“Where is Waylen?” asks Leonie, “Is he unwell?”
Leonie has just come from Mrs. Bamford’s residence. She’s wearing a pink dress. Tough pink is Leonie’s favorite color, it doesn’t escape Leilani that Leonie’s dress perfectly matches her ring. She looks as if she’s going out for dinner.
“He doesn’t want to eat,” Leilani says flatly.
“So it’s just you and me, Leilani?” Leonie says with a charming smile in Leilani’s direction, “I know that Mrs. Bamford is meeting some friends to play bridge.”
One of the servants pulls up a chair Leonie and brings her a plate. She sits down, and casually grabs her knife and fork. Something bright dazzles Leilani, and she realizes it’s Leonie ring, refracting pink light from the chandelier above.
“Your ring is very beautiful,” Leilani observes.
“Really? It’s a gift,” Leonie says meaningfully.
She put down her utensils and holds her hand up to better show off the ring. Leilani looks at it wordlessly and begins to cut into her meat with more force. The medium-rare steak releases red juices and gravy onto the plate.
Leonie feels smug as she watches Leilani furiously cut her steak, “I heard you went shopping this morning.”
“Where did you hear that?” Leilani asks, still cutting her meat.
“Someone posted it online. I didn’t know that you were still short on cash,” Leonie says lightly, “You know you can always call me for help, right?”
“Hindsight is always easier than foresight,” Leilani replies, “But since you so generously offered, how about I ask the driver to take us to the store and then you can pay for my items.”
Leonie didn’t expect Leilani to take her up on the offer, and she chokes on her steak in surprise. She coughs and covers her mouth. Even as she’s choking, she’s careful to use the hand with the ring—flashing it in Leilani’s face again.
“Didn’t Lance give you a credit card last night?” Leonie asks.
Instead of replying, Leilani cuts a small piece of meat and pops it into her mouth. She chews thoughtfully.
“I heard about your back injury the other day,” Leilani says.
Leonie’s expression sours. She’s still embarrassed and angry that Waylen had her whipped, and Leilani can tell that she’s hit a nerve.
“Thanks for your concern,” Leonie says, clenching her fork, “But it turned out to be a misunderstanding, and Waylen gave me a gift as an apology. My back has mostly healed now.”
Leonie glances meaningfully at her ring. Leilani smiles coldly; she’s about to say something but she hears a maid greeting Waylen outside the dining-room door. Waylen enters the room and Leilani has to admit that he makes a sharp figure. The collar of his black shirt is slightly open and his sleeves are casually rolled up revealing his forearms.
Waylen knows what he’s doing. He’s heard people that women are unable to resist three things: soulful, penetrating eyes, a strong collarbone, and toned forearms. Waylen knows he has all three qualities and he knows how to show them off. Every other woman is besotted with him, but as soon as she sees him Leilani wants to chop him into pieces.
“Waylen, are you alright?” Leonie asks with concern, “They said you didn’t have an appetite.”
Waylen ignores her and walks straight to his place at the table. Leonie halts in an embarrassment and lowers her head.
Robert clears his throat, “Mrs. Bamford has returned and she’s looking for you, Miss Summers.”
Leonie puts down the knife and fork in a hurry, “I better go meet her.”
Waylen ignores Leonie completely and she leaves the room feeling frustrated. Leilani forks the final piece of steak into her mouth. She feels oppressed by the absolute silence in the dining room: it reminds her of the last three and a half years of her marriage when he ignored her entirely.
“Has my battle for a divorce succeeded?” she wonders hopefully, “Has he finally decided to let me go?”
The thought leaves her as soon as she remembers her humiliation in the jewelry store. She can feel her anger mounting, but she knows she can’t openly challenge him. She grabs her napkin, wipes her mouth and throws the napkin on the table.
“Enjoy your dinner,” she says coldly, refusing to look at him or even use his name.
“Mrs. Bamford,” Robert stops her.
She turns on him with anger in her eyes, “What?”
