Yasmin stared into the wall-mounted mirror at the young woman, who looked back at her with her wide eyes. Those amber eyes shone even brighter than they had before.
She blinked and touched her face. She looked different without the big round glasses. Her eyes looked bigger, and her nose seemed sharper. Her facial features had become more prominent.
She ran her fingers down her jawline, dazedly staring at herself. She was wondering if Declan would like her new look.
"You look pretty." A sweet voice from behind brought her back to reality. She looked at the lady optician in the mirror.
"Thank you." She turned to her, returning her smile.
The doctor handed her a small white box. "Keep the lenses clean and hygienic. Call me if you have any irritations in your eyes."
"Sure."
After waving goodbye to her, Yasmin came out of the chamber. She found Derrek seated on a sofa in the waiting area.
Derrek stood up and approached her with a grin. "Well, well, well…" He walked around her, admiring her from head to toe. "I was not wrong when I said you looked stunning without your glasses. I am quite impressed with your look." He leaned towards her and murmured, "I wish I was your groom."
"You are still flirting with me!" Yasmin shot him a cold stare, quivering with frustration.
"Hahaha…" Derrek burst out laughing. "That is what I am good at. Anyway…" he rubbed his palms against each other and added, "Let's go to the office and surprise him."
"Office? No…" She shook her head frantically.
"Why?"
"I don't want to disturb him."
"Who is asking you to disturb him?" He smiled slyly. "We will annoy him."
"I am going home." She picked up her bag from the sofa and walked out of the clinic.
"Wait…" Derrek rushed after her. "Don't you want to win his heart?"
"Ahh…" Yasmin let out a loud sigh and paused. "You are asking me to annoy him to win his heart. He will kick me out of his life." Her face hardened. "Why do I have the impression that you are not helping me? What is your intention?"
Derrek still smiled, not bothering about her suspicious look. "Have faith in me." He linked his arm with hers and led her to the car. "In the end, you will win his heart. Besides, Mom has invited you and Declan to dinner at the manor tonight. We can leave together from the office."
He ushered her into the passenger seat.
"Dinner!" Yasmin said as she tossed her bag onto the back seat and buckled her seatbelt. "Declan didn't say anything about it."
Derrek hopped onto the driver's seat, saying, "He is like this. You will get to know him slowly."
The car purred and zoomed out in a minute.
It didn't take long for them to arrive at the office.
While Derrek was driving through the iron gate, Yasmin stopped him.
"Wait, wait, wait…" she yelled, looking outside. Her eyes glowed with zeal.
"What is the matter?" Derrek frowned as he parked the car on the side. Before he could figure out anything, he saw her getting out of the car and crossing the road.
"Shit…" His hair sprang on his back when he saw a Mercedes speedily rushing towards her.
Yasmin successfully crossed the road without colliding with the car.
"Phew…" Derrek heaved a sigh of relief, hanging his head down. But he couldn't keep the rage from rising from his stomach to his chest. He gripped the steering wheel tightly.
"This woman," he muttered, gritting his teeth. "She doesn't even check if the cars are coming."
He unbuckled his seatbelt and jumped out of his car. The anger transformed into astonishment in a matter of seconds when he saw her standing in front of a cotton candy cart.
"What on earth is she doing there?" He snarled, his mouth hanging open. "Is she still a child or what?" He stood there on the side of the road with his hands on his hips, a look of incredulity on his face.
Screech…
The Mercedes came to a halt a few feet away, and the window glass rolled down.
A man in his thirties craned his neck out of the window and snapped, "Hey… Are you blind? Can't you see the car is coming? If you want to commit suicide, go somewhere else. Don't jump in front of my car."
Derrek's face darkened instantly. He shifted his fiery gaze to the Mercedes and snapped back, "Fuck off."
"Instead of cursing me, keep your girlfriend safe," the man yelled, looking at him in the side mirror.
His sharp voice and his venomous words enraged Derrek even more. He walked over to the car at lightning speed, rolling his sleeves up to his elbows, intending to break the man's face.
The man immediately drove away.
"Fuck you…" Derrek shouted, throwing his punch in the air.
The man stretched his hand out of the window and showed him the middle finger.
"Dang…" Derrek wished he could smash the man's head. He looked around for something he could use to throw at the car. To his disappointment, he couldn't find anything.
There was not a single fallen leaf on the road. Derrek had no choice but to fume in anger, watching the car run farther away from him.
"Hey, you…" Yasmin yelled at the top of her lungs. "I am not his girlfriend."
Derrek turned to her with a scowl. His rage was directed at her.
"You came here for this." He walked over to her and pointed at the sky-blue fluffy floss in her hand. "What if that car hit you?"
Yasmin giggled without paying attention to his worried look. "I love cotton candies. Mm…" She ate it with fervor. The soft strands of sugar melted in her mouth.
Her carefree look stunned Derrek. She didn't appear to know that she had escaped from an accident.
He gaped at her, his hands on his hips.
"This woman," he mumbled, taking money from his wallet. "She has no idea how much Declan hates eating something unhygienic. He will kill me if he finds that I…" He stopped talking abruptly, his lips curling into a wicked grin. "What am I scared of him for? My intention is to annoy him, and this is my chance."
Yasmin was so engrossed with her cotton candy that she didn't hear his murmur.
Derrek paid the bill quickly.
"Let's go." He held her hand and crossed the road. "I didn't know you liked this fluffy thing so much. I have to arrange for a cotton candy vendor to set up a stall in front of your house."
"Really?" Yasmin exclaimed with delight.
Derrek was even more taken aback at the sight of her excitement. He wanted to smack his head against the wall. He wasn't sure if she was a fool or if she was acting like one.
'Silly woman. I don't want to get killed,' he murmured in his mind. But he said, "Of course. Let's go talk about it with Declan."
"Will he agree with it?"
"Request him. Smile sweetly. I am sure he won't be able to turn you down. Come on."
He dragged her into the office building, curious to know how Declan would react.