Dakota was thrown off almost instantly.
She hurriedly looked away, her cheeks turning cherry red, "How, how could that be possible! Lailah, you've been reading too many romance novels!"
"Is that so?" Lailah looked at her skeptically.
She knew her friend too well; every time there was a little thought, she could see right through it.
Like this reaction, it's definitely off!
Lailah was about to speak, "But—"
"There's nothing 'but' about it."
Dakota reached out to cover Lailah's mouth, then draped her arm around her shoulder, leading her out, "Want to drink? Come on, let's go. Today's a happy day, sis is buying drinks!"
Lailah: "???"
She removed Dakota's hand covering her mouth, "Dakota, what's your alcohol tolerance? You're drinking all the time! If you get drunk, don't expect me to carry you home!"
But Dakota didn't care about that right now.
She certainly couldn't let Lailah continue questioning her, so she changed the subject and dragged her to a bar.
But Dakota didn't know—
How happy she was at the auction would be matched by her regret the next morning.
Because the news spread quickly to the Pineda's household.
In Moonlit Bay, Reagan learned from gossip that the eldest Miss of the Gardner family had swept through the auction, spending three hundred million in a single day!
She even unprecedentedly competed with the young master of the Craig family for a ring.
Three hundred million.
That amount is obviously Curtis's doing.
But Reagan wasn't angry.
Instead, she found it amusing and immediately shared the gossip with Andre, "I couldn't believe it when I heard about it, three hundred million! Can you believe it?"
"Curtis is actually willing to spend three hundred million on a woman! And one of them is a diamond ring. He's finally realized the importance of spending money to make his wife happy!"
Andre was flipping through financial reports.
He wore his gentlemanly metal-rimmed glasses, seemingly unfazed, "Is that called having awareness? Isn't spending money on your wife the most basic thing? If he truly cares, he should personally pick out gifts for Kota, not just giving her money to buy her own engagement ring."
"I don't care," she muttered.
Reagan still felt happy, "He never used to have such thoughts about pleasing girls. I think this is a big improvement. They'll surely be blissfully happy in their marriage, and you can forget about breaking up the couple I set up!"
Andre flipped another page of the financial report.
Reagan was still basking in joy, "Hey husband, don't you think we should give Kota a wedding gift too?"
"Yes." Andre nodded.
Reagan calculated on her own, "Just the other day, this auction house contacted me, saying they had some items not open to the public. I saw a set of jewelry that would suit Kota perfectly. Should I call and buy it, so they can deliver it with the items Kota bought?"
"Sure." Andre had no objections.
Reagan always acted decisively.
She immediately called the auction manager, saying she wanted to give the jewelry set to Dakota and have the auction house deliver it along with the items Dakota bought to Whispering Pines.
But the manager was confused, "Whispering Pines? Miss, are you sure it's Whispering Pines? But Dakota asked us to send the items she bought to Maplewood Lane…"
Maplewood Lane.
Was the neighborhood where Dakota's small villa was located.
Hearing this, Reagan's previously elated heart sank.
Andre noticed her state was off when she hung up the call. Closing the financial report, he looked up at her, "What's wrong?"
It took Reagan a long time to process this information.
She slowly raised her eyes to meet Andre's gaze, on the verge of tears, "Honey, it looks like my dream of Curtis and Kota is over. Kota isn't living with Curtis in their home together."
Andre furrowed his brow slightly.
He knew he was right last time, Kota has no interest in that brat Curtis.
That night, Neon lights flickered under the night sky along the ten-mile street, near the corner, a metallic sign cast a soft and mysterious yellow-white glow—
"Tonight, she will be here. May you wait for the wind to come."
Of course, Dakota wouldn't bring Lailah to this bar, lest some employee tattle to the boss, and Jasiah would immediately gather Noe and Curtis to storm over here.
But tonight, Curtis was acting on a whim.
On his way home, passing by the ten-mile-long street, he spotted the bar logo on a lit-up sign at the corner—
Tonight, she will be here.
As the light flickered past his peripheral vision, Dakota's image suddenly appeared in his mind.
Full of fire when she was stirred up.
Irresistibly soft when her lips brushed his neck.
Sweet and calm when she nestled into his arms.
And last night...
She had tears welling up, a rare vulnerability that made his heart ache and made him wish he could hold her close.
Wondering how her hand was doing...
Tsk.
Curtis frowned slightly, annoyed, and decided to park and walk into the bar alone, reserving a private room, and drank his sorrows away while staring at the logo sign.
Tonight, she will be here...
Is she here tonight?
The sign clearly stated that she would be there tonight.
Half an hour later...
Curtis threw back the rest of his drink.
Damn, she's nowhere to be found.
Feeling agitated, Curtis put down his glass and called Noe and Jasiah over.
He just wanted to distract himself.
But as soon as Jasiah entered, he started shouting, "Damn, Curtis, did you hear? Damn, Dakota went crazy today! She went wild!"
Curtis lounged lazily on the sofa.
His collar was loose, one leg stretched out as he leaned against the sofa, his whole body exuding a sense of dejection. The light cast a shadow on his jawline, making the glass of red wine in his hand seem melancholic.
He ignored them.
But Noe wanted to splash his drink in Jasiah's face, "Stop stuttering, Jasiah! Get to the point!"
"No—" "Not that," Jasiah gulped down some alcohol, "But I was just so shocked. Dakota spent three hundred million at an auction today!"
"Pfft—"
Noe almost spat out his drink, "Three hundred million? What the hell did she buy?"
"That's what shocked me the most. An engagement ring. Can you believe it? Dakota, who's terrified of marriage, spent nearly two hundred million on an engagement ring at the auction today!"
Noe: "???"
"She's gone mad????"
"What's gotten into her???"
Noe suddenly nudged Curtis, almost spilling the drink he was holding, "Curtis, you usually have the scoop. Do you know what's gotten into her?"
Curtis sighed lightly, disapproving.
He withdrew his elbow, sipping tequila slowly, "How would I know about her affairs?"
She's not here.
She's not returning to the marital home.
She's not reaching out to him.
But deep down, she probably still likes him. After all, she could have bought something else with that two hundred million, but she chose to buy an engagement ring.
"That's true," Noe nodded in agreement, "You guys don't kill each other when you meet, so I guess you can't be too concerned about her. But who gave her three hundred million? It can't be from Greta, can it?"
The "sucker" Curtis: "..." "..."
He lifted his eyes to look at Noe, thinking that it wasn't just three hundred million, she still had two hundred million left to spend.
"If you're so curious, call her."
"I'm not brave enough to ask her. Tyrese avoided her today, he wanted that engagement ring, but seeing how Dakota went all out, he had to back off."
"Awesome." Noe gave a thumbs up.
Then he turned his head, as if remembering something, "But seriously, Curtis, why did you call us here? Why did you suddenly decide to drink?"
