"Who's there?" Rowan got up to open the door.
Damien stood outside. "Is Miss Johnson here?"
The moment Rowan saw him, he froze, jaw dropping. "You're... Damien... Damien..."
"Mr. Taylor, is there something you need?" Amelia walked over and pulled Rowan aside.
Damien handed her a gift box. "This is a dress I picked for you. Try it on. If it doesn't suit you, we can go to the store and choose another."
Only after Damien left did Rowan finally regain his voice. "Who was that just now?"
"Damien Taylor," Amelia said as she opened the box.
Rowan swallowed. "That was Master Taylor? I thought I was hallucinating."
Amelia gave him a look. "Yeah. I told you he's your next-door neighbor."
Rowan narrowed his eyes at her. "And how exactly did you two meet? Start talking."
Amelia lifted the dress from the box. "It's a long story. I'll tell you another time."
Rowan walked over to get a closer look, then suddenly sucked in a breath. "No way. This dress..."
Amelia frowned. "How does he have this gown?"
Rowan's expression turned meaningful. "This is Joey's legendary masterpiece. Go put it on. No one could wear it better."
Amelia raised a brow. "Why do you look like that?"
Rowan shrugged, trying to look innocent. "I'm just saying... Master Taylor might be into you."
Amelia laughed and tossed a pillow at him. "Yeah right. You're such a gossip."
Five minutes later, Amelia stepped out wearing the crimson off-shoulder evening gown.
Rowan's eyes widened. "Amelia, if you'd dressed like this before, Ethan would've fallen for you on the spot. You've been hiding that figure for years!"
Amelia used to wear mostly casual clothes or whatever Sabrina bought for her. "Men are shallow. I don't want his love anyway."
"Come on, you were practically obsessed with him before. Now you expect me to believe you don't care?" Rowan still didn't buy it.
Amelia didn't want to argue. She checked the mirror. "What should I do with my hair? Should I put on makeup?"
Standing behind her, Rowan waved her off. "Leave it down. And no makeup. You look gorgeous as is."
Amelia blinked at him. "You sure?"
Rowan wasn't joking. "Absolutely. You've got everything you need-just have some confidence. You're the brightest thing in this city."
Ever since returning to the Johnson family, Amelia had lost all her confidence and become a people-pleaser.
When she was two, her parents divorced. Her mother vanished, and her father Richard immediately brought Grace and one-year-old Sabrina into the home.
That same year, Amelia disappeared. In truth, Grace had abandoned her in a remote area, intending to get rid of her.
Amelia was lucky-she was found by a kind couple who raised her.
At eighteen, Sabrina was in a car accident and needed a rare blood type. Amelia happened to be in the same hospital with the same rare type and donated blood to save her.
That was how they discovered the two girls were biological sisters, and Amelia was brought back to the family.
Amelia and Ethan had a prearranged marriage agreement. Before her return, everyone assumed Ethan and Sabrina would end up together.
After Amelia came back, Sabrina grew resentful and constantly set her up, humiliating her in front of both families.
Grace and Sabrina kept hinting to others that Amelia was just some country bumpkin. They were masters at manipulating people.
They made Amelia believe her role was simply to look pretty and become Ethan's decorative housewife. She almost abandoned her own career because of it.
Her mentor had warned her not to trust people so easily, but she'd been too naive and kind-hearted to see the truth.
Looking back now, she realized she had ruined every good chance she ever had.
*****
At half past five, Amelia received a message from Damien. She grabbed her coat and stepped out.
A sleek black Rolls-Royce was parked outside, and Damien stepped out of the backseat.
From a distance, he looked like some divine figure come to life.
The image of last night's dream resurfaced in Amelia's mind, and her cheeks turned a bright shade of pink.
