When Sean saw that they did not have enough cash to make payment at the counter, he had instinctively taken out his card and handed it over the counter.
He stared at the woman before him. She was dressed in her usual work attire and the plain outfit only flattered her figure instead of hiding it. He took in her features and realized how delicate they looked. It was as if he was truly seeing her for the first time and he found that she was almost as, if not more, attractive than Lyla. In fact, there was a serene beauty to her and she exuded a quiet sense of determination that was otherwise lost on Lyla.
“You don’t have to draw such a harsh line between us, Myra,” Sean mused as his thin lips curved into a cold smile, although his gaze was impassive. “We were husband and wife, after all. I have no qualms about paying for these.”
“We don’t care about whether you have qualms or not.” Myra frowned. She tried to bypass him, but she was blocked by him again. She wondered whether he was doing this on purpose.
Annoyance was beginning to register on her face as she glowered up at him. “Please step aside, Director Chase.”
“Why do you have to be so stubborn? Those shirts might not even be here anymore by the time your friend gets here.” He looked into her eyes, the same pair that had once regarded him with unwavering love and admiration, but all he saw in them was cold indifference. It was as if she had never loved him at all.
Sean’s fists clenched at his sides. He hadn’t thought that she would end up with a despicable man like Tony. How could I not realize that Tony’s been eyeing her all along? I played into his hands and gave up both Myra and half of Hillivile to him! He grew murderous at that thought and the vein on the back of his hand pulsed. Nonetheless, he forced himself to stay calm and smiled bleakly. “If you truly have no feelings for me, Myra, then you shouldn’t be conflicted to accept this gesture of mine. You don’t have to be squeamish over these two shirts. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you still have feelings for me.”
His eyes lit up with dark amusement as he said this, as though he was taking pleasure in teasing her.
Myra’s face darkened considerably. She didn’t know why Sean was being like that, but she was sure that he did not have good intentions.
Instead of trying to go around him to leave the store, she turned and looked at the few sales assistants who were standing to the side before asking loudly, “Excuse me, but how should I proceed to lodge a complaint if I’m being harassed on your premises?”
Upon hearing that, the sales assistants exchanged a nervous look among themselves. They had heard the man saying that he was the woman’s ex-husband, but it seemed as if Myra was less than keen to entertain him. Someone who resembled a manager coughed, clearly uneasy at having to answer Myra’s question.
Just as the manager was about to speak, a cool and distant male voice interjected, “Take this card.”
The man who handed his card over the counter stood tall and straight. The black suit and the white shirt he wore beneath it only accentuated his towering build. He looked clean and meticulous; while he carried himself with effortless grace, there was an intimidating undercurrent to his polished demeanor even though his features were handsomely chiseled. His almond-shaped eyes were slightly narrowed and when his cold gaze swept over those in the store, it threatened to bring them into subjugation.
The sales assistant behind the counter froze as she stared at his long, slender fingers.
Meanwhile, Henry had never been more excited to see his uncle than he was now. He ran over and held onto the man’s leg while exclaiming, “Uncle Tony, you’re finally here to pick us up!”
He spoke as though he had been hurt and he gazed at Tony with such admiration that one would think the latter was here to save him from bitter resentment.
Tony was expressionless as he patted the boy on the shoulder.
Myra, on the other hand, was taken aback at first, but relief soon followed. She slowly crossed over to Tony and interlaced her fingers with his.
Just as she did so, she felt Tony giving her hand a brusque squeeze and she nearly gasped in pain. However, she forced out a small smile as she tugged his arm and said, “Henry and I were shopping for clothes, but he didn’t have enough cash on him and I left my purse back in the office.”
While explaining what had happened, Myra completely ignored Sean, who was stiff and grim since Tony arrived at the store.
It was a beautiful scene to behold when the three of them huddled together like that. With the man’s handsome features, the woman’s gentle beauty, and the child’s adorable disposition, it was hard for anyone to nitpick at this picture of happiness. The sales assistant turned their gazes toward the man who had offered to pay before, wondering what he would do next.
Tony’s eyes fell on Sean and his lips curved up slightly into the barest of smirks. There was an unreadable look in his dark orbs as he spoke, “Thank you for offering, Director Chase, but seeing as my wife is doing the shopping, it’s only natural for me to make the payment.”
There was no hesitation in his voice as he uttered the words ‘my wife’ and his face remained impassive, as though he was saying this as a matter of fact. Sean, on the other hand, looked as if someone had ruffled his feathers. He raised a brow coolly, but his heart clenched with inexplicable anger and he was surprised by how much it hurt.
He appraised them, noting how they indeed looked like a happy family of three. Then, he scoffed and turned to leave the store.
The sales assistant beamed almost instantly. She took the card from Tony and swiped it on the POS machine before pushing the device over as she said, “Sir, please key in your pin here.”
Tony did not move. He was staring at Myra intently, his dark gaze unwavering.
Myra felt a chill run up her spine when her eyes met his. She tugged on his arm once more and said softly, “Stop staring at me. This nice lady over here just asked you to key in your pin.”
“Don’t you know the pin?” Tony asked instead, catching her off guard. He raised a brow as a roguish smile played on his lips.
Of course I do. When they were at the Calvin Klein exclusive store the other day to shop for his pants, she’d been the one to key in her birth date into the POS machine, but she did not think that it would actually be the pin to his credit card.
She flushed and hastily keyed in the pin into the machine. Then, she left the store with the carrier bag.
Myra had only just taken a couple of steps when a warm, dry hand took the carrier bag from her. She turned to look at Tony, but he had already draped an arm over her shoulder.
She muttered quietly, “I came to the mall with Henry today. I didn’t know Sean would be here either and I certainly didn’t think that he would see us.”
Myra was well aware of how Tony felt about Sean and she needed to clarify the situation before he got the wrong idea.
Tony hummed flatly in response. Then, he looked down at the two paper bags in his hand.
It was easy to see that both these bags contained men’s shirts. He raised a brow as he glanced at Myra with amusement. She found herself blushing again and she said a little too forcefully, “Henry bought them. He told me that it’s going to be Christian’s birthday soon and these shirts are a gift to him.”
Meanwhile, Henry covered his mouth with his hand as he sputtered at the sight of the two lovers ahead of him. He had wanted to take a photo of them with his phone. However, upon hearing what Myra said, he rushed toward them and snatched the paper bag that contained Christian’s gift before saying to Tony, “This is the one that I bought for Christian, Uncle Tony. The other one you’re holding is meant for you. Myra bought it as a gift to you! She said the shirt would look good on you!”
When she heard this, Myra blushed furiously; she looked as though she would combust at any moment. Henry turned and pulled a face at her, then laughed hysterically as he ran forward and away from them.
