Chapter 8: Lies
"Mr. Smith asked me to come pick you up."
Robert didn't directly answer Amelia's question, just relayed what James had told him on the phone.
Hearing this, Amelia's face darkened, her eyes turning ice-cold.
What a Mia.
Trying to compete for her place in James's heart? Was she even worthy?
Amelia said nothing and just started walking.
"Ms. Martinez..."
Robert couldn't stop her. He watched as she crossed the street, entered a café across the way, sat down by the window, and called over a server to order.
Seeing this, Robert understood what was going on.
He took out his phone and immediately called James.
He had a strong impression of this Amelia.
Not long ago, James had been in a very important meeting.
This Amelia had called.
James never took calls during meetings, not even Mia's calls.
So he answered the phone as usual, planning to tell James after the meeting ended and let him decide whether to call back.
But this Amelia told him to go in and find James right away, saying that if he just told James it was Amelia, he would definitely take the call.
At the time, this Amelia had spoken with even more confidence than Mia.
He was somehow compelled to actually go in, and when the words left his mouth, he thought he was done for.
But unexpectedly, James really did leave everyone in the meeting to take Amelia's call.
Even more incredibly, after James hung up and came back, less than five minutes into continuing the meeting, he suddenly stood up, handed the meeting over to him to chair, and strode out.
...
At the mall, in the restroom.
After using the restroom, Mia washed her hands and slowly walked out.
She immediately spotted James waiting for her at the end of the corridor, his back to her, talking on the phone.
His height and appearance made him stand out even in a crowd.
People passing by couldn't help but look at him.
Many women clearly had ideas, but were held back by the unapproachable, distant aura he gave off.
A man like James was so exceptional that most women would clearly recognize they weren't good enough for him.
Including her.
To Mia, James was like the brightest star in the sky, completely out of reach.
The gap between him and her was truly vast.
She knew she wasn't worthy of him.
The difference in their status meant they could never have a future together.
But he was James.
When a man like that asked her to date him, how could she possibly refuse?
All she could do was carefully guard her heart and have a relationship where she didn't care about the outcome, only about having had it.
But she never expected that God, who had always treated her poorly, would favor her this once.
She had won James's affection!
James, who had been under her gaze for a while, seemed to sense her eyes on him and turned around.
Looking at Mia, James said to Robert, who was asking how to handle things, "Drive yourself back."
With that, he ended the call, walked toward Mia, and naturally hooked his arm around her waist, pulling her into his embrace.
"Who were you just on the phone with?" Mia asked casually.
"Robert."
"Did he pick up Ms. Martinez?"
"Yes." James responded flatly, seeming uninterested in the topic of Amelia.
Watching Mia lean against him like she had no bones after just a few steps, he asked, "Tired?"
Mia held up two fingers in a gesture to him from within James's embrace, saying softly, "Just a tiny bit."
She really was a bit tired, but she really wanted to keep shopping!
Mia looked longingly at the many stores ahead they hadn't visited yet. James was so busy, and he rarely accompanied her shopping.
If it were before her pregnancy, she could shop all day without getting tired, but now...
"I'll make time to come shopping with you again next weekend. Let's go home and rest today."
"Okay."
Mia immediately snuggled happily in his arms, tilted her little face up, looked at him and said, "It's a promise, you can't lie to me. You know I hate being lied to more than anything."
Because of her childhood trauma, on the very first day she agreed to be with James, she had told him.
Her only requirement was that he not lie to her.
And she would give him absolute trust.
As long as he said it, she would believe it.
James looked down at the face in his arms that trusted him wholeheartedly, raised his hand and pressed her face back into his embrace.
He held her as they left the mall and drove home.
...
Luxe Haven
James parked the car and opened the door to get out.
He opened the passenger door and very gently moved to pick up Mia, who had fallen asleep on the way.
In the car, she didn't sleep deeply.
The moment James's hand touched her, Mia groggily opened her eyes, yawned, "James, are we home?"
"Yes, keep sleeping, I'll carry you in."
After James spoke, he saw Mia obediently stretch out both arms with a dependent look, letting him pick her up and carry her inside.
Her little face nestled against his neck as he carried her into the house, upstairs, and placed her on the master bedroom bed.
Her arms hung around James's neck, refusing to let go, her face nuzzling affectionately against his neck as she murmured softly, "James, sleep with me."
With him there, she would sleep more soundly.
"Be good, sleep by yourself for a bit. I have something urgent at the company. I'll come back to sleep with you after I'm done."
James clasped his large hand over hers, pulled them away, and tucked them under the covers.
"Okay, then come back soon."
Mia was forcing herself to stay awake, yawning continuously. She closed her eyes again and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
James got up and tiptoed out of the master bedroom, closed the door, hurried downstairs, grabbed his keys, and left.
...
The black Bentley stopped outside the café.
Sitting in the car, James immediately spotted Amelia sitting by the window.
She held a delicate small spoon in her hand with a small bite of dessert she had just scooped.
Seeing his car, she met his gaze through the glass but didn't get up.
After a moment, James unbuckled his seatbelt, opened the car door, got out, walked into the café, and sat down across from Amelia.
In front of him was a cup of Americano that had long gone cold—Amelia had ordered it for him early on.
She knew she would definitely be able to wait for him.
...
After seeing James get out of the car and walk toward her, Amelia looked away. After he sat down, she didn't look up at him.
She elegantly parted her lips slightly and put the dessert in her mouth. Eyes lowered, she pressed her lips together lightly, savoring it carefully.
After tasting it for a moment, she put down the spoon, swallowed the dessert, and spoke in a calm voice, unhurried and measured.
"James, if you didn't want to come pick me up, you could have just refused me directly. I wouldn't have been angry with you. After all, you have no obligation to pick me up."
"But... you agreed, and then sent Robert instead?"
Amelia suddenly looked up, her gaze fixed directly on James.
"James, you know perfectly well I hate it most when people don't keep their word."