The driver was British. Debbie was pretty sure he couldn't understand Chinese, so she decided to continue talking to Carlos in her native tongue. She smiled and cajoled Carlos, putting on her sweetest voice. "I decided a couple days ago. I was in a bad mood then. Can you stop being mad at me, honey? You know how much I love you. I'm wearing the watch you bought me."
She was also wearing the ring Carlos got her. Only, she was wearing it around her neck as a necklace, just like before.
"Are you also wearing the studs Hayden bought you?"
"No. I already mailed those back and blocked his number. Honey, my love for you is as pure as moonlight and as deep as the sea."
At the other end of the line, hearing Debbie's declaration of love, Carlos grinned from ear to ear. "You're set up with drivers, bodyguards, and cooks. I've got a friend you can call if things go south. I'll text you her number later."
"Okay, okay, whatever you say, honey. So can Emmett stay?"
For a moment, Carlos went silent again. She could tell she said something wrong. She was also sure he'd let her know about it. 'So that's what all this is about.'
"Hee hee, Mr. Handsome…" Debbie pleaded with a giggle.
"Debbie!" her husband snapped.
"Yeah?" she replied immediately.
"So it's about Emmett again. Do you remember how many times you've tried to get me to go easy on him?" Every time Emmett made a mistake, she would plead with Carlos for him, sweeter and softer than ever. She wouldn't even do that for herself. But she liked the guy. He was well-meaning, no matter what.
"I just don't want him in trouble because of me. He helped me out. And you didn't thank him but instead plan to exile him to some remote village. That's not fair."
"He deserves it," Carlos said firmly.
His stubbornness frustrated Debbie. "Alright, I won't take up more of your time. Bye, Mr. Huo." Her tone became icy cold.
Carlos rubbed his throbbing temples. Before she hung up, he said, "Okay, okay. He's not in hot water anymore. Happy?"
Debbie said joyfully, "Thank you, honey. Muah!"
Carlos let out a silent sigh. "And don't think you can get away with this again. You know this pisses me off!" he warned.
"No problem. I promise I won't do it again. Honey, you're the best." Her voice was sweet as candy.
After hanging up the phone, Debbie turned to look out the car window. The scenery was so different than in China. All sorts of things from farms to little communities could be seen on the drive. Half an hour later, the car rolled to a stop in front of a building in Manchester, where her apartment was.
It was an upscale 17-floor block of flats located in the heart of the city center. Close to all sorts of businesses from chains to mom and pop shops, she was truly set if she wanted to step out for a bite to eat or do some shopping. What was more, it was a short walk to a bus stop.
The entrance was framed by a row of beautiful colonnades, and she'd have to head through an ornate set of double doors of chestnut stain with elaborate glass work. Just when Debbie located the entrance, checking it against the address, and strode to the doors, a plump white-haired Chinese woman happened to be walking that way.
The older woman quickened her pace, trying to catch up to Debbie. "Excuse me, are you Mrs. Huo?"
Debbie nodded. "Yes, and you are?"
Excitement sparked in the older woman's eyes. She took Debbie's suitcase and replied, "I'm Ethel. Mr. Huo hired me to take care of you."
"Oh, thank you, Ethel."
The elevator took her and Ethel to the sixth floor. There were two apartments on this floor. Brass characters bolted into the door read "601."
The apartment was huge, at least 200 square meters. Debbie marveled at its simple yet sumptuous decor. There was a leather couch in one corner, and a white fabric one in the other. A glass end table held an ornate lamp, while a coffee table, also with a glass top, stood in front of the leather couch. There were little cubbies to store things like shoes and such, and a large flat-screen TV hung from a fixture on the wall. She had a corner space, and the fishbowl windows offered her an amazing view of the city. And that was just the living room.
'Money has its rewards, ' she exclaimed inwardly.
Ethel Mei told Debbie that since she loved traveling, Carlos had a camera outfitted for her. She didn't have to go to university right away. The driver and bodyguards could take her sightseeing for a couple days. The more Ethel Mei talked, the happier Debbie got. She could get used to this. Real used to it.
Carlos had also found her a local tour guide. If she didn't want a stranger's company, she could go to the tourist attractions without him. But wherever she went, so did the bodyguards. Carlos wasn't willing to leave anything to chance.
Although Debbie had traveled to a lot of places, she almost never used a guide. So she decided not to use one either this time. Assuming she'd be exhausted, she spent the first day resting at home and didn't set out until the next day. She grabbed the camera and asked the driver to take her to the most famous tourist attraction in the city.
She found an open-air restaurant, so she took a picture of her food and sent it to Carlos. "Mr. Handsome, the French fries here are awesome. Come and have a taste," she said in her text.
But before she finished the draft, she discarded it.
When their marriage had been a secret, she had never displayed her love for Carlos in public.
Now that the whole world had known she was Carlos' wife, she thought, why not? So she posted what she was going to say to Carlos in the Moments on WeChat instead.
"Honey, the French fries in this restaurant are amazing. I'm waiting for you to come steal a few from my plate," she said.
Below these words was the picture she had taken. She also sent her location along with it, and then it was done.
This was the first time she had declared her love for Carlos in Moments. She wondered if he'd comment on her post. 'He probably will. But what if he doesn't?' They had few mutual friends, but there were people who knew them both.
It would be messed up if he didn't respond in kind.
And she was so worried she couldn't even enjoy the delicious food anymore. She stared at her phone. Her mind was fully occupied by thoughts of Carlos. 'Has he seen my post? Why hasn't he said anything yet?'
Then her phone tinkled. She grabbed it quickly to read the message, but it was other people asking her meaningless questions.
Her update had racked up more than two hundred likes. But still, there was no trace of Carlos.
'He must be busy. He'll comment later, ' she comforted herself.
Looking at the food on the table, French fries, roast steak, beef pie, roast chicken… suddenly, she understood why Carlos had hired Ethel Mei to take care of her.
She didn't feel so hot right now. Her stomach just didn't seem to like this kind of food. It was okay to eat it once, maybe twice, for a change of pace. But to eat it every day would kill her.
'Carlos is so thoughtful. He is so good to me, ' she thought happily.
She picked up her phone to check the comments, and then she saw something from Carlos!
Her eyes were glued to the screen, hands holding the phone tightly—she didn't want to miss one single word. "Mrs. Huo, you're waiting for me to eat junk food with you?"
'Junk food?' Debbie stared at the fries. 'Never mind. He doesn't have much time to comment, because he's so busy.' Then she replied to his comment, "Yes, if you love him, take him to eat junk food."
In his office, Carlos smiled at her words. Zelda, who was doing a report, was confused. 'I'm talking about something serious and irritating. Why is Mr. Huo smiling? What's so funny?'
She checked the file from beginning to end but found nothing amusing.
"Um, Mr. Huo…" Zelda said cautiously.
Instantly, Carlos' smile was gone. He looked at her with a poker face and said, "You're in charge of this project. Now that there's a problem, it falls on you guys to make it right."
"O-Okay, Mr. Huo," she replied nervously.
