he added.
Buy it? Was this man out of his mind? Was he that rich that he could buy the whole store just because
he liked the product? However, what Spencer had said back then crossed my mind, ruining my mood in
an instant.
To answer my question:” Yes” Charles was that wealthy.He could burn money as he pleased.
In fact, he had agreed to sponsor Lucia.
A small ice cream store would not make a dent in his wealth.
For a moment, we stared into each other's eyes.
His eyes were telling me that I could be the hostess of this shop in a snap of his fingers.
While we were looking into each other's eyes, William's phone suddenly rang.He answered the phone
at once.
"You're here now? Alright.I'll be right there."
As soon as the call ended, William said goodbye to us and then left in a hurry.
"Don't look at him."
Charles held my chin with his thumb and index finger and made me look at him.
Then, he leaned over and pressed his forehead against mine.
"I'm waiting for your answer, but you're ignoring me," he said in an aggrieved tone.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see that the customers were staring at us.
Embarrassed, I pushed Charles away from me.
"No.I don't want you to buy this shop for me."
"If you say so.By the way, do you have any tissue? My hand is sticky."
Charles leaned back and looked at me leisurely.He was calm as usual, but I was not.
My ears were red and hot from embarrassment.I rummaged in my handbag, looking for a tissue.
Suddenly, Charles pointed at something in my bag and asked, "Didn't you say you lost that?"
It was my wedding ring, shining brightly in my bag.
"Well, I thought I had lost it."
I closed my bag and put the tissue in front of him.I forced myself to be calm and not let myself be
flustered by his overtures.
Charles did not say anything anymore.
Well, he did not have to.He looked as though he had read my mind, which was annoying.
Unable to take it any longer, I stood up from my seat abruptly.
"I'm done.Bye."
Just as I was about to leave, Charles held my hand.
"What is it?" I asked crossly.
"I have something to tell you.I've agreed to sponsor your colleague, Lucia."
He looked intently into my eyes as he spoke.
His piercing gaze made me uneasy, but I tried my best to keep my cool.
"Whatever.You can do whatever makes you happy."
Charles's eyes narrowed in displeasure.
Without a word, he put his hand on my shoulder, forcing me to sit back down.I slapped his hand away.
"What's your problem?!"
Instead of answering my question, Charles bent over and put his arms around my waist.
I struggled to get out of his arms, but he held me tighter.
What was more, his towering figure obscured the light overhead, casting a shadow over me.
"Do you know why I've decided to sponsor Lucia?"
I gazed at his flawless face with my teeth gritted in anger.
Although I did not want to admit it, I could not help but think that he was God's favorite.
He was not only wealthy, but he was also excellent in all aspects.
No wonder a lot of women admired him.
Even though my heart was pounding in my chest, I suppressed my emotions and only gave him a curt
reply.
"I don't care who you're nice to, my ex-husband."
As soon as I said these words, I realized that I should not have said that.
The next moment, I found myself sitting on his lap, and his hands were around my waist.
The customers gasped in surprise.
In an instant, we became the focus of the crowd.
"What are you doing? Are you crazy?"
I covered my face with one hand and pinched Charles's waist with the other.
He hissed, but he did not let go of me.
Instead, he even hugged me tighter.
Then, his deep and charismatic voice rang in my ears, rendering me weak.
"I'm not crazy.I've decided to sponsor Lucia because I want to see you jealous.I didn't expect that you
wouldn't care."
My body stiffened upon hearing this.
"Scarlett, I'm sad."
He kissed my earlobe and whispered in my ear, "You left with William after work and had a date with
him."
His warm breath sent a shiver down my spine.I unconsciously turned my face away and reasoned out,
"It wasn't a date.We just talked about business—"
Before I could finish my words, Charles kissed me on the lips.
With his strong arms around my waist, he gave me a long, lingering kiss.
I tried to push him away, but he would not budge.
A moment later, my breath came in quick and heavy.
He held the back of my head, forcing me in his deep kiss.
Unable to take it any longer, I gave in and kissed him back.
I had been holding my breath for quite a while that I felt the surroundings were spinning around.
Meanwhile, my heart pounded wildly in my chest.
I could not think straight.
Our kiss was all I could think about.
It was only when we had run out of breath did Charles let go of me.
With a gentle smile, he kissed me on the forehead.
"Come back to me.I miss you every day and night." I looked at him blankly.
Charles sighed heavily and held me in his tight embrace.
Time seemed to have stopped.
The only thing that I could hear was our breathing.It was as if we were the only one in the world.
"Hi.Excuse me." A stranger walked over to us.
It was only then that everything dawned on me.
Appalled, I jumped out of Charles's embrace.
The stranger got startled by my sudden movement.
But, he smiled at me reassuringly and said, "It's okay.I'm the manager here.You see, our store often
holds activities for couples, and we take photos of them as a remembrance.This is for you."
He handed me several photos and then left.I looked at the pictures, and my eyes widened in shock.
The photos were of me and Charles kissing.
"Nice pictures." Charles chuckled, and my heart raced even faster.
I turned around and glared at him.
"Shut up!"
"Stop fooling yourself, Scarlett.I know you still love me, and you know it too."
His words made my hackles rise.Infuriated, I stepped on his foot and left in a huff.
62fb1bb41dcb31934bd49bda