Love Began with the First Meeting
Chapter 562 Asking Him For Pocket Money (Part One)

It is an acid test for a woman to ask the man she loves for pocket money casually.

*

The gamble finally ended after Hanson had left. The square-faced man who had been indifferent to Brian earlier was now flattering him shamelessly, "Hey, buddy! I didn't know that you have such great hidden talent."

Sparing him an indifferent glance, Brian snapped his finger at a waiter. The waiter came up to him and asked respectfully, "How can I help you, sir?" "Cash in these chips for me," said Brian in a calm voice.

After bowing slightly, the waiter collected the chips from him and rushed to the cashier. Brian didn't pay any attention to the square-faced man. Rubbing his hands awkwardly, the man then turned to his acquaintances and talked to them to defuse his embarrassment. "Let's go," Brian said, taking Molly's hand after the waiter returned with the check and they left the casino together.

As they walked to the exit, a man sitting at the far corner of the casino looked at Brian with a strange joy. He held up his thumb and index fingers in the shape of a pistol and murmured a 'bang' to himself. As he blew the 'smoking barrel' of his pretend pistol like an old- school cowboy, one corner of his mouth lifted complacently. The look in his eyes was cruel and calculating, like a beast getting ready to pounce on his prey.

Brian and Molly didn't leave through the door they had used to enter the casino. They made their way to a row of stairs at the side. It led to the beach which they had visited during Molly's first visit to QY Island.

"So, who is this Hanson?" Molly asked out of curiosity.

"A disciple of the God of Gamblers," replied Brian as he glanced at Molly, and he smiled when he saw the astonishment on Molly's face. He continued plainly, "He is said to have been adopted by the God of Gamblers from a crowd of beggars. I'm quite curious as to what was so special about him."

"He must have great talent for gambling, right?" Molly interrupted, showing no interest in Hanson's past.

"Of course," replied Brian, "He's one of the two most outstanding disciples of the God of Gamblers. The other one is Chester, who has gone astray. Chester is no less talented than Hanson, but he prefers relying on his cheating techniques. It's said that nobody can see through his sleight of hand. His motions are too quick to detect even with the most sophisticated instruments."

"Why did you gamble with Hanson if he is so talented?" Molly's mind was stuck on Hanson, and she paid no attention to his words about Chester, "What if you had lost to him? Would you really have obeyed his words obediently?"

Brian stopped and stared at Molly. The look in his eyes deepened, which resembled a still pond in the dark night; yet, there seemed to be a mysterious spark gleaming in them.

"Brian, weren't you afraid of losing at all?" asked Molly. A hint of sadness flashed through her clear eyes as she continued, "He's one of the most talented disciples of the God of Gamblers. How did you have the confidence to gamble with him?" "What's wrong with that? Are you concerned about me?" asked Brian with an arched eyebrow.

Molly pressed her lips together and frowned at him. She slightly tilted her head to stare at Brian's resolute, marble-like face. She said, "Yes, I'm worried about you. You're such an aloof man. If your actions were ever to be controlled by anyone else, you would feel as good as dead, wouldn't you?" Tears brimmed in her eyes, and they reflected the charming light of the neon lamps. She put on a mocking smile, "And as for me, it wouldn't have been much of a loss to you even if I had to accompany him for his night snack, right?"

Frowning at her words, Brian shook her hands off him and said coldly, "This isn't a matter of having to accompany a stranger, is it? You just hate being regarded as a stake in a gamble," he sneered and continued, "If Steven hadn't owed David that huge debt and sent you to the Sophia Hotel as his gambling stake, would you ever have had the opportunity of getting into my bed? And if that hadn't happened, we would never have come across each other in this world." With a heavy snort, he fixed his deep gaze on her, "Nobody would be willing to become another person's gambling stake without their knowledge. Aside from that, you're especially resistant to these things because they remind you of the past when you had to stay with me unwillingly. Molly, do you really think that I don't know what's going on in your mind?"

Molly stared at him with her teary eyes wide open and shook her head as she denied, "No, that's not right," her eyelids fluttered, and tears dropped down from her eyes, "It's true that I don't want to be a gambling stake. But compared to what you had at stake, my grievance was nothing. I don't mind being a gambling stake, but I don't want to see you behave humbly in front of others. Brian, you don't understand. Even though I don't love you... even though I hate you, I never wish to see you give up your pride, especially for my sake." Brian focused his gaze on Molly as if he was afraid that she would disappear in a wink. He stretched out his hand and tried to wipe off her tears, but Molly took a step backwards and moved away from his touch.

"Mol..." Brian called out her name softly. His mind was a mess. He had only wanted to protect her, but why did things turn out like this and why was she so sad again?

Was it totally wrong of him to be her shield?

He merely wanted to show his tenderness towards her and he would never behave this way to anybody except her.

"Bri," said Molly, sniffing her nose, "I beg you. Don't put yourself in danger for my sake anymore." She thought to herself, 'I'm afraid that your tenderness would become the cause for my sadness some day. I'm afraid of getting used to your protection. I'm afraid that once you abandoned me again one day, I wouldn't be able to live without you.'

She squatted down, hugged her knees and then burst out crying.

Some people who were passing by watched them curiously and thought them to be a quarreling couple. Some sympathized with Molly, while others laughed at her weakness.☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