“You know that the Bamford family values economy. Wasting food is an insult to the family name, and disrespectful to those who have less.”
Leilani frowns and looks at the luxurious spread of food on the table.
“Is Robert really asking me not to waste food?” she thinks incredulously, “There’s a surplus of food at every single meal here. I’ve never seen any family waste as much food as the Bamford’s.”
Bodyguards understand Tinder’s message and block the dining-room door, forcing Leilani to return to the table. She sits back with a languorous smile. She’s full and refuses to give in to Robert so she stares at Waylen as he eats. Waylen ignores her gaze and continues eating. His face is emotionless, but his gestures are elegant. Leilani has to admit that he makes a pleasant image.
Eventually, Waylen frowns faintly in Leilani’s direction. Receiving his boss’s message, Robert turns to Leilani, “Mrs. Bamford, Mr. Bamford doesn’t like to be stared at while dining. Please finish your food before it gets cold.”
Leilani picks up her knife and fork, and the edge of the knife makes a slight sound as it taps against the porcelain plate.
“Mrs. Bamford, please keep it down,” Robert says, “Mr. Bamford doesn’t like noise when he’s dining.”
Leilani wants to roll her eyes. She hasn’t the faintest clue what game Waylen is playing, but she’s not interested in playing along. She tosses her knife and fork onto the table and asks for the maid to serve her soup, but Robert objects. Leilani knows that Robert wouldn’t harass her like this without Waylen’s approval. She looks at Waylen but he’s pointedly avoiding her gaze.
She serves herself a small helping of spaghetti, twirls it around her fork and takes a bite. A bit of red sauce sticks to her lips and she licks them slowly and unconsciously, savoring the taste of the sauce. Waylen slams his fork and knife down onto the table.
“How dare she make such a provocative gesture in front of all the servants,” he thinks furiously.
Waylen stares at her viciously, “Get lost!”
Leilani freezes but then sneers at her husband, “I’ve been waiting to hear you say that.”
She stands up and starts to walk to the door but Tinder and the servants beat her there. Instead of blocking her path, they all leave. Suddenly, she’s alone in the dining room with Waylen.
In the next moment, Waylen has his arms around her waist. He pulled her toward the dining room table and pushes the food away. Then he picks her up and places her on the table.
“Let go!” she hisses.
“So you can seduce more men?” he asks.
A bit of sauce still clings to her lips and he recalls the provocative way she ate her pasta. Blood rushes to a certain body part, and he can feel it swelling in his pants. He wanted to ignore her, to prove to himself that he’s still in control, that she doesn’t have any power over him, but Leilani’s unwitting move destroyed it all.
“It’s not my fault,” Leilani says, wrapping her long slim legs around his waist. She pulls the black credit card from her pocket and holds it casually in her hands, “If you insist on being so stingy with me, I’ll have to find other men to pay for my expenses.”
Leilani makes her expression seductive, knowing that Waylen won’t be able to resist.
“Ahh, so that’s why you’re so sullen,” he says, “But why do you need all of that jewelry?”
He pinches her jaw between his long fingers and stares at the red sauce on her mouth.
“You can spend 200 million to please Leonie, so why can’t I spend the same on myself?” Leilani asks.
“Huh?” Waylen asks, puzzled.
Before he can give her comment further thought, he’s distracted by her hands on his pants. She pulls his pocket open, slips her fingers inside and drops the credit card. As she pulls her hand away, her fingers brush his thigh. Waylen quickly removes the card. Holding it between his fingers, he brushes it against Leilani’s face.
“I’ll tell you the PIN if you promise to stop making passes at other men.”
“So jealous,” Leilani says teasingly, “Have you fallen for me?”
A voice in Waylens’ head screams yes. He spent the whole night smoking and asking himself that question, and he can’t deny it any longer. But he knows that a smart woman like Leilani will use his feelings to her advantage. The first person to fall loses the game of love, and Waylen refuses to admit he’s lost.
“I’m only reminding you not to forget who you are,” Waylen says.
