Chapter 390 The Anniversary
Winona racked her brain but couldn't think of anything special about June 13th.
Zachary, looking a bit down, said, "It's the day we got our marriage license."
Winona blurted out, "We got divorced ages ago..."
Mid-sentence, she realized how out of place her words were in this romantic setting. When she married Zachary, she was drowning in debt and getting cyberbullied, barely leaving the house. "They got their marriage license on a whim, so they didn't bother to remember the exact date.
"You actually remember." Winona wasn't being sarcastic; she was genuinely surprised. In their three years together, Zachary never remembered their wedding anniversary, let alone the day they got their marriage license.
He snorted, looking hurt, and said, "Of course, I remember. I've always remembered since we got our marriage license. The one who doesn't remember is you."
"Why didn't you ever bring it up during those three years?" If he remembered, he should've shown it, maybe suggested a date or something. But as far as she could recall, Zachary never even asked her out for a meal, let alone a date.
"I had a gift specially delivered to you."
Winona raised an eyebrow, "And then?"
With his reminder, she remembered that while Zachary was emotionally distant, he was never stingy. Every season, he'd have high-end luxury brands send her the latest collections. And June was when summer clothes came in.
She always wondered why there were two deliveries in June. Turns out, one was for the anniversary of getting the marriage license..
"You didn't react at all. The staff said you didn't even open the packages and just had them sent to the walk-in closet."
Winona stayed silent for a moment.
She didn't open them because she couldn't wear them all.
"Couldn't you have sent a card or had someone remind me? People at least give a hint for birthdays or Valentine's Day," Winona said.
If he had just given her a heads-up, she wouldn't have just found out now that it was a gift.
"You could have figured it out if you had looked at the marriage certificate."
But in three years, she never looked at it. If it weren't for the housekeeper cleaning every day, it would've gathered dust.
Winona felt puzzled.
So, was it her fault? Was she wrong for not investigating the reason behind the gifts?
She said, "This divorce wasn't for nothing."
He retorted, "You liked Matthew back then. You even called his name in your sleep. If I had clung to you, wouldn't I have seemed like a man with no self-respect, just trying to please you?"
He actually talked about self-respect. Winona said angrily, "And you tricked me with a watch, and that's self-respect?"
"That was different. If I hadn't tricked you, you might have married Matthew." Zachary was pretty sure the Watson family wouldn't shell out that kind of cash for Matthew to pay off a high-interest loan for Winona, and Matthew wouldn't go that far for her either.
As a friend, if Matthew asked, Zachary would lend the money, but he wouldn't be thrilled about it.
Who'd be happy to lend money to someone to marry the woman they liked?
Zachary hated putting himself in tough spots and then regretting it. So that night, after grilling the waiter who delivered the message, he took matters into his own hands.
Winona stayed quiet for a bit.
Hearing all this now, she wasn't mad anymore. Honestly, she should thank Zachary for helping her dodge a lot of bullets. Otherwise, she might've suffered way more before finally shaking off those people.
In the café, someone was playing the piano, the tune was all soft and lingering, like a sad song.
Winona asked, "When did you start liking me?"
She really hadn't noticed Zachary liked her. Every time she saw him, he had this cold, silent vibe. The way he looked at her was no different from how he'd look at a stranger on the street. His face always seemed to say, "Stay away from me; you're polluting my air."
Most importantly, a guy like him must've seen tons of beautiful women. Just the ones chasing him could probably circle Dreamopolis. What kind hadn't he seen? And he liked her, someone he barely met a few times?
It sounded like a fantasy.
She raised her hand to touch her face. Was it because she was particularly beautiful?
Zachary said, "Probably the first time I saw you."
Winona gave him a knowing look, realizing that while she enjoyed being complimented on her looks, the thought that Zachary might like her just for her appearance—and could easily be attracted to another woman for the same reason—made her feel less happy, reinforcing her belief that men were indeed shallow.
"The first time you saw me?" Winona thought back, and her face started to look like a spilled palette. Her gaze at Zachary got weirder.
Zachary knew she remembered but kept a straight face, saying, "I've never seen a woman so dirty, crying with a snotty and tear-streaked face. It was ugly."
Winona was puzzled.
With that foul mouth of his, he actually thought about celebrating an anniversary?
She sneered, stood up to leave, but forgot her hand was still held by Zachary. She couldn't move halfway up.
Zachary looked at her and said, "But that dirty look got imprinted in my heart."
But to say he liked her, it wasn't quite there. It was just that the first impression was so strong that he paid more attention afterward. But her attention was always on Matthew. Her eyes saw no one else, and everyone else was like decorations on the wall.
When he started noticing Winona more and more, he gradually realized his feelings were changing, and it wasn't until he found himself getting annoyed every time Winona looked at Matthew that he realized he might be falling in love.
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