Chapter 25: Chapter 25

Both parties were stunned. Noemi was the first to react. She sneered and said in a provocative tone, “Hey! Isn’t this Celia the mistress?”

The word “mistress” caused everyone in the store to turn around and direct their gaze at Celia. Celia’s face flushed. She had been a prestigious and well-known lady in South City, but now that she was being addressed by Noemi in this way, she felt ashamed to the extreme.

“It seems that your lover is going to make you official?” There was a hint of sarcasm in Noemi’s gaze. “These days, a mistress who should be kept hidden also dares to proudly put on a formal dress. Mankind has indeed fallen.”

Celia desperately hoped she could hide herself, but Noemi didn’t intend to let her off. “Have you never thought of judgement when you ruined other people’s family? Let me tell you, the price of being a mistress is to have a son with a birth defect!”

“Noemi!” Amber knew Noemi’s temper and that she wouldn’t stop it. She dragged Noemi away and pushed her into the fitting room. “You try on the dress first. I need to use the restroom.”

Celia’s face turned red, and the joy in her heart turned into bitterness. She looked around for Rodney, but she did not see him.

So she casually grabbed another dress and entered the fitting room again with her head down.

Amber stopped a shop assistant and asked for the location of the restroom. When she came out after she was done, her eyes met with a pair of deep eyes. “Rodney actually came here too?” thought Amber.

It seems that he really doted on Celia. He actually came to accompany her to choose a dress? Amber laughed at herself in her heart. When had he been so considerate to her in the past? Without any expression on her face, she was ready to pass by him, but Rodney stopped her.

He focused his gaze at her. “I want to hear your explanation.”

“What?” Amber was stunned.

“Amber Stone, why did you let Noemi say that?”

Only then did Amber realised that Rodney must have heard what Noemi had said to Celia just now. He had come to question her about it. She didn’t say a word and felt a little cold in her heart. She turned around and wanted to leave, but Rodney grabbed her hand and said, “I won’t allow you to bully my woman!”

“Sir, what do you want?” Amber didn’t even bother to address him by his last name.

“Apologise. I want you to apologise to Celia.” Rodney’s fingers were gripping Amber’s hand tightly. The indifference in Amber’s eyes triggered his nerves. Having been apart for just three years, she was actually treating him like a stranger. How cruel was this woman’s heart?

Amber suddenly felt a little depressed. She had once tried to pay no attention to this man. However, there was still no way to block the news about him advancing in South City. South City was her home, but because this man entered South City and become the overlord. She became one who had a home, yet it was a home that she could not return to.

She had thought about bringing her uncle away after making money and buying a house, but it was not easy to earn money. All these years, she really had been hanging on all by herself. This time, Elliot had wanted to bring her back regardless, so she had to obey his order. When she came back, she had thought about meeting this man, but she had never thought that it would be like this.

“He wanted me to apologise to his new lover?” Amber thought and suddenly felt a little sad for herself. Why did she want to hide from this man?

The person who had hurt her had always been him, but she had to accept the consequences of this ill-treatment. Leaving her hometown, she experienced setbacks everywhere. In the end, she was still cowardly. It wasn‘t her who had done something wrong. What was she afraid of?

“On what basis?” Amber sneered. She tried her best to break free from his grip, but Rodney was gripping tightly. She glared at him. “Mr. Barron, since you dared to do it, why are you afraid of others saying it?”

Her temper had not changed at all. She was still as tough as ever, absolutely refusing to give in. When he heard the way she addressed him, his body stiffened and his hands unconsciously let go of her.

Noemi came out after putting on the dress. Amber’s taste was not bad. The dress really exhibited her charisma. She was very happy and immediately decided to get it.

Seeing that Amber’s expression was a little off, Noemi thought it was because of Celia. “Amber, let’s not be bothered by that b*tch.”

Amber forced a smile. Although she had been separated from Rodney for three years and had gotten over everything, it was impossible to say that she didn’t care anymore. Rodney’s aggressive look just now made her very upset. She didn’t want to stay here for any longer. “Noemi, let’s go.”

Noemi nodded and asked the shop assistant to pack the dress. At the same moment, Rodney suddenly appeared. Seeing him, Noemi was shocked. Noemi was a witness of Amber’s and Rodney’s love story. Speaking of which, it had a lot to do with her that he got together with Amber. Amber had felt pressured about being with Rodney. She was the one who advised and persuaded Amber to accept it bravely.

Noemi was extremely unhappy when she thought of Rodney’s solemn vow to treat Amber well, but after only a few years of marriage, he had forgotten about the vow and got a mistress for himself.

“I was wondering why I was so unlucky today. It turned out that I had left my lucky charm at home. That’s why I’m meeting these shady people.”

Celia heard it clearly in the fitting room. It was time for her to show up. Noemi was hot-tempered and could scold people at any occasion.

Rodney was not an easy-going person. If he were to be scolded by her like that, he would definitely lose his temper. By that time, it’ll be when the fun began. As she thought about it, she immediately opened the door and walked out. “Rodney, does this look good?” Her voice was extremely gentle.

Naturally, Rodney could sense Noemi’s dissatisfaction. He was a little embarrassed. When he glanced at Amber and saw her indifferent expression, he immediately put on a charming smile, and replied Celia in a very gentle voice, “It’s beautiful!”