Leilani sneers, “I think you’re forgetting that I’m nothing to you once the divorce comes through.”
Waylen ignores her taunt. “You are a wife as long as you stay in this house. If you don’t control your behavior, I’ll do it for you. Oh, I almost forgot about Dr. Meyer,” he says, pausing to watch her reaction.
Leilani shakes slightly at the mention of Charles. She doesn’t care what Waylen does to her, but Charles is innocent. Waylen lifts her face up. He has been fighting his urges for a long time, but he’s ready to give in. Leilani purses her lips, unaware of how attractive her expression makes her.
Suddenly he licks the tomato sauce on her lip; it’s spicy and sweet like Leilani.
He pulls himself away from her mouth and looked into her eyes, gently he rests his forehead against hers.
“It’s your birthday,” he whispers in a low voice, “Is that why you wanted the jewelry?”
Leilani is shocked to hear that it’s her birthday, but she tries to keep a straight face. She doesn’t want Waylen to know just how bad her memory has become. Besides her birthday provides a great cover for the jewelry. She just wishes she’d known earlier so she could have tried to talk Waylen into giving her a gift instead of humiliating herself with the credit card in the store.
Waylen seems to sense her hesitation, and he rubs her earlobes, “Let’s go for a drive.”
“No.”
Leilani tilts her head to avoid Waylen’s annoying move. Her earlobes are too sensitive; when he touches her like that her body goes soft and she wants to avoid giving in to him. Besides, the thought of him buying Leonie a two hundred million dollar ring is as disgusting as eating a dead fly. She wants to spit in his face, not let him caress her.
“Maybe I’ll give you your phone back if you behave well,” Waylen says.
He gives her a meaningful stare. He knows that there are other ways he can control her, and he’s willing to give up the leverage of the phone.
“Seriously?” Leilani asks.
She stares at Waylen and tries to guess what game he’s playing now.
“Yes,” Waylen whispers, “Just treat me like I’m your husband.”
“Get the car ready,” she says.
Waylen lifts her down from the table and holds out his hand to her. Leilani gives him a blank, puzzled stare.
“Give me your hand,” he says.
Reluctantly, she holds out her hand and he seizes it at once, tightly intertwined his fingers with her. He holds her hand all the way to the car. The whole walk she has to force herself to remain calm when all she wants to do is snatch her hand away from him. No one has ever held her hand like this before.
“My palm is sweaty,” Leilani complains.
“I don’t mind,” Waylen responds.
“Well, I do.”
“Behave,” he warns.
Leilani wants to struggle against him, but she forces herself to submit.
“This is just to get my phone back,” she thinks over and over.
Waylen holds her hand tighter and smiles with satisfaction. His grip is so tight that Leilani can feel the flickering of his pulse. His palm is quite warm, and she begins to feel his hands grow sweaty as well. He keeps her hand captive the entire car ride.
When the car stops, Waylen helps her out of the car. Leilani allows him to lead her, forcing her body to comply with his. She quickly realizes they’ve arrived at the luxury mall. An army of Waylen’s bodyguards marches them into the mall to the doors of the jewelry store.
The shop clerks all stop doing what they’re doing and stare wordlessly at the entourage. Finally, one clerk finds her voice to welcome them.
Another clerk recognizes Leilani and gives her a despising look, “Her again? Is she not embarrassed enough after what happened this morning?”
Another voice chimes in, “Yeah, what kind of scam is she running? Does she think we’re stupid?”
Their voices rise in speculation:
“She’s with some guy. Is he her lover?” asks the first, “They’re quite intimate.”
“Isn’t that Waylen Bamford?” another asks.
“That’s not possible!” responds the first, “Waylen likes Leonie.”
As Waylen’s team enters the calm, quiet store becomes busy and hectic. The assistants are all confused about what to do. Leilani glances around the shop and identifies the clerks who served her in the morning. They try to avoid eye contact with Leilani—nervous about what’s to come.
Waylen’s cold voice rings out above the noise and chaos of the store, “Bag every single piece in the shop.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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