A Reminder

Given the way she was staring at the man for several seconds without saying a word, Elena had probably never been shocked about a situation in a long time.

She was overwhelmed by Mark's audacity.

Listening to him talk shamelessly about his performance on that night in a public space made her question his sanity.

Was he all right?

Maybe she would have kneed him in the balls in the elevator last night so he could come back to his senses faster.

Elena let her gaze fall on the top of Mark's head. He probably dedicated quality time to taking care of those sumptuous coils sitting on his shoulders. She was a little jealous.

She considered him for a moment before speaking politely in the best manner she could, "Mr. Wang, this is not a place to have such conversations."

Hearing that, Mark held her gaze for a moment before dipping his hand inside his pocket. He slipped out his brown leather wallet and took out a complimentary card from it.

"I called you last night. Save my number," he said, handing the card to her. "What time are you getting off work?"

Glad that he had dropped that obscene topic, Elena took the card from him while being careful to not touch the tip of his fingers. "4 PM."

Mark slipped his wallet into his pocket without breaking his gaze on her. "I will give you a call by 5," he said. Then leaning in without warning, he added, "Answer it."

He seemed to have guessed that she would probably not regard his calls hence, the reason he was reminding her ahead of time.

As the scent of Mark's cool minty perfume wafted into Elena's nose, she lifted her head. Her eyes popped at seeing him so close.

"I will answer it," she said, taking a step back.

She had been into giving a scrutinizing glance at the card in her hand that she didn't know when he came in too close.

'He hadn't given her a work card. This was his personal card'. She mentally noted.

Elena didn't know how long he would keep scaring her. They were in the store with other people.

She prayed that he would be a little mindful of their environment and comport himself even if it was for a tiny bit.

Although she had specifically chosen to come down to the capital city because of him as she needed his help, she was still unable to digest his whole identity.

At that moment, she was already thinking that she might not need him anymore since he was the same man from that night 5 years ago.

She wanted Mark Wang and not the man from her past. But since they were embodied in the same form, she would need to think things through once again.

In fact, she wished that he would stay far away from her as she harbored a secret he could kill her for, but she didn't think that was possible anymore.

It was too late to get him off her back.

"Good," Mark breathed. The next second, he straightened his back and glanced at the bags on the shelf.

"I guess I would have to buy something after all or you would be blamed for offering me bad service," he muttered under his breath as his gaze raked the different colors, styles, and brands of female handbags in his line of sight.

'He heard what the store manager said?' Elena wondered with uncertainty swelling in her head.

There was no other reason for him to be that concerned if he didn't want to get anything in the store. After all, he owed no one any explanation for deciding not to shop again.

Mark was quiet for a while before shifting his gaze to her. "Is there any limited-edition bag here?" he asked.

"Yes, Sir. Please come with me," Elena answered and quickly led the way in another direction.

Mark's lips moved a few times before following her. He wanted to stop her from addressing him formally, but he changed his mind.

The barrier between them wouldn't last long anyway.

Mark ended up standing beside Elena as she pointed at the few limited-edition designer bags lined up in a showcase glass.

"Which one do you prefer?" he inquired without meeting her gaze.

'Huh?' Elena was in utter confusion. Why would he want to know her preferences over the bag he wanted to purchase?

Catching her confused state out of the corner of his eye, Mark let his gaze fall on her. Her tightly knitted brows made him want to press his thumb fingers on them and smoothen them out.

But he ended up exhaling instead before rephrasing his statement, "As a woman, you would know the perfect pick. Which bag would you recommend?"

A sigh of relief tore through Elena's lips as her gaze moved back to the bags. "How old is the giftee?"

Mark's nose scrunched up as his brows drew in close. He seemed to dawdle a bit before replying with a little confusion laced in his tone, "She should be about your age."

'He is not sure?' Taking that into account, Elena's gaze trailed the limited-edition bags one more time before picking a Saint Laurent medium white college monogrammed chain bag.

"Girls my age will appreciate this chevron-quilted leather," she said while handing the bag out for him to have a look at, but he never reached out to it.

"This should be fine as it is your recommendation. This will do it for today," Mark replied with a nod.

"Would you like any other thing, Sir?" Elena probed.

At that question, a smile lit up on Mark's face. "Try convincing me when I come around next time."

"Okay. I will walk you to the cash counter to make your payment," Elena said before leading the way. Already, she had slipped his card into her pocket to avoid being seen by her colleagues or the store manager.

Mark who caught her smooth actions, beamed and turned to follow her.

A few minutes later, Mark walked out of the store right in time as the valet handed his car key to him. At the same time, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

Immediately, he put on his sunshades before taking the call while getting into his car.

"You really know the right time to call, don't you?" He said while pressing a few buttons in the car and in no time, his phone's Bluetooth was connected to the car's.

Eric laughed into the phone, his voice revibrating in the car as Mark hit the road. "I can't help to not feel the telepathy from this end."

With his gaze on the road, Mark replied, "Come over to the penthouse if you want the full gist. Don't forget to bring lunch with you."

Hearing him mention his place, Eric commented, "You hardly return to the big house anymore. At this rate, everyone at home will soon find out about your second home."

While Eric looked worried, Mark seemed unbothered. "As long as you don't mention it to anyone, we are good."

His response was more of a threat than a reminder.

***---***

(Thank you for the Inspiration Capsule. Ms Shelolo ^_^. I appreciate it a lot. XOXO)