Chapter 8

Covered in a thick layer of snow, Wu City was so beautiful that it was almost beyond words. I wandered the street among the numerous shops in the snow, dressed in a golden gown with a pure white long coat. The delicate silver earrings I wore that day matched somewhat perfectly with my make-up.

It was such a busy city. Standing among the crowd rushing in every direction, I felt like an outsider. I stared at all the people passing by, while the cold wind carried the snowflakes and landed on my face, my hair, and my clothes. However, I didn't feel cold at all. Maybe I was numb. Maybe I had something more important to do. I started following an average-looking man on the street.

While he stood there smoking by himself, I gathered all my courage and approached him with my bank card in hand. I opened my mouth to talk and my voice sounded humble. "Would you like to date me for three months? I'll give you five million in return."

Stunned by my request, he looked at me as if I was a fool. After a long silence, he said, "Sorry, I already have a girlfriend."

What a shame! I had only approached him because I had thought he was alone.

"I see. It's fine. Thank you."

I walked away in disappointment. Soon, I found a second chance. There was another man nearby who was not particularly good-looking. It seemed that someone like him would definitely not reject me, so I approached him with the five million I had.

Maybe that was exactly why he treated me like I was crazy.

"Could you please date me?"

"Are you alright? Do you need a doctor? Should I contact your family for you?"

I smiled awkwardly and replied, "No, I'm fine. Thank you. I think I'll just ask around."

I found another person. "Could you please date me?"

"I'm sorry..."

I was not sure what to do anymore. I just wanted to date someone. I wanted to be loved. Love had been nothing but a strange word for me...

I was dying to know what it was like to be happy...

I had never felt loved by my ex-husband. What I had once felt was a venomous jealousy for Gwen Worth, but now even that was gone.

I approached another person, trying my luck with my head hanging low. "Could you please date me?"

It was a woman who replied in a surprised tone. "It's you indeed, my sister-in-law!"

I raised my head in astonishment to see that the person in front of me was Cici Gregg.

Standing right next to her was Dixon, my ex-husband. He was wearing a glacial expression as usual.

It was so embarrassing that I wanted to bury my head in the sand. Cici went on saying, "Brother Dixon and I saw you from afar. We were wondering what you were saying to those random passers-by. That was why we came closer..."

Running away seemed to be the only option right then. As I turned to escape the scene, Dixon grabbed me by my wrist and pulled me away. Cici started asking where we were going but Dixon simply told her, "Go home. Don't tell anyone what you've seen today." His voice sounded extremely impatient.

Cici kept on asking, "What about the concert tonight?"

This time, he did not even reply. My wrist was hurting from his grip. "Let go!"

However, he ignored my protest and only let me go after we arrived at a parking lot.

Rubbing my wrists, which were already slightly swollen, I watched him light up a cigarette and start smoking. He sounded cold and distant when he finally spoke. "Caroline Shaw, what do you think you're doing?"

I had suffered too much in the so-called marriage and now I had no intention of putting up with him any longer. Come to think of it, there was really nothing for me to lose at this point, so I told him straightforwardly, "Didn't you see? I was looking for someone to date me."

"I didn't know you'd wind up like this."

"Like what?"

Taken aback by my aggressive attitude, he seemed a little awkward and uncomfortable. He cleared his throat as he threw away the cigarette end and went to the car. He soon discovered that the car was broken as he tried to start it, so he turned to ask me, "Did you drive here?"

It felt like he was finally treating me like an acquaintance instead of an enemy. Disgust and hatred had disappeared from his gaze, and instead there was even a hint of gentleness. This new look of his stirred up some incomprehensive feelings in me. Without much time to think it through, I answered, "No, I took the bus here."

Hearing that, he got out of the car and called one of his men to arrange for a repair, then dragged me along to take the bus. The funny thing was he didn't have coins or smaller notes, so he took out a hundred-yuan note from his leather wallet and shoved it into the box for the bus fare.

Even the driver turned to check him out as if he was one of those rich people who had money to burn.

There were many passengers on the bus, making it very crowded. Dixon led me to the middle section and let me lean against the window while blocking people from my side with his body and arms. It was such a sweet thing to do. Unfortunately, it was just odd that he was only doing it after our divorce. The picturesque snowy scenery outside the window seemed to be illustrating my sorrow for me. I asked him in a low voice, "Dixon, we're divorced. Why are you doing this now?"

A sudden stop made me bump into him hard. My heart almost skipped a beat, but I didn't think it was from the stop itself. After a short moment of hesitation, I wrapped my arms around him and said softly, "Dixon, I'm wearing high heels. I don't want to fall. Let me hold onto you. It won't take long."

I didn't even notice how humble and vulnerable I sounded at that moment, as if the possibility of being rejected frightened me.

I liked him. It was a fact that couldn't be changed by our divorce.

My tiny world collapsed and reformed around him whenever he showed up.

Realizing that, I couldn't help but tighten my grip. I wanted to hide in his arms for as long as possible, but I managed to contain myself. I looked up at him and happened to see him staring at me, his gaze clear and gentle. I asked him in a low voice, "How's everything going with Gwen Worth?"

"What?" He sounded puzzled.

I pressed my lips together and asked, "Will you get married?"

We fell into silence with only the sound of each other breathing to be heard. I kept staring straight into his eyes. After a long while, he replied with a faint sigh, as if he had caved in to my persistence, "I still owe her a wedding."

I loosened my grip and smiled at him. "When is it going to be?"

He stared at me for a long while and then answered, "On the second day of the first Chinese lunar month."

That would be right after the Chinese New Year's Day.

I would probably have ceased to exist by then.

My smile was sincere and my voice was sweet. "Congratulations, Dixon."

Surprisingly, Dixon's expression changed drastically upon my reply. He held me tightly by my arm and leaned forward to be closer to me. There was a skeptical look on his face as he asked me in a low voice, "Why were you asking people to date you?"