On the Monday after their honeymoon, Dallas intentionally wore civilian clothes to school, since military uniforms didn't allow for jewelry.
When Tess saw him, she instinctively looked at his left ring finger, and sure enough, there was a plain band.
Tess felt a sense of emptiness inside, but she still smiled and greeted him. "Dallas, you're wearing a ring today." If she had moved on, then she'd act like it—no reason not to be graceful about it. She was a soldier's daughter, and while her looks were delicate, her heart was anything but fragile.
The man's rugged features softened with a smile, clearly eager to talk about it. "We're having the wedding ceremony this weekend."
"So, the ring wasn't on before because you hadn't had the wedding ceremony?"
"Yes."
For some reason, Tess felt relieved and sincerely said, "Congratulations, Dallas. Such a happy occasion, you definitely have to treat us."
Dallas smiled. "Of course."
The military environment was relatively isolated, and families were mostly familiar with one another.
Averi kept a low profile, and aside from Darryl, Tess, and the few people involved in the exercises, no one else had ever seen what Averi looked like. Darryl had suggested a few times that Dallas invite Averi to dinner, but it always fell through. Over time, Dallas's partner became a mysterious figure.
When someone is mysterious, speculation only grows.
It wasn't until Dallas graduated that the mysterious Mrs. Bullock finally made her appearance.
A family member of a graduate, a journalist from Business Weekly, recognized her immediately and approached her. "Miss, hello, I'm Alana Leach from Business Weekly."
Averi vaguely remembered her and smiled politely. "Hello, didn't expect to run into you here." Averi vaguely remembered her and smiled politely. "Hello, didn't expect to run into you here."
"Yeah," Alana was more surprised than Averi. She asked, "Are you here to present an award?" That was the only reason she could think of for Averi to be at the school.
Averi: "No, I'm here for my husband's graduation. He's getting his PhD this year."
Husband?
Alana, noticing the ring on her finger, finally remembered the fact that Averi was married.
It wasn't that Alana wasn't diligent, but Averi's wedding had been so low-key. To this day, there hadn't been a single public photo of the couple. After a brief period of online attention due to a family inheritance drama a few years ago, Averi had disappeared from the spotlight.
"Who is your husband?"
"Dallas, Professor Darryl's student."
With Alana around, Averi's identity quickly spread—the mysterious Mrs. Bullock turned out to be the chairman of the group. Those with ulterior motives quickly found information about the Forbes family online, and their gaze toward Averi grew more complex.
Averi remained unaffected, holding her camera, ready to take pictures of Dallas.
Soon, Dallas took the stage in his doctoral robe. Seeing Averi waving at him from the audience, his lips softened, and his eyes were filled with gentle affection.
Darryl, witnessing their interaction, asked teasingly while adjusting Dallas's tassel, "Did Averi have time today? I saw her waiting with her camera earlier to take pictures of you. Come on, stand still and let her take a few more shots. Don't keep her waiting for nothing."
Dallas looked a bit embarrassed, but he was in a very good mood.
After receiving his diploma and stepping off the stage, Averi magically produced a bouquet of roses from somewhere, her smile sweet as she said, "Congratulations on your graduation."
Such days were never complete without a meal together.
Dallas pulled Averi into a corner and asked, "We're going to have dinner with the teachers later, do you want to join us?"
Averi was already prepared. "Sure, I don't have anything planned for the whole day."
With no one around, Dallas gently caressed her face, never taking his eyes off her for a moment.
The darkness in Averi's eyes deepened slightly, and she asked softly, "What are you thinking about?"
Dallas ran his thumb along the corner of her lips, his voice slightly hoarse as he said, "I want to kiss you."
"We're at school."
He didn't reply.
"There are people around."
Averi raised an eyebrow. "Dallas, I've noticed that you get particularly interested at times like this."
He knew she was referring to the day of the wedding.
She was right. At these meaningful moments, he felt an even stronger desire to be close to her.
"Don't like it?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
Averi suppressed a laugh, tilting her head to press her lips against his. "If someone sees, they'll definitely say I've led you astray."
Dallas pressed his lips against hers, gently sucking on her soft lower lip. "I don't mind," he replied, his voice filled with a deep, amused tone.
Averi's breath became uneven as she thought to herself, Dallas has really gotten better at flirting these past two years.
*
At 6:30 PM, the graduates led by Darryl arrived one after another at the private room of the restaurant.
Before entering the private room, Averi went to the restroom, only to run into a classic scene.
"Evelyn, did you know that Dallas's wife is the chairman of the Forbes family?"
"Huh? The one who works in real estate?"
"That's the one."
"Are you serious?"
"Yeah, Alana interviewed her before."
"No wonder she doesn't show up much, probably afraid of being recognized."
"I guess so. But isn't it normal to have a meal with your partner's colleagues and classmates? Showing up only at the graduation ceremony seems a bit aloof."
"They're from an elite background, they've got the right to be distant."
Averi and the others left before she came out of the stall, washed her hands, and returned to the private room.
Only one graduate student and her boyfriend had yet to arrive, as a traffic accident on the ring road had them stuck in traffic. Darryl said they wouldn't wait any longer and signaled the waiter to start serving the dishes.
Everyone except Averi had met and talked before, so they were all familiar with each other. When the conversation shifted to Averi, it became a bit awkward and formal.
Averi looked around at the dishes on the table and casually said to Dallas, "Honey, could you pass me a piece of fish?"
The fish was a bit far away, so she had to stand up to reach it.
Dallas froze, staring at her profile.
"Honey?" Averi called out, completely unaware that something was off.
Dallas watched her for a moment, a slow smile creeping onto his lips. He picked up a piece of grilled salmon, carefully removed the skin, and placed it on her plate, drizzling some garlic butter sauce over it.
After she finished, Dallas asked, "Want more?"
"Yes."
When the salmon was gone, he picked up a piece of seared tuna, removed the sear and placed it on her plate, adding a touch of wasabi mayo on top for flavor.
His calm demeanor only made Averi feel a bit awkward.
She had long since outgrown the cutesy phase of showing off her love, and usually only called him "honey" when teasing Dallas. Today, however, she had accidentally heard something she wasn't expecting.
She thought she'd play along, but Dallas didn't think so—he kept offering her more food.
His spirits were high, and after a few more drinks, the rough angles of his face were flushed with a faint pink hue.
Under the table, his hand slid up her thigh. Averi swatted it away, but he stubbornly returned, his palm scorching hot against her skin.
"Dallas, stop messing around."
The moment the words left her mouth, she felt a bit surprised—usually, it was Dallas saying things like that to her.
He turned his head, his expression serious as he looked at her. "Averi, I'm really happy today."
His hand didn't budge. No matter what, he didn't want to let go of her now.
Averi looked at him for a moment, then lowered her head with a light laugh. Forget it—what was the point of reasoning with a drunk?
