Chapter 12 Everyone Was Stunned

Jeff’s expression changed slightly as he didn’t have a hundred thousand in his account, the hand which was holding Natalie’s starting to tremble. “My dear, I want this diamond ring!” Natalie said sweetly. “You can’t lose to a mere country bumpkin!” Jeff took one look at Bradley’s shabby attire and decided that he would not get intimidated by this hillbilly. Looking at the sales girl, he ordered, “Pack up this ring! I want to see whether this country bumpkin can even afford anything!” The sales girls looked at each other, then quickly packed up the ring and beckoned courteously, “Gentlemen, please swipe your cards.” Bradley walked over and threw his card on the counter, and the whole process took less than five minutes to complete. The bright eyed sales girl said excitedly, “Thank you very much, Mr. Jackson. Would you like to purchase anything else?” Bradley took the card and turned to look at Jeff. “My old friend, now’s the time for you to live up to your promise for your goddess.” Upon hearing that, Jeff’s face took on a ghastly expression as he turned to the cashier. “Did his card actually go through? Are you guys pulling my leg?” “Sir, we are under strict obligations here in the shopping mall. We would not fake a card transaction from a customer, so please do not come up with false accusations.” The pretty cashier glanced at him speculatively as she replied sternly. Turning toward Bradley, Jeff huffed. “I’m a busy man and I don’t have time to fool around with you; a few thousand dollars is peanuts.” It was irrelevant whether he had a hundred thousand or not, for even if he did, he wouldn’t buy Natalie such an expensive gift anyway. After all, women were just playthings to him. Bradley scoffed loudly. “Are you chickening out, Jeff Sulley? Perhaps you want to show us how you’re going to crawl out of here?” Rage welled up in Jeff as he pulled Natalie close and kissed her. “Even if I don’t buy her a diamond ring worth a hundred thousand, she would still be willing to be with me. We are going to get married soon so I don’t have to bother about our bet! If you’re so capable, why don’t you go find a woman and bet against me? We could bet whose partner is more attractive.” Upon hearing that, Bradley cursed harshly, “I must be a f*cking idiot to use my partner as an asset in stupid bets! Women are to be cherished and to be loved.” The other sales girls all nodded in agreement. “Hubby, there you are! I’ve been looking for you everywhere. Don't leave me alone ever again.” A soft, alluring voice from the entrance broke the stalemate. Dressed in a white, flowy dress, Kate appeared next to Bradley and wrapped her arms around him. Natalie was overcome with jealousy as she thought, Even after five years in prison, he still managed to find a girlfriend so quickly. Her looks and figure are so much better than mine! Natalie tugged at Jeff and said coyly, “Dear, since the ring is already wrapped up, let’s take it with us!” Meanwhile, Jeff couldn’t keep his eyes off Kate as he never thought that Bradley could ever find such a beautiful girlfriend. The difference between Kate and Natalie were worlds apart. Twinges of jealousy shot through Natalie when she noticed Jeff’s stare on Kate. As such, she tugged harder at his arm. Bradley turned to look at Kate, who was holding his arm, and sent her a questioning look. In response, Kate winked suggestively and smiled. “Hubby, I didn’t know you were buying phones for the whole family! When we get married, I want a diamond ring that’s worth at least a hundred thousand!” Natalie gritted her teeth and stomped her foot. “Jeff, let’s just pay the bill!” she yelled. It was only then Jeff realized that he was in over his head. Turning to look at Natalie, he murmured, “This ring’s doesn’t really suit you anyway, so let’s choose a better one some other day.” It seemed as though Natalie didn’t understand Jeff’s underlying meaning and continued pestering him,“I think it looks alright; let’s just get this one!” Kate looked at her thoughtfully. “Miss, you don’t have to be so anxious. Maybe Mr. Sulley’s card doesn’t have that much money in it. Buying it some other day would be all right too, as long as he’s willing to buy it for you.” Kate spoke with such graciousness and generosity that it made her look very regal and ladylike. The sales girl noticed that Jeff still hadn’t moved, so she urged hastily, “Mr. Sulley, please swipe your card here.” Meanwhile, Kate’s words had infuriated Natalie. Natalie knew that Kate was trying to belittle her, but Kate had spoken so eloquently that even she herself couldn’t make a scene out of it. Bradley glanced at his watch, realizing it was almost time for the meeting with Samuel. He quickly grabbed the phones and said, “I still have some important matters to attend to and have no interest in watching you crawl your way out of here. Excuse me.” The sales girls envied the way Kate was holding tightly onto Bradley’s arm. “Sometimes you really can’t judge a book by it’s cover. Who would have thought a country boy like that would have such a beauty as a girlfriend?” “That’s why I always tell you to never judge a person by their appearance. They could look like some bigshot but they can’t even take out a single penny from their pockets!” The two sales girls said pointedly. As soon as Bradley and Kate left the mall, he pried her hands off and asked politely, “Doctor Nicholson, how did you appear so suddenly? You even…” He was feeling quite grateful toward her since she appeared at the right moment, rescuing him from that situation. Kate smiled brightly. “I just couldn’t stand seeing this kind of person bullying others. Oh—you can just call me Kate.” Smiling shyly, Kate looked rather adorable with her dimples appearing on her cheeks. Bradley chuckled. “In order to express my gratitude, will you let me buy you a cup of tea?” Looking embarrassed, Kate asked, “Don’t you have something else to do? There’s no need for tea; I just wanted to talk to you about something.” “Oh—just name it! If I can be of any assistance, I would never say no,” Bradley replied briskly. Kate contemplated for a while before speaking again, “I would like you to take me under your wing. The other day at the hospital, your skills impressed me greatly and humbled me.” However, Bradley rejected firmly, “Doctor Nicholson, since we’re both doctors, then you should know that I will not take just anyone as my student. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”