Chapter 73

Jared’s words caught me off guard, and I couldn’t help but stare at him. He didn’t even notice the awkward look on my face and just snorted softly. “You dress so nicely every day now. I bet a lot of guys have noticed you. Victoria, you need to understand that outer beauty will never beat inner beauty. You don’t have to dress so flashy just to impress me every day.”

I honestly thought Jared was out of his mind. I dressed up to feel good about myself, not to please him. “Honey, if an ugly freak stood in front of you, would you care about its inner beauty?” I asked with a smile.

“That’s boring,” Jared said, taking two sips of his coffee before standing up. “You’re not coming tonight? Yvonne said she wants to come over.”

“No,” I said with a little anger this time. Jared thought I was being unreasonable and didn’t bring it up again.

As evening fell, I left work. Melissa suddenly invited me to her and her boyfriend’s place for dinner. If I hadn’t been in such a bad mood, I wouldn’t have wanted to intrude on their time alone. But maybe catching some of their good energy would help me, so I said yes. On the way, I bought a bunch of fruit.

When I got downstairs, I struggled carrying it all and set it down by the elevator door, leaning against the wall to catch my breath.

“What are you doing here?” a deep voice said behind me, surprised.

I turned to see Nathan holding two bottles of red wine. He was dressed casually. The light shone down, and as he looked at me against the light, his gaze was clear.

I glanced at the elevator, then back at Nathan. I felt like there was some secret I didn’t know about between them. ‘Melissa is playing matchmaker?’ I thought.

“Is it too heavy? I’ll help you carry it upstairs,” Nathan said, reaching out and easily lifting my big bag of fruit.

“Thanks,” I said, my scattered thoughts calming down. I hadn’t made any secret plans with Nathan. I was just going to a friend’s house with him, so it didn’t cross any lines.

“What’s wrong? It’s the first time I’ve seen you blush,” Nathan smiled, asking as we rode the empty elevator.

I touched my cheek and said, “The car was parked too far, so I had to walk.”

“Oh,” Nathan said, his voice dropping a bit.

“Is it a custom in your hometown to bring a gift card when visiting someone’s new home for the first time?” he suddenly asked.

“Ah,” I was surprised. “Is this the first time Melissa’s boyfriend is staying at his new place?”

Nathan nodded. “Right, I brought a gift card. Since we came together, if I gave one and you didn’t, it might seem off.”

I opened my purse right away. “I’ll give cash.”

Nathan laughed and quickly slipped his gift card into my bag. “Forget it. I’ll just give him a bonus later. No need for a gift card.”

I looked at the gift card in my bag, ready to take it back, but then I heard him quietly say, “Just keep it for now. My pockets are shallow, and if it fell out, that wouldn’t be good.”

I didn’t know what else to say. He cared about me. The elevator arrived. Melissa had already opened the door, waiting for me, but she didn’t expect us both to show up.

“Victoria, you and Mr. Hallman have some luck. In a city as big as Hachester, you meet in the same elevator,” Melissa said with a smile, helping with the bags. “Thanks for the gift, Mr. Hallman.”

Nathan chuckled softly. “Ms. Murphy bought the fruit. These two bottles of wine are for Zachary.”