Bound by the Past, Locked by the Heart novel Chapter 171

Her phone buzzed.

She picked it up. It was a message from Randal: *Are you awake?*

Before she could reply, a second message popped up.

*I'll come back to pick you up at noon.*

*Pick me up?*

*You haven't been out in a while. I'm taking you out today.*

At noon, Randal returned home right on time.

He took off his shoes in the entryway and frowned slightly when he saw her. "Are you going out in that?"

Willa looked down at her hoodie and jeans. It was a perfectly normal outfit. "It's almost seventy degrees out. It's not cold."

He didn't say a word, just turned to grab a light jacket from the closet and handed it to her. "Take it, just in case it gets chilly tonight."

Resigned, Willa took the jacket and draped it over her arm.

He glanced down at her feet, pulled a pair of flats from the shoe rack, and placed them in front of her. "Wear these."

She looked at her low-heeled leather shoes. "I'm fine in these."

"Your feet will hurt if we walk too much."

His tone was incredibly doting, but it only made a suffocating wave of despair wash over her.

"Randal, are you starting this again?"

"Just this one thing. I won't interfere with anything else."

Unable to win the argument, she eventually changed her shoes.

Standing downstairs outside the building, she took a deep breath.

The air carried the sweet scent of jasmine mixed with the fresh earthiness of a recent rain, a vibrant aroma she hadn't experienced in far too long.

Randal walked by her side, his pace deliberately slow as if to match hers.

After a few steps, she caught a glimpse of a black SUV trailing them at a steady distance from the corner of her eye.

She stopped and turned around. "What is that?"

For her birthday, he had given her a scarf, saying he had spent forever picking it out at the mall.

She recognized the brand instantly; it was one she had coveted for a long time but couldn't bear to splurge on.

She only found out later that he had sold a pair of his prized racing gloves to afford it.

It wasn't until their third year together, when he placed second in the national championship and his striking looks made him an overnight sensation in the racing circuit, that his net worth finally skyrocketed.

"What are you thinking about?" He pulled her from her reverie. "Take another look and see if there's anything else you want. I'm going to step out and make a quick call."

"Okay." Since she didn't want anything anyway, Willa sat on the lounge sofa to wait for him.

"Willa?" a voice called out from behind her.

Willa turned around and stared at the woman for a long moment before finally recognizing her.

It was Lydia Ramsey.

Talk about a small world.

"What are you doing here? Can you even afford anything in this store?" Lydia walked over, a malicious smirk on her face.