The Man Behind the Star (2)

Sylvia argued. "Plus it's fun to get dressed up and reminisce about the past. I'm sure you haven't done that in a long time already, right?"

Xu Jing and Joann had to admit their daughter was right. Joann's career took off not long after she married Xu Jing. The endless movie shootings, fan meetings and press conferences stood in the way of any intimate moments between the couple.

However, Xu Jing made it a point to be present at all the functions that involved his wife. This was something he would do unless there was something urgent at Xu Corps that needed his attention. At the time, Xu Jing's father was still alive so technically, Xu Jing's schedule was wide open. He was free to do whatever he wanted and he spent most of his time supporting his wife.

His appearance at these functions was so constant that most of Joann's growing fans knew of his identity. They would tell Joann how lucky she was that she managed to marry her biggest fan.

While Joann was appreciative of his support, those couldn't really be called intimate moments. After all, they were sharing that with her fans.

These visitations though started to peter off after Xu Jing's father passed away and the man's responsibility at the company suddenly tripled. Joann did not blame her husband because she understood what he was going through but it would be a lie to say that she stopped looking through the crowd to find her husband's face during her recent functions.

Therefore, perhaps their daughter was right, maybe they did need a chance to reconnect.

"You know what, perhaps this is not that bad of an idea." Xu Jing said. He was probably thinking the same thing as his wife. Then again, the man would take any excuse he could find to spend a romantic evening with his wife.

Xu Jing turned surreptitiously to Sylvia and winked, saying non-verbally, 'Good job.'

Sylvia caught his gesture but she turned swiftly away. Xu Jing believed he saw guilt and helplessness on his daughter's face but he convinced himself he saw wrongly because why would that be?

With the combined persuasive power of Sylvia and Xu Jing, Joann finally relented. "Fine, it could be fun."

...

Time soon passed to the day of their date. Xu Jing had been feeling weirdly nervous since that morning. Since they were going to an up-scale eatery, they needed to dress the part.

Xu Jing rented a tuxedo and the man looked quite dashing in his get-up. The formal attire added a sense of maturity that was normally absent on the man.

He paced around their living room and then glanced at the time. It was almost 6 pm. The surprise that he had planned would arrive at 7 and he was worried that they might miss it altogether.

Sylvia had a case that night so she had already left about 10 minutes ago. Before she left, she ran into her father who was fretting in the living room. Looking at how nervous he was, Sylvia's heart melted. She could not understand why her father would do that irredeemable mistake. In any case, it was not her place to judge.

She walked over to Xu Jing and said proudly, "Father, you look handsome tonight."

"Thank you, by the way, have you seen your mother? What is taking her so long?" Xu Jing was all jumpy like a high-schooler preparing for prom.

Sylvia smiled in spite of herself, "Mom has prepared something special for tonight. Be patient, father. I'm sure it'll make your jaw drop."

Sylvia then reached out to fix Xu Jing's tie. "Wait, dad, your tie is slightly titled to the side."

As she adjusted the knot on his tie, Sylvia's smile turned melancholy. Xu Jing assumed that was because she was feeling down that she won't be able to join them that night. He said, "Thank you for the kind gesture, Sylvia. I'll be sure to take good care of your mother, don't worry."

For some reason that he was not privy to, what he said seemed to strike a chord within Sylvia. She sniffled. "You better make sure you do that, dad."

Then, she patted the dust away from his suit. "There, all done."

Sylvia took a step back and flashed a smile at Xu Jing. It was as if the emotions that he saw earlier was just an illusion. "Have fun tonight, dad. Goodbye."

"We will. Work hard and thank you again."

Sylvia walked away from Xu Jing and out of his view, her smile misted with wistfulness. She had done everything she could, now the ball was in Xu Jing's court.

Finally, Xu Jing heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He turned to look and indeed Sylvia was right, his jaw did drop to the floor.

Joann was wearing a bright red dress that trailed to the ground. The dress wasn't cut too low and the sleeves draped tastefully down her shoulders. It made the woman look classy and elegant, Joann looked like she had just walked out from a Chinese watercolor painting, except for that dash of red, a color that was not that common in said school of art.

Joann normally allowed her long hair to fall behind her head but that night, she had them spun up in a bun. It showed off her sexy collarbones and the jewelry that rested on her neck and dangled from her ears. Xu Jing could recognize them because they were passed down to Joann from his mother during their wedding night.

In fact, their wedding night was the last time Xu Jing had seen her worn them.

Joann had gotten so many endorsements from jewellers that she had no need for them anymore. If not for Sylvia who brought them out when she was getting ready, Joann honestly had forgotten she had them in her collection.

Putting them on, it felt like time suddenly rolled back. With words of encouragement from her daughter, Joann decided to wear them for the date. Based on the dumbfounded expression on her husband's face, Joann knew it was right for her to trust her daughter.