"Are you serious?" The words came out with complete shock. "This is seriously very expensive and we shouldn't buy it!"
Adeline clearly refused to buy the dress that Augustus was holding onto.
"Honey, you are my wife." He smirked before he pulled Adeline closer to him by holding onto her waist out of blue. "And I want to give you everything that you like, my sweetheart."
One of the shop girl standing beside gasped while the other choked on her breathe.
Augustus helped Adeline in widening her eyes even more with such an unexpected words at unexpected moment.
He was expressing each of the words seductively that even made the shop girls standing beside to blush.
"But this-" forgetting his words and trying to change the atmosphere, Adeline was once again interrupted by her husband.
"You liked this when you saw it. You have married a rich man and not buying something because of price would look very pathetic on you, right?" he stared into her eyes with a lopsided smirk.
Adeline had nothing to say but to admit that this would really look pathetic and go against her husband's pride when the world will see how miser is the wife of the great Augustus Dumas is.
Adeline has to accept what she is now. She has to learn to get along with this things. She nodded at him while faking a smile,
"Thank you, honey. I really liked this."
She looked away as she had nothing else to say.
Augustus proudly looked around the few people in the shop only staring at him before pecking on Adeline's lips and letting her go.
"Remove all the price tags and pack everything that she likes," he said before walking away and giving his wife a little space for the shopping.
Adeline was stunned. The peck was unexpected from her husband that left her with goosebumps, red cheeks and loud heartbeats.
"Oh my God! Mr Dumas is so caring and loving to you. You are the luckiest woman and you know that right?" the shop girl jumped in her place in excitement.
Wishing if she was this lucky to marry a handsome young billionaire like Augustus too.
"Shhh! She is his wife!" another girl tried stopping her colleague from getting too much excited about it but she didn't.
"Why to stop? Ain't I'm saying this because she is his wife? I mean every woman was wishing to marry him or see who will be the lucky girl, and see it's our diva, Adeline. I'm so happy for both of you," the girl didn't stop and kept praising them as if she was seeing them as the prince and princess of her favourite fairy tale.
Meanwhile, Adeline smiled at her words. She was being praised by one of her fans that truly adores and respects her, it was rare to see.
And the other thing that was unknowingly making her heart beat faster was Augustus. She remembers it clearly how a week ago her life suddenly changed for her best.
»»»«««
(1 week ago)
"It's been more than an hour, Adeline. We must go back to the company. This one is the most important project of all time!" Ellen was losing her patience.
The time for signing Adeline's new project was passing by, if she doesn't sign it, she will miss a huge opportunity in her career.
"I have left it already, why are you biting my head off?" Adeline bit back. "If you don't want to wait with me then just go away."
"Adeline!" Ellen made her look at her abruptly. "Come to your senses, he isn't coming. Move on from him and just go back to work, don't betray what feeds you."
Ellen was tired of explaining to Adeline that her boyfriend isn't coming to the wedding. But Adeline wasn't ready to listen to her.
Adeline Elsher, she is a 23 years old fashion model. She is the fashion diva of the glamour industry, she is the pride of her nation.
A year ago, she met her boyfriend during a shoot. Jack Carter, a well known and reputed businessman, he liked Adeline at the first meeting itself while Adeline took her time to know him before starting to date the first guy in her life.
She has never been someone's girlfriend or knows what is it to be in a relationship. All her time she was busy working hard for her career that she never got time for such things.
Adeline fell for whatever Jack did for her to convince her and say yes to him. He gave her presents, surprises, care and love which a lot of men were ready to give her but this one had some unordinary charm in him.
Jack was tall, good looking and undeniable hot. He won her heart at the time when he took Adeline to his home for introducing her to his family.
Adeline got a kick in her heart that Jack is the one for her. She said yes to him and became the happiest in her life for a few months until Jack proposed to her for marriage.
He said if they don't get married now, his parents will get him married to someone else.
But if he wants to marry Adeline, he must make Adeline give up on her career. Carter family women don't do jobs after marriage and they wanted the same for Adeline.
Just to not lose Jack, Adeline agreed instantly to his and his family's conditions. She agreed on giving up on anything just to keep Jack with her.
Since Adeline was fifteen years old, she worked hard to win the honour of being Miss Universe and last year she finally achieved that title. This opened a lot of career opportunities for her and that's when Jack entered her life.
He was always possessive of her to not be close to other men or leave the city for shoots. He never said it himself but Adeline understood it with his behaviour.
She was deliberately losing whatever she gained but she didn't see it except for Ellen, Adeline's manager and her only friend. Ellen guessed right that Jack wasn't good for Adeline and her career.
Adeline was no more the same girl she was when she met Ellen. The girl who came alone into the city, running from her possessive family who was standing between the path of her dreams.
