Chance Meeting at the Boutique
Daphne had gone along with Charles and slept with him for her own benefit. As for Charles, it did not
matter if he was drunk or not. He was already making a mistake by getting a woman to sleep with him.
Sonia started to wonder what would have happened if it had been another woman who went to him that
day. Would Charles still have gone to a hotel with that woman?
Chances are, the answer would still be yes. This was why both Charles and Daphne were responsible
for what had happened.
Toby saw how Sonia was lost in thought with a worried expression on her face, so he gently scraped
her nose and asked, “What are you thinking about?”
Sonia shook her head. “I’m just thinking about Daphne, since she plans to abort the child and asked
me to keep it a secret from Charles. I don’t know if that is the right thing to do or not.”
Once Toby heard that, he stroked her hair and comforted her. “It doesn’t matter if it’s right or wrong. It’s
still a private matter between the two of them. Even if you’re Charles’ friend, it’s still not something you
should get involved in, so just let them solve their own issues. It may backfire on you if you tried to
interfere, so it’s best not to do anything.”
“I know that, but Charles is my friend, and I…”
“So what if he’s your friend? This is their private business.” Toby cut her off and reminded her, “Charles
is a grown man. You don’t have to concern yourself with his matters. It’s not like he’s your son.”
When Sonia heard Toby’s words, she snorted and smacked him lightly. “What are you talking about?
Who are you calling my son?”
“I’m just giving an example.” Toby grinned at her. “Whatever Charles does with your secretary is their
own business and they can take care of it themselves. Nothing is going on yet, but you’re already
getting yourself so worked up about it. You’re probably showing even more concern than Mrs. Lane, so
doesn’t that make it seem like Charles is your son?”
“What a load of nonsense!” Sonia glared at Toby playfully.
But Toby simply chuckled before appeasing her. “Alright, stop worrying about them. They don’t seem to
be that concerned about it themselves, so why are you worrying on their behalf? Shouldn’t you be
spending all that time and energy on me instead?”
“Don’t I care enough about you?” Sonia looked at Toby.
Toby nodded. “You do, but I’m a greedy man and I’ll never get enough of you. If you give me all the
love and care that you give other people, then I’ll be even more satisfied.”
“I don’t want to pay any attention to you any longer.” Sonia was torn between feeling pleased and
annoyed.
Toby ruffled her hair and stopped teasing her. “Okay, it’s getting late so I should leave now. I’ll see you
tonight.”
“Yeah, see you tonight.” Sonia nodded and walked him to the elevator.
They were standing in front of the elevator when Toby suddenly pulled her into a hug. “Remember to
think about me.”
“I will,” Sonia promised as she patted him on the back.
Satisfied with her answer, Toby released her from his embrace and entered the elevator.
Sonia stood there and waved him goodbye. Finally, the doors closed and the elevator began its
descent, and Sonia headed back to her office.
She gave it some thought and agreed that Toby was right. This was a private matter between Charles
and Daphne, so they should handle it themselves. She was just Charles’ friend and not his mother, so
she need not worry about it so much.
Furthermore, she had also just firmly rejected Charles’ affection. How would her actions be taken if she
started being troubled over Charles’ matters now?
She really needed to fix this habit of hers!
No matter how close of a friend he was, this was not something that she should be concerned about on
her friend’s behalf. By doing so, it would make the relationship seem more than just friendship.
Sonia decided that it was best for her to heed Toby’s advice. She would pretend to not know anything
about Charles and Daphne’s issue, and let them solve it themselves.
If something did happen in the future, then she could reconsider and offer her help if it was within her
means. Now that Sonia sorted out her thoughts and made her decision, it felt like a weight had been
lifted off her shoulders.
It was sometime in the afternoon when Sonia noticed that it was nearly time for her appointment. She
stopped working, left her office, and headed to the mall for a dress fitting.
The staff in the boutique were already waiting for her at the entrance. Once they noticed Sonia
approaching, they went forward with a smile and greeted, “Good afternoon, Miss Reed.”
