It was indeed such an awkward encounter. Looking at Sheryl in front of her, Helin felt it was needed to break the silence. "Miss Xia, how embarrassing! I didn't know you like this dress, too. Well, I'd like to pay for it and give it to you as a gift to express my apologies for the past."
With another awkward look, she continued, "My father has criticized me for the previous incident, and I've been looking for an opportunity to apologize to you. Now, I may have done something to make you unhappy again, I'm sorry."
It was so unlike Helin to apologize to Sheryl.
With a smile, Sheryl said, "Let bygones be bygones. As for the dress, since you like it so much, how could I fight you for it? A cultured woman will never rob others' favorites."
Looking at Helin calmly, she continued, "Alright, I should go now. See you next time."
Ready to leave with Charles, Sheryl turned around. In truth, when Sheryl tried on the many outfits earlier, she peeked at the tags and found that every dress was so expensive that she had no intention of buying them at all.
In spite of that, Charles stood up and spoke to the saleslady in front of him. "Please wrap up all the clothes she tried on. Oh, except for the red one."
Sheryl's eyes went wide at his request. She grabbed him quickly and whispered, "Are you crazy? Do you know what you're doing?"
With an amused smile, Charles simply said, "Of course. I'm just buying you some clothes. I think it's natural for a husband to buy clothes for his wife, isn't it? Rest assured, your husband can afford it."
"Thank you for your kindness, but these clothes are too expensive." Sheryl gripped his arm tightly and frowned. "Forget it."
Despite her protests, Charles bought all the clothes for her, leaving her no choice but to worry about how wasteful it was. When they arrived at the door of the children's clothing store, Sheryl stopped.
Looking at the beautiful clothes, she really wanted to buy them all. She wanted to buy many outfits for Shirley and Clark. She thought it was a waste to buy clothes for herself, but she never felt that buying clothes for her children was wasteful. There was no limit to how much she wanted to give to her children.
If Charles hadn't stopped her, she would have bought much more.
After supper, Sheryl accompanied her kids upstairs to see the new clothes. Since Shirley was a rather girly girl, she was very excited to see the beautiful clothes. In contrast, Clark was acting much calmer, standing aside and thanking his mother with a simple smile.
The next morning, Sheryl picked out a business suit from her new outfits. After putting on her make up and dressing up, she was ready to head out to work.
Waiting early by the door was Charles. "Come on, I'll drive you to work."
"I appreciate the offer. But no, thanks." With a shake of her head, Sheryl explained, "Here's the thing. Cloud Advertising Company is out of your way, so I'd better take the subway myself."
Still, Charles pulled her into the car with a shrug. "A lady dressed so beautifully shouldn't take the subway. I'm glad to serve you. Besides, it's not the first time I've driven you, is it?"
He was right, of course, it wasn't the first time he had driven her to work. She remembered how he drove her to work the first morning after their marriage three years ago. It was amazing how time flew by so fast.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: His Real Wedded Bride