“Maybe they’re just devoted to their girlfriends,” says the first.
“No way!” says the second. “There must be something wrong with their s.e.x.u.a.l function.”
Leilani can’t help the sudden joy she feels. She stops walking and turns around to glare at Andrew.
He smiles, innocently, “I was just telling you what I thought you wanted to hear.”
Leilani stares at him and tries to suppress the urge to tear his smiling face to pieces.
He roams. Outside the VIP room, the shop assistants scream and throw themselves to the floor. The bodyguards shift uneasily and c.o.c.k their guns. Leilani looks down at her feet. The bullet from Waylen’s gun is embedded in the floor next to her foot.
She looks at Waylen and realizes he’s finished with her. The shot is the official announcement of their break up. He throws the gun onto the floor, turns on his heel, and walks out of the room — Leilani bursts into tears.
“Wow, he really shot at you,” Andrew says, slowly approaching her.
“Shut up!” Leilani snaps, “Get out of here!”
Leilani glares at him coldly and suddenly slaps him hard across the face. Andrew caresses his face calmly.
“Are you done with your shopping here?” Andrew asks as if nothing has happened, “Shall I accompany you to other shops?”
“Andrew, you better not be lying to me,” Leilani warns, “If your heart isn’t Charles’s, I will be the first one to shoot you.”
She jabs her finger into his chest to emphasize her point. Andrew looks at her quietly. Though his face still stings from the slap, it doesn’t hurt as badly as his heart. The hatred in her eyes seems to cut through him. His face pales with pain, and his features seem to twist and contort. He presses his hand over his chest and rubs it as if to ease the pain there.
“What’s wrong with you?” Leilani asks, suddenly worried.
She wants him to die a thousand painless deaths, but she doesn’t want the heart to die with him.
“You still care about me,” Andrew says.
He smiles weakly and gestures to his bodyguards. One of the men brings him a bottle of water and a small pill.
“I care more about your death,” Leilani retorts.
“If I die, the heart will die,” Andrew says, “Are you willing to see that happen?”
“I’ll dig it out!”
“What? You think if you take my heart out, you can bring Charles back?” Andrew asks with cruel amus.e.m.e.nt.
Leilani looks away from him. She doesn’t want to talk to him anymore. She wants to forget his very existence.
“Do you want to know the results of our competition just now?” Andrew asks.
“No, I don’t,” she snaps.
“Don’t be so stubborn,” Andrew says pleasantly, “Don’t worry. I really only have feelings for you now. Other women are nothing to me.”
Leilani smiles, sarcastically, “I really don’t care in the least.”
She turns around and walks away. She doesn’t want to hear about the results of their disgusting competition. More seriously, she doesn’t want to know how Waylen reacted to the model’s dance.
“Then, you don’t want to know how Waylen reacted?” Andrew asks.
Leilani remains silent.
“The only person in the world who has a feeling only for you is standing in front of you, and you don’t cherish him,” Andrew says.
“What do you mean?” Leilani asks.
“Waylen is a normal man,” Andrew explains, “Did you think you were the only one he was attracted to?”
“Shut up,” Leilani snaps.
She doesn’t know if he’s telling the truth or not, but it’s painful even to consider Waylen’s attraction to other women. Leilani walks into the main part of the store and watches one of the assistants wrapping her purchase in tissue paper. As she waits, Leilani hears some of the other assistants gossiping about the events in the VIP room.
“Have you heard?” one whispers, “The model took off her clothes, and neither of the two men reacted at all.”
“I can’t believe that any man could stay calm in front of such a s.e.xy beauty,” another reply.
“Is there something wrong with Mr. Clifford and Mr. Bamford?” a third assistant asks.
“Maybe they’re devoted to their girlfriends,” says the first.
“No way,” says the second, “There must be something wrong with their s.e.x.u.a.l function.”
Leilani can’t help the sudden joy she feels. She stops walking and turns around to glare at Andrew. He smiles, innocently.
“I was just kidding with you,” he says casually.
Leilani stares at him and tries to suppress the urge to tear his smiling face to pieces.
“Are you angry?” Andrew asks, smiling rakishly and gazing deep into her eyes.
Leilani wants to give him another slap, but he calmly grabs her hand midair. He gently places it on his face and uses it to caress his cheek.
“Your hand will get hurt if you slap my face, and that will hurt my heart,” he says.
“You don’t deserve that heart,” Leilani says. “Your heart attack was divine retribution. Your old heart couldn’t survive in such a disgusting man’s body. It must have given up.” She shoves his hand away and walks out of the store. She can hear Andrew rushing behind her.
“Early-onset heart disease obviously wasn’t enough, so God sent you to punish me,” he jokes.
“If I really wanted to punish you, you’d be dead,” Leilani says without looking over her shoulder.
“Do you have to mention death all the time?” Andrew asks, easily catching up with her. “I’m just joking with you. You shouldn’t take everything so seriously.”
“Everything’s a joke with you, isn’t it?” Leilani says. “But I’m not laughing. In case you hadn’t noticed, your stupid games do not amuse me. Everything you do makes me sick to my stomach. That entire contest was disgusting, immature, and unfair.”
“Unfair?” Andrew asks. “What do you mean?”
“Your heart transplant made you impotent,” Leilani replies. “Everyone knows you can’t get it up. If it wasn’t for that, why would you gamble on such a stupid contest?”
Andrew laughs low and threatening. “Never doubt my s.e.x.u.a.l power,” he warns. “If you doubt me again, I might be tempted to prove it to you—pregnancy or not.” He looks at her belly with evil intention.
She crosses her arms protectively over her stomach, and glares at him. “I don’t believe you,” she says. “Why don’t we go back to the store? I’ll model the lingerie, and we’ll see if you can manage to get it up.”
“Do you really want to?” Andrew asks. His pupils are dilated with desire, and he looks ready to f.u.c.k her in the nearest fitting room.
“No, but you’re so attractive that many other women want to serve you,” Leilani says, quickly backtracking. “It shouldn’t be hard to find someone else who can please you.”
Andrew raises his eyebrows, and Leilani worries she’s been careless. If he sees through her plan, all will be lost. They walk together intense silence. Most of the shoppers have evacuated the mall after the gunshot, but she can’t shake the feeling that someone is watching her. She whirls around and looks behind her, but she doesn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Beyond the wall of bodyguards, there are only a few passers-by.
“What are you looking for?” Andrew asks curiously.
“It has nothing to do with you,” she says.
The servants move silently through the Misty Mansion. Occasionally, chirping birds break the oppressive silence. A caged parrot sees Andrew and clicks its beak. “Master, master,” the parrot squawks. Andrew ignores it. “Asshole, asshole,” the parrot squawks.
Andrew casts a fierce look at the bird. “I told you to keep it in the backyard,” he shouts.
A servant snatches the parrot’s cage and runs out of the room.
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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