"GOOD evening, Mr. and Mrs. Henry." The maitre d politely greeted us before leading us to one of the tables near the window.
I looked around. I've been here once, with Amelia. Every corner of the place has a touch of elegance. All of the women I've been seeing were in formal clothes; I even spotted a celebrity at the nearby table.
Gideon and I were the only ones in casual clothes. But the maitre d' didn't seem to mind.
Damn. The power Gideon Henry holds.
"I'd like to have Linguine Mare Chiaro, Pinsa Romana and Cannoli Siciliani."
I smiled at the waiter as I closed the menu.
"So, how's work today?" Gideon asked after the waiter left us.
I cleared my throat. "Just the same."
This was the first time Gideon and I dined out outside.
We'd never done this before. We never dined out with only us two. It had always been with other people. With his family. His business partners.
"My workmates are nice. It's good. I love being surrounded by books."
He smiled. "I'm happy you're enjoying your work."
The wine glass in front of us reflected the glint in his eyes.
"Yeah." I grabbed my glass of water and sipped from it.
"How about you? How was work?" I asked him.
"Just like yours. It was a normal day at work. Dad and I had talked to some Japanese investors."
I nodded. "That's good."
"Yeah. It's just that those Japanese investors are a pain in the ass, you know." He pursed his lips. "I had a hard time conversing with them. I didn't know Nihongo." He grunted. "Leading an entire empire sucks. I didn't know how Dad does it."
I watched him looking frustrated. Was he ranting at me? I stifled a laugh.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" he suddenly asked.
I blinked. "Looking like what?"
He pursed his lips. "Like something was funny."
I cleared my throat and reached for my glass of water. "Nothing. It's just that… this is the first time I heard you complain about work."
This time, I couldn't stop my chuckle. "I couldn't believe my impeccable husband was having a hard time at work."
"Well, there's always a first time at everything, isn't it?"
"Uhuh. If you say so." I grinned and raised my brow.
"Wait." His lips parted as if realizing something.
"What?"
"You called me your husband," he said, his face breaking up in a wide smile.
I blinked. Then I stilled when I realized he was right. Impeccable husband? Where did it come from?
"Yeah. And so what?" I frowned. "Is that a big deal?"
"Of course. It's the first time you addressed me as your husband… without other people in front of us."
He was right. I looked at Gideon. There was a satisfied smile on his face. I didn't understand why something was bothering my chest.
I stood up from my seat.
"Where are you going?"
"Just… to the restroom."
WHO was that?
I stopped in my tracks when I saw a woman occupying my seat, and talking to Gideon!
My eyes narrowed as I examined her. The woman was pretty. She was wearing a body con red dress and red stilettos. Even her lips were painted bloody red.
"Bianca…"
Gideon first noticed me. I wanted to frown at his reaction. He looked relieved by my presence.
"Kylie… uh, this is my wife. Bianca Henry."
Gideon introduced me to the mysterious woman.
The woman turned to me with a smile. She looked more beautiful up close. "Nice to meet you, Mrs. Henry. I believe we haven't met before. I'm Kylie Morgan."
I couldn't help but raise my brow at her. "You're occupying my seat."
"Oh. Right. I'm sorry." She let out a soft chuckle, and as if on cue, she stood up.
She looked like a Victoria's Secret model with her height and body.
"I was eating with a friend when I saw Gideon. I couldn't help but walk here to greet Gideon."
She glanced at Gideon before her eyes went back to me.
"It's been a long time since I last saw him. I didn't know… he had an accident."
"Yeah." I cleared my throat. "Are you one of his friends?" I couldn't stop myself from raising an eyebrow at her.
I didn't know why I felt something off with this woman. Her smiles were flirty. I didn't like it.
"Friends?" An amused smile played on the woman's lips. "Well, yeah. You can say that we're friends."
I didn't fail to hear the mocking in her tone in the last word. As if she wanted to tell me that she wasn't just Gideon's friend. Or was it just me, giving meaning to her words?
"I heard from Gideon that he had suffered from amnesia. Is that true?"
"He is."
"Well, then that's too sad. I hope he remembers soon."
She then turned to Gideon and placed a card on the table. "If you want to know more about me, just call me, Gideon. Here's my number."
"Bianca…"
I finally turned to Gideon when the woman left.
"That woman…" His eyes zeroed in on the card in his hand before they went back to me. "She went to me and told me… she missed me. She didn't believe me at first when I told her I lost my memories."
I looked at the untouched food on the table. Suddenly, I lost my appetite.
"She asked me about Paris. That we met there six months ago…"
I tilted my head to Gideon. He looked troubled. "Bianca… did I become an unfaithful husband to you?"
I took a sharp breath. "I… I didn't know Gideon." My voice was cold as ice. "I told you you're an asshole. We didn't care about each other then. I didn't know what you'd been doing. If you were fucking other women behind my back. And I didn't fucking care."
It was true. I didn't care about him at all. That was why I couldn't understand my sudden foul mood.
He inhaled a sharp breath. "Did I go to Paris six months ago?"
"Yeah." I tried to sound normal as I picked up my fork. "You attended a business conference."
"Were you with me?"
"I didn't." I gave him an annoyed look. "I told you, we didn't care about each other's affair."
His lips parted. "So… there's a possibility that that woman was telling the truth?"
"Yeah," I said in a controlled voice. "I remembered I saw a woman's lipstick on your coat when you came home after that trip."
I picked up Gideon's coat on the couch. I didn't know he was already home.
"What the…" I muttered when something fell on the floor.
It was a woman's lipstick. My eyes narrowed when I picked it up. The lipstick was already used.
I scoffed. So that's why Gideon didn't want to tag me along in his business travels, huh? Because he's having an affair!
With the lipstick on my hand, I stormed to the master's bedroom. I found Gideon putting on a white shirt.
"How's my mother?" he asked after examining my look. I came home from a dinner with Amelia.
Instead of answering, I stood in front of him, and showed him the lipstick in my hand. "I found this in your coat, Gideon.
"Are you having an affair?"
The bastard didn't look shocked. He just raised his eyebrows mockingly.
"What? Don't tell me you are jealous, my dear wife?"
"Jealous?" I gave him a menacing smile. "Don't think so highly of yourself, Gideon."
His eyes didn't back down. That mocking smile remained on his face. "Then why do you care if I'm fucking another woman behind your back?"
I held my head high and smirked. "Because that's a fucking ground for divorce, Gideon."
He closed the distance between us. His eyes were dark… his face dangerous.
"You listen to me, Bianca," he whispered against my ear as he took the lipstick on my hand. "You can never get out of this marriage, okay? You're already stuck with me. Remember that."
"Bianca..."
Gideon's voice brought me to the present.
"Did I… cheat on you?"