Chapter 81: The Omnipresent Rita

Scarlett's POV:

It was because of Charles' strong request that I decided to compromise for the time being.I did not
know what he would do if I had not compromised.

That whole morning, I was watching a movie with him.

At first, I was worried that he might use the movie as an excuse to make a move on me, but later I
found that he didn't break his promise at all.

He just watched the movie with me while holding me in his arms.

We were watching the Titanic.

When Leonardo DiCaprio's handsome face appeared on the screen, I couldn't help but look at Charles.

Under the soft light, he was also extremely handsome, just like a movie star.

Fortunately, I looked away right before he noticed the flush on my cheeks.

The peaceful time lasted till noon.

Standing in front of the wardrobe, I thought for a while before I chose my new black backless dress for
that lunch appointment.

Looking at my reflection in the mirror, I was very satisfied, so I took my handbag and was about to go
out to meet William.

To my surprise, just when I put on my shoes, Charles, who was sitting on the sofa scrolling through his
phone, suddenly stood up, frowned at me, and said, "No, Scarlett.Your dress is too revealing.Change
it."



‘'Too revealing? This dress only reveals half of my back.Most evening gowns reveal way more than this
one, right?'’

"Don't be silly, Charles.The dress is fine."

I quickly put on my high heels and was about to open the door.

"No!"

Charles strode over to me, grabbed my wrist, and took me to the bedroom.

Before I could even react, he dragged me to the bedroom, and I did not know what he was planning to
do, so I kept struggling.

Charles took me to the closet.

He browsed through the clothes, chose a blue dress, took it off the hanger, and handed it to me.

"Wear this."

Saying that, he continued to look at me.

"Why? I just bought this black dress and it's nice."

I was still quite unwilling to make a compromise.

The blue dress that he chose was a bit too formal, and I only wore it to work.

Since I was just meeting a friend, I naturally wanted to dress up a little.

"If you don't change it on your own, then I will do it for you."

Charles was unwilling to change his mind either as he whispered those words to me.



I glared at him, but his eyes swept over my body.

Subconsciously, I covered my chest with my hands, fearing that he might actually try to take off my
clothes.

Feeling helpless, I did not want to waste time at all, so I took the blue dress from his hands and got
changed.

Only after seeing me wearing the blue dress did he finally let me go.

As soon as I walked out of the building, I hailed a taxi, and rushed to the restaurant where William and I
had planned to meet.

And indeed, it was a high-end restaurant.

Once I arrived, the doorman escorted me to the private dining room.

I saw William as soon as I walked in.

But then, before I could even greet him, I noticed someone unexpected sitting next to him, which made
my eyes twitch.

It was Rita, dressed in an elegant white dress with minimal makeup, which made her look dignified.

I ignored her and greeted William as I sat down from across them.I asked with a smile, "Long time no
see, William.How have you been?"

"Thank you for your concern, Scarlett.I'm doing fine."

William gave me a nod and a natural smile.



Just when I was about to say something more to him, a familiar voice came from behind, interrupting
me.

"What a coincidence! Scarlett, you are here too!"

My smile froze.

It was Charles! I immediately turned around and saw him leisurely leaning against the door with a smile
as he raised his eyebrows at me.

He had changed his clothes in the short time that we were apart.

The customized suit was a perfect fit for him, which made him look more handsome.

I was staring at him blankly, and before I could even say anything, he sat down next to me.

"Hello, William.I'm Charles Moore.It's nice to meet you..."

Before Charles could even finish speaking, Rita Interrupted him, "William, Charles is the man I'm going
to marry.He's very handsome, isn't he?"

Although her smile seemed to be a sweet one, her words were not.

I thought that it was funny, but I did not say anything to her as I did not want to meddle in their affairs.

Without saying anything, Charles also put his arm around my shoulder and acted intimately.

And immediately, I was embarrassed.

What was he trying to do in front of Rita? William also looked at us closely.

"Mr.Moore, are you really going to marry Rita?" he asked in a doubtful tone.



"That's just a rumor which has no credibility to it,"

Charles denied without even looking at Rita.

I glanced at her from the corner of my eye.

It was obvious that his words were a big blow to her as I saw her biting her lips grimly.

"You don't seem like you like Rita, but there are obvious rumors spreading about your
marriage.Moreover, you seem to be quite close to Scarlett."

With a frown, William was trying to figure out the relationship between us.

His gaze made me feel embarrassed as though I was a third wheel in Charles' relationship with Rita.

"Don't misunderstand us.Charles and I are like brother and sister.We grew up together," I explained
when I got a chance.

Although our marriage was a fake one, his family had indeed adopted me and we had grown up
together, so I was not entirely lying.

Charles looked at me with a playful smile, but fortunately for me, he didn't deny it.

"Yes, they're like siblings," Rita said in a hurry.

There was a long depressing silent moment at the table.

I put my hands on my knees, feeling like I was the one that caused all the awkwardness.

It was supposed to be a pleasant meal, and now, it had turned into something awkward because of the
complicated relationship between Rita, Charles, and I.



Feeling sorry for William, I tried to lighten the mood by changing the subject.

"William, how do you know Rita?" I asked casually.

But to my surprise, Rita's face paled and William frowned upon hearing my question.

"Oh well, we met because William saved me once.I...I was unconscious at that time.It was very
dangerous,"

Rita explained in a hurry.

However, I quickly guessed that there was something fishy going on between them.

When they looked at each other, one of them was doubtful while the other seemed to be quietly
pleading.

I didn't say anything, but ! felt that their reaction was rather strange.


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