Way Back Into Love (Essie)

Mandy was about to explode.

Zac picked up the plate in front of Leila and cut her steak into small pieces.

Leila glanced at Mandy with a triumphant smile on her face. Mandy returned the look with a murderous glare. She actually wished that her eyes were sharp enough to cut her rival into bits.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Essie was totally indifferent. She was as calm as the still, unruffled waters of a fathomless well.

After eating her portion of foie gras, she sighed with satisfaction. Then, she started to sample the steak. "This is so delicious. I don't remember the last time I had a French meal." She didn't raise her head. She didn't even know whether she was talking to herself or to the plate.

Mandy took a sip of the beef consommé and tried to dispel the uncomfortable pressure in her insides. Then, she turned her attention to Essie and said, "I don't know when you last went to a French restaurant, but wasn't your first time in one when you were a college freshman? Didn't Hanson took you there?"

Essie's hands, which were holding a knife and a fork, quivered slightly. After some time, she nodded wordlessly.

The meal was as sweet as first love for her, which made her mope for a full three months. From that day on, she became hopeful for the future.

"At that time, Hanson was not the son of Bella's boss. That French dinner with you must have cost him a pretty penny back then." Mandy sighed. "It's so strange. He's willing to do that, yet he wasn't in love with you?"

Essie gave her a slight glare. "Come on, I'm trying to have my meal in peace here," she said with mock annoyance. She didn't want to talk about her relationship with Hanson anymore, in case someone else might blow it out of proportion.

Mandy smiled awkwardly, "I just remembered it."

Across the table, Zac swirled the red wine in his glass and took a sip, a touch of melancholy in his eyes.

A sly smile crossed Leila's face as she listened to their conversation. She cut in, "Miss Essie, the woman who had argued with you at the exhibition was actually Hanson's fiancée, wasn't she?" She took advantage of the situation to fish for information and find out how much Zac actually knew about this bitch.

Zac said almost in the same breath as Leila, with his eyes glimmering with that faint trace of sadness, "Did Sunny give you a hard time when you met her?"

Essie shrugged and flashed him a look that only the two of them could understand. "She didn't dare. I won this round."

With a charming smile on his mouth, Zac said, "I'm the hero in this case. Shouldn't you give me a toast?"

Essie rolled her eyes. "We helped each other out." With a mischievous blink, she raised her glass and gently tapped it against the glass in his hand. The clink of glasses echoed on the table. Mandy looked at them, confused. "Essie, did you ask Zac to help you pursue Hanson?"

Essie almost choked. She wanted to explain but stopped herself. A sly smile appeared at the corners of her mouth, and she simply answered, "Yes." She deliberately nodded and glanced at the person in front of her from beneath her eyelashes.

His deep and cold eyes carried a certain ruthlessness, and he looked so intimidating at that moment that Essie shivered. That was absolutely impossible. The plan was that he would only help her erase her feelings for Hanson without leaving any trace.

Leila swirled her wine thoughtfully. Evidently, Zac knew about the other man in Essie's life. What about the other boyfriend?

"Miss Essie, I heard from the woman this morning that you had a boyfriend. Given how much you like Hanson so much, your current boyfriend must be feeling rather miserable." Leila deliberately spoke in a careless tone, pretending that she was just asking out of curiosity. As soon as she had uttered those words, Zac's face was suddenly suffused by a slight blush.

Mandy was shocked. "Essie, you have a boyfriend? Why don't I know about him?"

Essie's eyes turned stormy with anger. She was about to snap without any regard for anyone who might be caught in the crossfire.