Filed to story: Sweetheart Do You Still Love Me
“Come on, let’s go home.”
Soon, Isabel, who was following behind Gilbert, seemingly mustered the courage she had been looking for and said,
“I believe you won’t do me any harm.”
“You’re wrong, then. Can’t you see it? I’ve been using you all the time.”
Gilbert smiled sinisterly and continued to say,
“I bet you can tell that I have a crush on Elspeth, can’t you? What I did to you just now was to piss her off and see how she would react.”
Although Isabel knew Gilbert’s motive for doing what he did to her, she still couldn’t help but feel heartbroken when she heard that from him.
“I know.”
“No, you didn’t know about it at all. If you had, you wouldn’t have let me get so close to you.”
Gilbert shook his head.
“But I want you close to me.”
Isabel seized Gilbert’s hand, feeling the blisters on his huge cold palm.
“Do you have any idea what you’re doing?”
Gilbert smiled and asked instead of shaking off her hand.
“I-I know. I just…”
Isabel stammered vaguely, but the stubborn look on her face seemed to tell everything.
“Maybe you’re better off with Elspeth. You should head over to her place and stay with her from tomorrow on.”
Gilbert shook off Isabel’s hand and gave her a glacial look.
“I don’t need your love or your company, and I only said those words out of impulse, but now, I’m starting to regret them.”
When Isabel heard Gilbert, she became panicky and begged him not to drive her away. Before she started to speak, tears began to roll down her eyes.
“Don’t chase me away. I don’t want to leave you.”
“But what good is that going to do you? It’s only going to be a waste of your time.”
“No, it’s not.”
Isabel wiped her tears sympathetically.
“Alright, stop crying, would you? It breaks my heart to see you like that.”
Gilbert realized he might have gone a little too far with his mischief. After all, Isabel had never harmed anyone or done anything wrong to piss him off.
“Fine, let’s bet.”
Isabel looked up in surprise as she didn’t think there was still a chance for her to turn things around.
“What?”
“I mean, both of us are going to have a deal. If you can make me say I love you within a month, I’ll date you.”
“Come on. You’re the one who decides whether you want to say it. If you don’t say it, no one can make you do it.”
Isabel reacted with a bitter look on her face.
“You’re smart, indeed.”
Gilbert smiled and patted her head.
“But this is the only chance you’re going to get. So, it’s all up to you.”
Gil is just trying to make me quit by making me do something impossible. As soon as Isabel saw through Gilbert’s intention, she immediately became discouraged. However, she refused to give up, thinking there was still hope for her to make him fall for her. Thus, she gritted her teeth and accepted the challenge after a brief hesitation.
“Fine, we have a deal.”
“Are you sure about it? This is not as simple as you think it is.”
Gilbert underestimated Isabel’s will, not expecting her to be so tenacious even though he was clearly trying to give her a hard time.
“Didn’t you just say it yourself? I just have to make you say ‘I love you’ within a month.”
Isabel looked up with a firm expression on her face.
“What if I manage to make you fall in love with me in the end?”
How naive! But that’s precisely what makes her so adorable. Gilbert smiled in embarrassment.
“Alright, I’m not going to dampen your enthusiasm anymore since you’re so determined. Good luck, sis.”
“You can’t treat me like your sister anymore; otherwise, I can’t date you.”
Isabel knitted her eyebrows.
“What would you like me to call you then?”
“Just call me Isabel.”
“Alright, Belle.”
“What?!”
Seeing Isabel’s puffed cheeks, Gilbert started to think that might not be a bad idea and even began to find it interesting.
To Elspeth’s surprise, someone was waiting for her at her company entrance when she arrived for work the following day.
Upon moving closer, she realized it was Jasmine, whom she hadn’t seen for a long while. The young woman seemed to have dropped more than just a few pounds, for her V-shaped chin appeared somewhat appalling now.
“My, Miss McGrath. It’s been a while.” If she couldn’t evade the lady, she might as well face her. Either way, the young woman couldn’t cause much ruckus, anyway.
“I want to ask you a few questions.” Jasmine seemed to have toned down a lot, for she no longer bared her teeth and unsheathed her claws to demand explanations. One wouldn’t be able to sense her malice, of course, that was if one overlooked her grim face.
“Ask away. It’s just that I’m in a hurry to get to work, so I might not have time to say a lot.” Elspeth’s patience in wasting her breath and explaining to Jasmine was thin.
“Are you the bride Callum publicized on Instagram?”
Callum was the only thing on her mind when she had been grounded for the past few days. She had wanted to explain what happened to him at length, but the moment she was released and given her phone, she collapsed at once.
Callum had married another woman behind her back!
The revelation was a fatal blow to her. If she hadn’t seen it for herself, she never could have imagined the man who treated her so dearly a while ago would abandon their relationship and choose to marry someone else.
“Why does it matter? Whether it’d be me or not, it will never be you again, no?” Elspeth smirked, then tapped Jasmine’s chest. “Why don’t you ask your heart if he ever truly loved you?”
Did Callum love me?
Jasmine never dared ruminate the question, for she had a feeling she’d really lose Callum if she figured it out.
“What does it have to do with you? I just want to know if you’re the bride.” Jasmine stared at Elspeth with teary, red-rimmed eyes.
“If he didn’t reveal that on his Instagram, doesn’t that mean he doesn’t want anyone to know about it? Why ask me when you have his phone number?” Elspeth smirked exceptionally impassively. If she was talking to someone else, she’d begin to ache for the young woman. However, this was Jasmine McGrath she was talking to. No matter how pitiful she was, she brought it upon herself.
On a side note, she knew Callum had blocked all of Jasmine’s contacts from his side. So, yes, she questioned Jasmine on purpose.
