Chapter 454 William and Hayden （55）
"Michelle, have you thought about what you're going to get me?" Noticing her silence, Jasper smiled and asked her.
"What would you like me to get you?" Michelle lifted her head, her smile warm, and asked Jasper in return.
Jasper thought for a moment. "How about you not getting me anything? I don't need much. Just come and help set up the place on Sunday."
Michelle smiled and readily agreed, "Sure, but a gift is definitely still happening."
"That's up to you."
Michelle nodded with a smile. "Jasper, just wait for a surprise."
As William looked at Michelle from across the table, he couldn't shake the feeling that her smile seemed a bit unsettling despite its beauty.
...
William's trip to Magnolia was business-related and involved handling affairs for the Queen's Avenue Group.
Queen's Avenue Group was expanding its business and decided to open a new specialty restaurant in Magnolia. William had to oversee the quality control personally.
William had to go on a work trip, and Hayden wasn't too bold about going with him, so she would not join him on the journey.
On Saturday, after having breakfast together, William headed straight for the airport to fly to Magnolia.
Since Hayden had no plans that morning and had promised to accompany Michelle on a shopping trip to buy Jasper a birthday present, she contacted Michelle to set a time.
Once they agreed on a time, Hayden drove to pick her up, and they went to the shopping mall together to buy Jasper's birthday gift.
Hayden wasn't just there to accompany Michelle; she also needed to find a gift for herself and pick up something for William.
Despite living in the South for quite some time, she had never really treated herself to shopping or bought anything for William, even though he had given her numerous gifts.
Initially, William had sent her flowers directly to her villa.
Concerned about attracting attention, she had asked William to stop, claiming she didn't like flowers.
Since she didn't like flowers, William switched to giving her other items. He gave her simple yet exquisite bracelets, necklaces, high heels, and clothes.
As William put it, if he saw something that seemed right for her, he would buy it and give it to her.
None of the gifts were overly expensive, so Hayden accepted them all without objection.
After receiving numerous gifts, she felt it was only fair to reciprocate. Otherwise, William might believe she didn't care enough about him.
When the two arrived at the luxurious shopping mall, Michelle hadn't found anything she wanted to buy yet, but Hayden had already got a load of items.
She selected men's suits, shirts, cufflinks, tie pins, shoes, and even underwear, arranging for their delivery.
"You're buying so much. This isn't all for Jasper's birthday, is it?" Michelle asked curiously as Hayden prepared to pay with her card.
"No, it's for William," Hayden replied while taking out her bank card to settle the bill.
"Buying him all this stuff, are you planning on keeping William?" Michelle joked. Even though she wasn't feeling great about it, her face showed no sign of displeasure.
"He often gives me things; this is just returning the favor," Hayden answered calmly.
Buying things for the man she loved was a tremendous joy.
"Now that you're together, do you still need to be so formal with gifts?" Michelle prodded.
Hayden glanced at Michelle and smiled but remained silent. Michelle's true desire was simply to find a reason to buy something for William. She didn't have any ulterior motives beyond that.
"Oh, by the way, Hayden, my phone died. Can I borrow yours to make a call?" After Hayden paid the bill and while they watched a few salespeople package her purchases, Michelle suddenly asked with a smile.
"Sure," Hayden said without hesitation, pulling out her phone. In front of Michelle, she entered a six-digit password to unlock it and handed it over.
Michelle memorized the password Hayden entered silently, took the phone from her, and made a call right in front of her.
After the call, Michelle returned Hayden's phone, and then they both continued to browse other stores.
They spent over two hours shopping together. Michelle only bought a gift for Jasper, while Hayden purchased a variety of items—mostly for William, except for Jasper's gift.
"Check out this bag. Do you want to take a look?" As they passed by a store from a luxury brand, Hayden noticed a newly released bag and suggested with a smile to Michelle.
"Do you like it? I'll go in and buy it with you," Michelle said, ever so considerate.
Hayden raised an eyebrow, "I think it's quite nice, don't you like it?"
"Yeah, it is pretty, but I'll pass. Such an expensive bag—I don't really have a use for it right now," Michelle said with a smile.
Her family was well-off, but she couldn't compare to Hayden.
"If you like it, buy it. It's on me," Hayden offered as she started to walk into the store.
"Hayden!" Michelle quickly grabbed her, "It's not that I don't want it, but it's just too expensive, over a hundred thousand."
"I said I'd go shopping with you, but it turned out you were shopping with me instead. Consider it compensation for your time. That should be fine, right?" Hayden laughed.
She didn't like owing people anything and was determined to pay Michelle back.
Michelle looked at the fancy new bag for a moment, unsure. But then she smiled and agreed, saying, "I know you can afford it, so I'll accept it. Thank you!"
