Chapter 223 I'll Protect You
It was the end of the workday at Valencia Inc. Antonio and Sarah finished organizing the documents on time and were getting ready to pick up the kids. However, they received an unexpected item—an invitation to Lucien's birthday celebration.
Sarah took the embossed invitation and felt a bit uneasy. Lucien was turning 70 this year, so his birthday should have been celebrated properly. But he had just recently joined the company and was now inviting her to his birthday party. Nobody would believe that he genuinely wanted her to attend and liven up the celebration. The situation felt more like a trap.
"You don't have to go," Antonio said.
Antonio naturally guessed that Lucien must have something up his sleeve, so he immediately took the invitation from Sarah's hand.
"Wait, give it back. I'm going." Sarah quickly took it back from his phone, determined.
"Why would you go when it's obvious he has ill intentions? You don't have to bother with him." Antonio furrowed his brows, not particularly keen on her rushing to give Lucien any attention.
"It's fine. I can't keep avoiding him forever. If we are together, I have to face him. I don't want to be a cowardly turtle hiding forever." Sarah held the invitation firmly, her gaze resolute. She wanted to see what Lucien was capable of.
Sarah did have a point, and Antonio respected her decision, yet his eyes remained filled with concern.
"If anything makes you uncomfortable, don't force yourself. I'll be there, and I'll protect you," he reassured.
On their way home after picking up the kids, Sarah suddenly remembered that she didn't have a formal dress for the party. They changed direction and headed to an upscale custom dress shop.
The kids naturally found out about Sarah's plan to attend Lucien's birthday celebration. Harper and Ethan had a very negative impression of Lucien, and they were worried that Sarah would be mistreated once she went there.
Ryan had even witnessed Lucien hit Antonio because of Sarah, so he was extremely concerned.
Throughout the journey, they all felt anxious, stealing glances at Sarah from time to time.
…
It didn't take long for them to arrive at the dress shop. Sarah carefully selected her dress while accompanied by the three children, with Antonio following closely behind, his gaze fixed on every expression she made.
Suddenly, Harper discovered a particularly beautiful dress and became excited. She quickly tugged at the hem of Sarah's skirt.
"Mommy, look at this one! It's so pretty!" Harper exclaimed.
Sarah turned her head at the sound just as she took a step forward. Suddenly, she felt a strong push from behind, causing her to stumble a bit. The person who bumped into her had done it on purpose.
There was no mistaking it. Sarah had to suspect there was intent behind it. In anger, she looked up at the person.
The one who bumped into her also felt a piercing gaze on them and turned back disdainfully to glare at Sarah.
"What are you looking at? Do you think you can come to a high-end dress store with your poor appearance? I like this dress, so get lost!"
The young woman was dressed in luxurious attire, and her speech was that of a nouveau riche with no education, yet she arrogantly believed otherwise. The more they spoke, the more repulsive they became.
Upon seeing this nouveau riche bully her mother, Harper's temper flared up. She straightened her small frame and looked up, questioning, "Why? My mommy saw it first!"
The nouveau riche glanced at Harper, noticing her lack of expensive attire for a child, then shifted their gaze to Sarah. She wore a modest dress devoid of any brand names. A hint of arrogant disdain flickered in her eyes.
"You have no money, yet you come to randomly wander in a store like this? Little brat, you better let your mommy take you home quickly to avoid embarrassing yourselves everywhere!"
After saying that, the nouveau riche intentionally patted the spot where they collided with Sarah provokingly.
Antonio had been picking clothes on the other side and heard the commotion. He quickly looked over and found that Sarah was being bullied! The woman even spoke ill to Harper!
A moody expression immediately filled Antonio's sharply defined face. He took a step towards Sarah, but she stopped him with her gaze. Her eyes sparkled, indicating for him not to interfere. Instead, she raised an eyebrow and turned to the nouveau riche.
"Oh, so you must be very rich, right? Could your whole family have scrimped and saved, living frugally for half your lives just to afford this dress and show off that you're wealthy?"
Sarah finished speaking and looked at the nouveau riche with even more mockery. Then, she pulled Harper closer to her side as if the nouveau riche were some filthy thing.
The nouveau riche's face turned purple from Sarah's retort. "Hmph! Open your eyes and look carefully. Don't let your poverty limit your imagination!"
With that, she waved her hand grandly to show her superiority to Sarah. "Clerk, I'll take this one, and that one, and also that one! Wrap them all up for me!"
Witnessing this, Sarah smirked. "Just these few? Seems like that's about it..."
Harper chimed in enthusiastically, "Yeah, it doesn't look like she is very rich."
The nouveau riche found herself being looked down upon even by a child, fueling her competitive spirit. "Wrap up this entire row for me."
She provocatively glanced at Sarah and waved her hand grandly, showing off her extravagance. Seeing her purchasing so much, the shop assistant revealed a hint of surprise. "Madam, your total comes to $290,000."
The shop assistant quickly calculated the price and couldn't contain their happiness. It seemed as though they were particularly delighted that these customers were engaging in a lavish display in the store.
The nouveau riche was not an idiot and naturally noticed the glances from the shop assistant. Plus, she noticed that Sarah didn't seem shocked by her actions, which made her realize that she had been tricked.
But she had always been one to protect her dignity and had already boasted, so there was no way she could back down now.
Reluctantly, she took out her card and paid the money.
After settling the bill, she walked towards Sarah with a self-important stride.
"Did you see that outfit in the display case? There are only two of them in the whole area. Why don't you try it on? After all, you're so good at dressing up. A mere few thousand dollars is nothing, right?"
The nouveau riche fell for Sarah's provocation and felt a sense of injustice. She wanted to retaliate using the same methods.
Sarah furrowed her brows, and a hint of displeasure flashed in her eyes. She didn't expect this person not to learn from her mistakes and come over to provoke her.
However, she was not someone who liked to show off and didn't think this kind of expenditure was necessary.
At that moment, Antonio walked over, and his magnetic voice echoed. "Go ahead, try it on. If it fits, buy it."
The nouveau riche, seeing the handsome man by Sarah's side, first felt jealous. But when she saw that Sarah hesitated, she assumed that this man was just putting on an act. She gleefully anticipated Sarah's embarrassment.
Antonio paid no attention to the nouveau riche's gaze. He embraced Sarah's slender waist, displaying a domineering and protective demeanor.
Sarah let out a sigh in her heart. She thought she would give it a try, but it didn't necessarily mean it would be suitable.
Thus, she nodded.
Seeing that Sarah seemed interested in buying the limited-edition gown in the display case, the shop assistant brightened up and hurriedly served Sarah in the fitting room.
After a while, the door of the fitting room opened, accompanied by the awe-inspiring compliments of the salesperson, Sarah walked out from inside wearing the dress.
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