Morwenna gasped as she peered down the towering staircase.
One wrong step and she'd surely end up with a sprained ankle, or worse.
The thought of doctor's bills and medication costs flashed through her mind in that split second, her worries tangling into a thick knot of anxiety about money.
But the anticipated hurt never arrived. Strong arms snagged her at the very last moment.
It was Stuart who had grabbed her.
Stunned, Morwenna found herself looking into Stuart's eyes.
As a kid back in the small mountain town where she grew up, there was an old apple tree that all the kids loved to climb.
Parents would always be there at the bottom, arms wide open and ready to catch their kid if they were to fall.
But that wasn't the case for her.
No matter how many times she fell, no one was there to catch her.
She learned to pick herself up.
She learned not to expect to be protected.
But now, in Stuart's arms, Morwenna felt like one of those kids again, safely caught after a tumble from the tree.
Her gaze was distant and bewildered as she whispered, "Stuart, you..."
She wanted to ask him, right then and there, what their relationship meant to him.
"Stuart, be careful, are you alright?" Adelaide rushed over, a concerned look plastered across her face.
The words Morwenna had been about to say were suddenly swallowed back.
Stuart set Morwenna down gently, like placing a delicate pillow on a sofa.
His fingertips lingered momentarily, betraying a hint of reluctance to let go.
Regaining his composure, he said indifferently, "Let's go. The banquet is about to start."
Adelaide and Stuart stood side by side.
Only then did Morwenna realize Adelaide was also there to pick out a gown for the same banquet.
Stuart seemed to want all three of them to attend together.
Morwenna felt like an outsider.
Adelaide, playing the part of the caring sister, cautioned her, "Ms. Winslet, be careful. That dress you're wearing is quite expensive. It would be a shame if it got torn." Stuart briefly scanned the gown enveloping Morwenna.
Adelaide, a mix of jealousy and pity in her tone, added, "Stuart, I wanted to help Ms. Winslet pick her dress, but you arranged for her to have one from the second floor. I'm so envious. She gets to wear such a beautiful gown."
Dresses from the second floor started at a million dollars, usually reserved for the elite.
Stuart frowned slightly. "I didn't arrange it."
Morwenna was puzzled. How could it not be Stuart's arrangement?
Adelaide lit up with a poorly concealed delight as she quickly said, "Dresses in the second floor dresses are not something everyone can afford. Maybe Ms. Winslet met some wealthy folks back at the Windcharm Villas."
Her implication was pretty clear that Morwenna was hanging around with sugar daddies.
Morwenna was equally stunned.
A dress was worthy of a million dollars at least!
How could she wear something so pricey? What if it got damaged?
Besides Stuart, she didn't know anyone else.
"Who gave me the dress?"
"Who gave you the dress?"
The question echoed in her mind just as Stuart voiced it out loud.
His tone was deep and mesmerizing, yet there was a chilling edge to it that made Morwenna instinctively step back.
It wasn't fear that moved her, but the knowledge that if she didn't step back. Things might escalate to physical confrontation.
She had a reflex to fight back when cornered, but she didn't want to strike Stuart.
So Morwenna stepped back, shaking her head. "I don't know who sent the dress."
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