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“No,” I cut him short with a stern tone. “You cannot get one minute or one second of my time, and I advise you to leave before I call security.”
“I’m not going to harm you,” he continues, and I hurriedly stuff the dresses into their bags, exhaling in exasperation when my haste leaves one of the dresses hanging out of the bag.
I don’t respond.
I’ve been around enough reporters, including the one who wanted to write an article about Gabriel, to know that they are nothing but hungry vultures.
Grabbing the bags in both hands, I speed walk away from that area, hoping to find someone to report to without causing a scene. But the man keeps following me.
He maintains a distance that would seem like he’s another shopper, but I feel his beady eyes on me. I watch him reach for his camera and then drop it when a store assistant walks by.
“Would you help me with this?” I grab the attention of another assistant, shoving the bags into his hand.
Then I follow him closely, knowing it’ll make Lance back off. He does, after a while, and I sigh in relief.
This is why Gabriel didn’t want me to go anywhere on my own.
Paying for the clothes and the other items takes a while, especially when I see a pair of earrings that match the red dress, and it turns out that someone paid a deposit for it.
“I’ll pay more,” I subtly plead with the man at the counter. “One and half the initial price,” I add when he shakes his head.
We go back and forth until I offer to pay double, telling myself I’d put it on Gabriel’s tab. After all, he asked me to get more. They offer to deliver my dresses to my house, and I add my parents’ address for the others.
I don’t intend on making another trip there until everything is settled. I’ll give it a few months to blow over so they don’t come for Gabriel’s head.
I whistle as I walk out of the complex, nodding politely at the few people who recognize me. But the second I step out, I see the same unfriendly face, with the same creepy smile.
“What the hell do you want?” I hiss.
“Just five minutes with you,” he takes a step forward. “I want to get the inside scoop. The answer to the question is on everyone’s mind. Why did Gabriel Everhart choose a woman like you?”
“I mean,” his beaded eyes roam over my body, and I feel violated, “you are beautiful, but you’re not his type. And no one saw you two together before he announced the engagement. Even celebrities are not that good at hiding.”
“Could it be something else?”
“There is no inside scoop,” I say with a note of finality. “If you keep on following me, I will call the police and sue you for harassment.”
He laughs an evil laugh as I turn around.
“Harassment? I didn’t touch you. I didn’t take pictures of you either, although it’s not against the law to do so. I’m better than most people who hound you, and all I’m asking for is the scoop.”
My car is a few feet away, so I focus on getting there quickly.
“Does it have to do with your father? I heard he almost got arrested for fraud. Perhaps his company is in trouble, and he needs his son-in-law to bail him out.”
The comment about my dad stops me in my tracks.
“I’m not the only one who thinks this way. However, everyone is going to come up with their own theories. And you know what they’ll say? That you are a—”
My eyes narrow to slits as I whip my head around. “Don’t you dare. If you say one more word, I will have you in cuffs before you know what hit you.”
His crazy eyes tell me that no amount of threats will get Lance to back down. The only way is to involve the cops because the two security guards in front of the complex do not seem concerned by the scene playing out.
Gabriel, I bite my bottom lip, was right I should not be out here alone.
Right now, the last thing I want to do is cause a scene because that will only bring attention, and a man like Lance…will come up with the wildest theories as to what happened.
My car.
