When the car came to a halt, Debbie straightened her clothes and fixed her hair. "Emmett, we're ten minutes late. Think anyone will notice?" she asked. This was all Carlos' fault. When she was picking out a dress, he refused to hang up the phone and insisted on video chatting with her.
Carlos picked out her dress and even her earrings. It was like he wanted control over the entire process. Before that, he had watched her change and try on every dress. That had been fun. Some secrets a man should never know—like all the gymnastics it took sometimes just to fit into a dress. The net effect was that no one was supposed to know how much effort you put into getting ready.
Therefore, she ended up getting to the hotel ten minutes late, even though she was an excellent driver behind the wheel of a sports car.
"It's okay. Don't worry about it, Mrs. Huo," Emmett answered, frankly relieved they'd stopped. He didn't enjoy the trip over here at all, wondering how long it would take him to stop shuddering. He got out of the passenger seat and trotted over to the driver's seat. After straightening his clothes, he opened the door for Debbie with a serious look on his face and held out his right hand. "Please, Mrs. Huo," he said respectfully.
Debbie put her high heels on again. She had taken them off and thrown them aside while she was driving. Then, she put her hand on Emmett's gracefully and got out of the car.
The PR team knew Emmett as Carlos' secretary. When they saw him being so respectful to the woman getting out of the car, they all knew she must be very important. Carlos spared no expense to make sure those close to him were well taken care of, and she was obviously close to him.
In a pair of 6 cm high heels, Debbie walked carefully and nervously into the lavish hotel. Emmett was by her side and the PR team led the way.
The lobby doors were pushed open by two bodyguards, and held in place while Debbie walked in. The boss of Kasee Group had just delivered his opening speech.
Soon, all eyes were drawn to the woman who had just walked in wearing a red evening dress. She was letting her passionate side shine.
Fine feathers make fine birds. The woman they were gazing at had been made up and dressed by an international master make-up artist. Nothing but the best for Carlos' wife. Even the socialite divas and the actresses present at the event couldn't hold a candle to Debbie now.
Her hair was no longer a lilac, and was dyed back to a gorgeous raven hue. Knotted into a five-strand braid, it was coiled up at the back of her head, adorned by a diamond tiara-shaped hairpin.
Debbie took off the white overcoat draped over her shoulders and gave it to her bodyguard, fully revealing the red evening dress underneath. It had three-quarter sleeves and a stand-up collar, and her beautiful clavicles were partly exposed. The dress was a gold medal-winning work by a master designer from Milan. Crystal and diamond studs adorned it from head to toe. The pattern was sumptuous, low-key and conservative.
Her skin used to be dry, but thanks to Carlos it was now delicate and smooth. She used to know little about skin care and so didn't take care of her skin, but now it fairly glowed. Her cheeks were rosy with a sheen of happiness.
Under the dark eye shadow and her long eyelashes, her black pupils glistened as if warning people away, while somehow there seemed also to be a hint of deeply hidden helplessness about them. Beneath her high nose, her lips embellished with red lip gloss, shone in the light, like two dewy rosy petals.
Around her fair neck hung a white crystal necklace, from the same set as the bracelet on her wrist, both perfectly matched and stunning. Her ears bore low-key, expensive crystal ear studs.
She walked slowly in her black high heels, straightening up, with a presence of aloofness and uniqueness. Everyone feasted on her sumptuous beauty but hesitated to approach, all wondering who she was and why she was with Carlos' secretary Emmett. "Who is she? Why have I never seen her before?" someone from the crowd whispered.
"You tell me. I didn't know Emmett got married. My aunt was talking about how she wanted to fix him up with a girl," another person cut in.
"Although her dress looks low-key, it's pricey. I don't think Emmett can afford something like that. Is she Mr. Huo's..."
While they were guessing, the boss of the Kasee Group came over.
"Good evening, Mrs. Huo, Emmett," the man greeted.
He shook hands with the two. Debbie gave the gift to his secretary and said with a smile, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Zhu." When he glanced at the gift, she continued, "It's a present from my husband. He's too busy to make the celebration tonight, so he asked me to come on his behalf."
Emmett picked up two glasses of wine from the tray a waiter was carrying, one for Debbie and the other for himself. They clinked with Mr. Zhu's glass, a toast to the health of all in attendance.
Debbie's polite remarks flustered the man. He hadn't expected the powerful Carlos' wife to be so modest and polite. "Mrs. Huo, you're too modest. It's indeed a pity that Mr. Huo can't come himself, but I'm so glad you're here. The honor is all mine."
Debbie wasn't good with flattery. Nor did she like too many compliments. She smiled nervously, "Thank you for understanding, Mr. Zhu. Today's a big day for you. I bet you're very busy, so I'll not take up any more of your time."
"Okay, please help yourself, Mrs. Huo. If you need anything, please let me know. Please forgive us if the service isn't good enough."
"Thank you, Mr. Zhu." They cheered again. Debbie took a sip of her wine, and Mr. Zhu left them. He intended to mingle in this little shindig he threw.
Watching him leave, Debbie was relieved. She visibly relaxed, taking a deep breath and untensing her shoulders.
She whispered to Emmett, "Did I say anything wrong?"
Emmett smiled, "No, Mrs. Huo, you were great. Relax." At that point, Emmett understood why Carlos wasn't worried to let Debbie come to the party on his behalf.
She might not be adept at flattery or socializing, but she was confident and looked even more amazing after the makeover. She was definitely cut out for the job.
With Carlos' effort, she had changed into a different person inside a matter of months. Several months ago, she had been a hot-tempered, reckless troublemaker, who got into a fight now and then. For this reason or that, she went to the dean's office at least twice a month. Her grades were always the worst in the class.
Now, she still had a bad temper, but when she wasn't mad, she even seemed tender. In her spare time, she practiced dance, yoga, flower arrangement, piano, and art, specializing in pen and ink. Debbie hadn't picked a fight or gone to the dean's office for a long time. Her grades had climbed to respectable levels.
Anyone close to her might not see these changes, for they were gradual, but the ones who hadn't seen her for a while could sense them at once.
Emmett thought this was how a girl should be: not too gentle, not too tough, not too hot-tempered.
Carlos had changed a lot too.
His fury was more terrifying than ever. His rage was a fire that burned you when he got too hot.
But when he was in a good mood, he would talk more and even smile occasionally.
Emmett was amazed at the changes in both of them. The two had affected each other in ways he hadn't dreamed of.
After a while, a waiter came by and said, "Mrs. Huo, there are some snacks in the refreshments section. I hope you get a chance to try them."
Debbie looked at Emmett in confusion. He reassured her, "Mr. Huo arranged that. He asked a dessert bar to work together with the hotel to make these snacks."
A smile of happiness crept over Debbie's face, brightening the room. 'He thinks of me even when he's out of town, ' she thought.
She followed Emmett to the refreshments section. On the way, she was shocked to see some familiar faces. It was Gail, along with Olga. Plus Jared, who was worried about Carlos suddenly showing up, and others.