Adeline had that cunning glimmer of success and glamour in her eyes. The goals of that little girl were higher than the expectations and if she meant to achieve something, she achieved it anyhow.
But after meeting Jack, she forgot who she was. His love made her blind to the extent that she changed herself to his liking and gave up her career for which she gave up her family.
Adeline's family never looked back at their daughter when she left them. They didn't open the doors of the house to her even when she came home with the Miss Universe crown on her head to prove her hard work.
They closed the doors of their house forever for her when she left the house. Even when Adeline went back to her parents to say she is giving up her career and getting married into a good family, they didn't accept the invitation and asked her not to show up again before their house. They said she is dead for them.
Adeline didn't share about what happened a week ago between her and her family even when the pain was eating her inside.
The next day, Adeline saw him with a girl walking out early in the morning from his house. Adeline took it lightly as the wedding days were near and she trusted Jack.
But the trust broke when she heard soft moans on the phone call last night when she called Jack about how the preparations were going.
But Adeline still hoped for Jack to show up at their wedding. She was giving up on her career for him, he simply can not betray her for some girl with no match to her.
But now, Jack was making Adeline regret for her decisions. She was being ditched but still held hopes in her heart that Jack will show up.
She was calming her mind saying that he might be stuck in some traffic or his wedding suit might have got some problems.
She wished for him to come but he wasn't coming.
"Adeline, listen to me." Ellen tried her last attempt on changing Adeline's mind. "If you don't sign this contract, you will lose everything. You worked hard for this successful life, things haven't been ruined yet. I will go and talk to Mr Yang myself, let's hope he hasn't sign the contract with someone else yet."
Adeline tightened her hands into fists as she held back her emotions. She wished this was just a dream which will break in no time and when she wakes up, she will find Jack beside her who won't break her trust.
But it was real, he betrayed her. Guests were waiting out while Ellen and Adeline were sitting in the bridal room. Shivers passed down her spine thinking about her walking out of the room and people asking her about her boyfriend, asking why didn't he come.
They will laugh at her, make fun of her and this won't be any less than a nightmare.
She is not so weak to not handle the insult she will face after walking out of this room but she was scared to lose everything she has gained all these years in a single day.
A notification sound on her mobile phone dragged Adeline's attention.
It was a text from Jack, "Sorry Adeline, I can't marry you. My parents are opposing this marriage as you are a fashion model. They think you might have slept with men for coming this far. Also, they learned that you are kicked out from your family too which makes them believe that rumour. I'm sorry but you need to forget me."
Adeline looked at his text in shock. Whatever Ellen said turned out to be right. Adeline couldn't lie to herself anymore. It wasn't his parents opposing him but his new girlfriend.
He actually never introduced her to his parents as his girlfriend. She was just a friend to him before his parent's eyes and Adeline doubted about how many more girls he might have taken home to fool the girls and meet his parents.
However, Adeline quickly took her purse and ran out of the room. Ellen was unaware of what Adeline read in the text.
The wedding was planned to be small with only a few people who are friends and relatives of Adeline and Jack. Surprisingly no one on behalf of Jack was present in the hall but Adeline's friends, colleagues and reporters.
When Adeline ran out of the room, the reporters covered her from all sides with a lot of questions about why does she look messed up and why isn't the wedding still starting.
Adeline didn't care to answer them but wanted to reach her company and first sign the contract. Guards helped Adeline from getting rid of reporters and escape from the wedding hall.
"Wait! First, tell me where you are going, Adeline!" Ellen was deeply concerned for her best friend, she didn't know why was she running.
"He isn't coming Ellen, I can not let go of this opportunity." tears sparkled in her eyes as she continued. "I was a fool for thinking he loves me but I will the biggest idiot if I betray my career for him."
The last time Ellen saw tears in Adeline's eyes was when young Adeline asked her for taking her into the company as a model. Even a helper was okay to her but she wanted to take the first step and at least join her dream company.
She cried a lot that day until Ellen agreed on Keeping her. Later on, many challenges came, Adeline had to face many difficulties and failures but she never cried. Instead, it motivated her to work harder than before.
But today, she saw those tears again in her eyes but she was careful to not let them fall. Adeline was scared. Not to lose Jack but to make her nightmare come true.
Losing her career, fame, money, respect and love from her fans someday was her biggest nightmare she was scared that will come true.
"I'm happy that this Adeline is back," Ellen said. "But for now you have to go quickly to the company and meet Mr Yang. I will be there soon after taking care of the situation here," she added.
Adeline nodded to her and returned to her car, making her way to the management company where she was signed as their official model until the last week when she quit her career.
Still, Mr Yang, the CEO of her management company asked her to come today if she wants and sign the new project with Dumas Group which will take her career to the next level.
Adeline did the biggest stupid thing in her life by dating someone. But she still held hopes in her heart that not everything was ruined. She can still make things right even if the contract gets signed with another girl.