In contrast to Amber’s calmness, Noemi’s eyes were fuming when she saw the scene before her eyes. “What a shameless couple, how could they have the audacity to display their love here? Don’t they know how to spell the word ‘shame’?”

Amber naturally knew Noemi’s temper. Now, Rodney was no longer the love-struck man who always followed behind her, but an overlord. There would be no good to offend him. So she quickly took the dress from the shop assistant, then dragged Noemi and headed outside. “Noemi, let’s go!”

Seeing that there was no emotional fluctuation on her face, for some reason, Rodney could only feel a wave of anger welling up in his heart. He only acted that way in hopes to indicate his presence. But from the corner of his eyes, he saw that her figure did not pause at all and strode straight out of the boutique.

His eyes turned gloomy, and he suddenly felt that he was a little ridiculous himself. That woman was so heartless back then.

How could she have any excessive reaction to his actions now?

He was a little lost and felt slightly resentful. He stared at the door in a daze. Her figure had disappeared for some time, but he just looked at the door without any motion.

Celia didn’t notice his changes. She was still immersed in the joy of how Rodney had treated her just now. In the past, he couldn’t bear to let Amber suffer even a little. Now that he could treat Amber like that in front of her, he must have gotten over her. She acted cute and said, “I also like a set of red dress. I’ll try them on and show you.”

Rodney came back to his senses. His voice was still as gentle as ever. “There’s no need to try it. You look good in everything you wear. If you like it, then let’s buy it.”

His words were filled with affection and Celia happily ordered the shop assistant to take her dress. However, she did not notice the indifferent look in his eyes. Although his voice was gentle, his eyes had never been warm.

After returning to the company, Rodney’s face had been gloomy, as if someone owed him a lot of money. Mr. Hickman of the marketing department came with a sponsorship contract for him to sign. Seeing Noemi Herrera’s name on the contract, Rodney became angry. “We’ll stop this sponsor!”

Mr. Hickman was stunned for a moment, thinking that he had heard it wrongly. Rodney glared at him and said, “Go and tell the person in charge at the TV station that if they want the sponsor, we can agree. But first, replace this Noemi and let her do some other chores!”

Mr. Hickman felt a little mistreated and exited with the contract. He met Deon in the corridor and said, “Mr. Beard, you see!” He grabbed Deon and said, “It was Mr. Barron who had agreed with this sponsor at the beginning, but now he suddenly changed his mind. How should I explain it to the TV station?”

Deon shook his head and tried to comfort him by patting his shoulder. “There’s no reason we can say in front of Mr. Barron. Just do as he says!”

Mr. Hickman sighed. Indeed, there was no reason to talk about in front of Rodney. It was just that this sponsor was requested by his old classmate from the TV station.

At that time, he had carefully studied their show proposal and thought that it could bring profit to the company, so he went to find Mr. Barron. When Rodney saw it, he also found it interesting. Who knew that he would suddenly change his mind. How could he explain it to his old classmate now?

Mr. Hickman found it hard to break this news to his old classmate. His old classmate was full of enthusiasm and wanted to make Noemi happy by getting this sponsor for her.

However, he didn’t know that Noemi was all about the business and didn’t have any interest in him at all. After being rejected multiple times for inviting Noemi out for a meal, Mr. Hickman’s old classmate was a little regretful. If he had known that this woman would ignore him like this, he wouldn’t have helped her.

When he heard Mr. Hickman said that Rodney’s request was for Noemi to be demoted in return for the sponsor’s fee, he was overjoyed. “I’ll tell the TV station’s superior about this right away.”

The next day, Noemi was invited into the office of the superior of the TV station. First, he praised her personal capability. Then, he changed the subject and said that all new staffs would have to start from the basic level and train for a period of time. The program she planned would first be taken over by another playwright-director. She would come back to take over after her training.

Noemi was not a fool. She asked directly, “Is there someone who wants to fool with me?”

The superior laughed, “Noemi, it’s good to keep that in mind”.

Noemi had spent so much effort on this show, and she didn’t expect such a problem would arise. She was also a person who would do whatever she dared to say. Although she felt wronged, she refused to admit defeat. “Let’s put this matter aside for a while. I’ll go to find another sponsor. If I can’t achieve that, then I’ll go for the training.”

Her superior smiled bitterly and said, “Noemi, after such a thing happened, who else in South City dares to sponsor you?”

Amber didn’t know about Noemi until she attended the first rehearsal. She knew very well that it was Rodney’s doing. She was so angry that she called him up without any consideration.

It only occurred to her after she dialed the number, that it was Rodney’s number three years ago. Now, he might have changed his number. However, out of her expectations, the call went through. Rodney’s voice came from the other end saying, “Hello?”

Hearing Rodney’s voice, Amber became angrier. She opened her mouth and scolded, “Mr. Barron, do you not have a conscience?”

Rodney’s voice was very calm. “Of course I do. Does Miss. Stone have any doubt?”

“Why are you so shameless? If you want anything, direct it at me, why did you cause trouble for Noemi?”

“I’m very busy. I don’t have time to discuss this with you!” Without another word, Rodney hung up the phone.

After hanging up the phone, he stared blankly at the phone in front of him. He had waited for this call for three years. It could be said that he had been looking forward to it day and night. Just when he had already lost hope, she called him. “Amber, it’s good that you have a weakness!”