When Dexter recalled this morning, the image of Josie’s peculiar and irritating expression immediately came to mind. It was truly vexing yet vivid.
“You don’t have to personally handle all of this,” Dexter spoke as if he was discussing something completely mundane, his tone indifferent.
“No need to worry. One must always pay extra attention to such an important occasion,” Heather replied, her expression remaining unchanged. “Could you give me a ride home? My car broke down and the driver took it for repairs.”
In the elevator mirror, the woman’s pleading expression appeared.
Dexter glanced over with an indifferent look, as if he didn’t care. “I’ll have Moses send you.”
The two of them had already reached the parking lot. Upon hearing this, Heather instantly became displeased. She wrapped her hands around his arm. “No, I want you to take me. Besides, my father has been constantly talking about you.”
The latter part of her sentence seemed to touch the man’s heart. He neither agreed nor disagreed, simply casting a glance at her hands.
This glance was so intimidating that she instinctively withdrew her hands, her smile tinged with a hint of bitterness. “She was there in the photos the tailor sent this morning. Did you give your silent consent?”
She still asked.
Dexter didn’t react much; he had no intention of explaining.
The two of them got into the same car, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense. Heather felt some regret. She carefully studied the man’s profile. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m your fiancée. If the media were to catch us, I would be very embarrassed.”
Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke.
Dexter rubbed his brow, but all he felt was an intense annoyance at the glimpse of white in his peripheral vision.
“You deliberately embarrassed her. Do you think she won’t retaliate, given her personality?” Heather’s voice rose slightly. “She was the one who embarrassed me first when she found out about our relationship, yet she had the audacity to…”
“Leanne!” Dexter cast a glance, his voice deep.
Heather pursed her lips, regulating her breathing.
There was silence all the way.
When Heather arrived at Olsen Residence, Dexter did not get out of the car to visit Mark. He simply made a turn and left, without noticing the solitary and fragile woman in his rearview mirror.
Tears filled her eyes. She sniffled, and the softness in her gaze transformed into a fierce determination.
…
Pepper was a large breed dog. Even in his old age, he still exuded a vibrant spirit when he was by Josie’s side.
She had never felt this secure before.
“Pepper, when I raised you as a puppy, you were just this tiny.” Josie squatted down, gesturing to it. “Back then, I thought that you would protect me once you grew up. You would definitely be an imposing figure!”
But then… Josie pondered on the experiences of these past years, her smile faltered for a moment, but then she regained her confidence. She patted its head. “But it’s not too late now, right?”
Not far from the road, a black Maybach was parked. Dexter was sitting in the back seat, witnessing this scene.
The woman squatted down to talk to the dog, her face displaying a sense of ease she had never shown before.
The man absentmindedly toyed with the rosary beads in his hand, his gaze almost covetous.
After an indeterminate amount of time, he finally instructed Moses to step forward.
Josie was startled by the sudden arrival of the vehicle, and so was Pepper, which barked furiously at the man lowering the car window.
Dexter’s eyes were calm and indifferent, “Where did this dog come from?”
With all her might, Josie pulled Pepper behind her, lying without batting an eye. “I bought it from a dog seller. I felt sorry for it. I’m sure Mr. Russell wouldn’t deny me the right to keep a dog.”
The man raised an eyebrow, his gaze falling on the LV dog leash around Pepper’s neck. He enunciated each word clearly, “Dog seller.”
Josie also felt guilty, stiffening her neck as she said, “This… this is a counterfeit.”