“Good afternoon,” Sonia replied to their greeting with a smile of her own.
The manager moved to usher her in. “Please come with me, Miss Reed.”
“Thank you.” Sonia followed the manager into the boutique.
This boutique belonged to an international luxury brand. Once Sonia entered the store, she found
herself surrounded by rows and rows of expensive gowns with intricate designs.
But of course, the gowns that were hung around the store were not the ones that were the most
expensive. The most exquisite gowns were all hidden away deep within the boutique, and would only
be brought out for those who were wealthy and influential enough to buy those gowns. People who
were unfamiliar with luxury brands would often make the mistake of assuming that the best gowns were
already hung on the racks outside.
“Please take a seat, Miss Reed. Would you like a cup of coffee, or perhaps a glass of champagne?”
The manager brought Sonia to a couch inside the private resting area and offered Sonia a drink once
she had taken her seat.
Sonia set her purse down and replied, “Coffee is fine. I drove here so I can’t drink alcohol.”
“Of course. Please give me a moment and I will have the coffee prepared for you. I have sent someone
to retrieve your gown, so it will be brought out to you soon,” the manager added with a smile.
Sonia nodded lightly. “Alright, thank you.”
“Not at all, Miss Reed.” The manager walked away.
Sonia leaned against the couch and browsed the Internet on her phone as she waited for her gown.
After a while, she heard a familiar voice coming from a distance behind her. “Is that all you have? Don’t
you have any gowns that are more dazzling?”
That voice…
Sonia narrowed her eyes in thought before a name finally popped into her mind.
It was Anya Steinfeld!
Immediately, Sonia set her phone down and turned toward the voice. Sure enough, she saw the figure
of a person who was sitting in a wheelchair.
That figure was definitely Anya Steinfeld.
Sonia cocked her eyebrows. Why is she here? It looks like she’s here to buy a gown, but why would
she need one?
Sonia did not doubt Anya’s ability to afford a dress here. After all, she could afford to get plastic surgery
from head to toe. That would have cost her quite a sum of money. Furthermore, the repairs for Toby’s
car amounted to hundreds of thousands, and Anya had paid it in full without giving it a second thought.
All in all, it proved that she had the money.
Though Sonia did wonder how an orphan who did not even have a job could get her hands on that
much money.
After taking a look at Anya, Sonia withdrew her gaze and paid her no mind. She had no goodwill toward
this manipulative woman who wanted to steal Toby away from her. Even if they ran into one another,
Sonia would still pretend that Anya was invisible, and Sonia would not greet her.
As for Anya, she did not notice that Sonia was in the resting area behind her. She was holding up a
pink-colored fishtail gown and studying it with a critical eye. After taking a good look at it, she was not
at all satisfied with the gown.
She handed it over to the sales assistant beside her and frowned as she asked, “Don’t you have any
other gowns with a fishtail design?”
The sales assistant shook her head and smiled. “I’m very sorry, miss. We only have these few fishtail
gown designs here.”
Anya began to look rather crossed. “All of these designs are from the past seasons. Haven’t the
designs for the new season come out yet?”
“They have, but we only released one fishtail gown design this year. If you are interested in it, then
please provide us with the details of your VIP membership. We will place an order with our
headquarters and have a gown custom made for you. Would you like that, miss?” The sales assistant
smiled pleasantly as she looked at Anya.
However, Anya’s expression froze a little. “VIP membership?”
“Yes.” The sales assistant nodded and explained, “This year’s fishtail gown was designed by our top
designer, so naturally it costs a lot more than our other designs. Therefore, it is only offered to our VIP
clients. If you are not one of our VIP membership clients, then I’m afraid you will have to consider the
other designs that we have right now. Our VIP membership is only for clients who have spent over a
hundred million with us. Do you have a VIP membership with us, miss?”
62fb1bb41dcb31934bd49bda