The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 981 A Charity Dinner (Part Two)

Susan was stopped by a stranger when she was on her way to catch up with Sheryl. It was undeniable that the evening dress which Cary had picked out for Susan was brilliantly exquisite.

He was drawn to it the very first time he saw the evening dress. He had thought, 'Susan would look absolutely gorgeous in this dress.'

And sure enough, Susan looked so glamorous in the exquisite evening dress that she caught everybody's attention as soon as she walked in. Her attractiveness gave birth to gossips about her mysterious identity. Everyone wanted to know which renowned family she belonged to.

The elite circle was so close knit that all of them knew each other. But even after asking around, nobody knew anything about Susan.

Susan stared at the man who was blocking her way. "Who are you? What do you want?" she asked, tensed.

It was Susan's first time attending such a grand banquet and she was already extremely nervous.

"What's your name?" The man who stood in Susan's path was a popular and notorious playboy in the business circle. He didn't really care about what other people said. The moment he saw Susan, he was flipped. When he noticed her out of place behavior and her nervousness, he knew that Susan didn't belong to the elite circle.

Susan began to feel extremely awkward. She looked around in a frenzy, hoping to be saved from this situation. She had no idea who this man was or how she was supposed to deal with him.

"I... My name is Susan," she politely replied. 'I guess it's all right to give my name at least,' she thought.

"Susan..." the man repeated, as if he were testing the sound of her name from his lips. He continued with a gentle smile, "It's a beautiful name. Would you like to be my date for the night?"

He was very much interested in her and didn't want to let go of the opportunity to get close to her. However, Susan was shocked by his sudden request. She didn't even want to attend the charity dinner in the first place, let alone be anyone's date.

"I'm sorry, I..." she stammered, trying to politely refuse him. She stepped back hoping to move away from him.

But as she did so, she unfortunately stepped on her skirt. She lost her balance and was about to fall down when strong hands held her waist tightly. She was wrapped in his arms.

Susan was still in shock, but she sighed deeply when she was stable on her feet once again.

Her head was pressed against his chest and she couldn't see his face, but she almost immediately recognized the familiar scent.

"Are you okay?" Cary asked, concerned.

Susan nodded and tried to wiggle out of his arms.

A light of desire flashed in his eyes as he stared at Susan. He was completely enchanted by her. When he saw that Susan was being approached by another man, he was jealous.

"It's very kind of you to attend the charity dinner, Mr. Xia," Cary said, turning to the man in front of them.

Cary shifted Susan to his side and held her shoulders protectively. "My girlfriend is a bit shy. Thank you for your considerate care towards her."

"Dear me! Mr. Su, she's your girlfriend?" The man glanced at Susan who was in Cary's arms. He never thought that Cary, who never had any love affairs, would openly admit that he had a girlfriend. He wondered whether the Su family knew about this.

"Yes, she is," Cary said, with a polite smile. "I was hoping I could invite you to dinner later. What do you think?" Susan continued to struggle to get out of his arms, but he held her tightly.

Cary looked at the man keenly, waiting for his response. He knew that the man was a notorious playboy. When he took interest in a woman, he would do anything to attain her and no one could escape from his clutches. Cary wanted to make it clear to him that Susan wasn't his to take.

The man was disappointed to hear that Susan had a lover, but he did not show it. He kept the smile on his face and said, "It would be my honor. I'd like to invite you to dinner some day. I have some business to talk with you as well."

"Okay," Cary replied with a slight nod. "I will see you later then. I apologize, I am a little busy today."

"That's fine. Go ahead," the man said calmly.

Cary then left with Susan in his arms. Susan stayed silent during their conversation. She knew that Cary was trying to help her.

And she knew that staying with Cary was better than dealing with the man.

When they were out of his sight, she finally said, "Let me go." She shook off his arm around her and glared at him. "You go ahead with your business. I will go and replace Sher."

"Really? I just saved you. Is this your attitude towards your savior?" Cary asked with a sullen expression.

"How dare you say that?" Susan complained, "Why am I at this charity dinner in the first place? If you hadn't forced me to be here, I wouldn't have had to go through that." Looking at Susan's angry eyes, Cary wore a warm smile on his lips. Susan was still complaining about what he had done when Cary interrupted, "You... You look gorgeous today." Susan was stunned by his words. She stared at Cary, at a loss of words.

After a moment's silence, Susan's face turned a bright red. She said in an embarrassed tone, "What... What are you talking about?"

"I said, you look absolutely beautiful," Cary said in a sincere tone as he locked eyes with her.

Susan couldn't take anymore of his intense gaze and she quickly fled away from him, hiding her tomato red face.

Cary smiled warmly as he gazed at her retreating back.

Sheryl was standing beside Charles and they were discussing a negotiation with a client. She was so into the conversation that she didn't notice Susan's presence behind her. Susan waited for her silently without interrupting their dialogue.

When Sheryl was finally done, she saw Susan and walked straight to her. "You could have come and talked to me," Sheryl said.

Susan smiled shyly. "I didn't want to disturb you."

Sheryl eyed her from head to toe and said with a gentle smile, "Cary has a very good eye. This dress suits you so well that even I can't dart my eyes off you."

"Sher, please don't flatter me. This is really overwhelming," Susan said uneasily. "I don't feel comfortable in this. All I want is to take it off as quickly as possible."

"Why do you want to take it off? It's so beautiful," said Sheryl with a sweet smile. "Besides, you'll have to get used to such occasions for the future. This is just a rehearsal." "What do you mean?" Susan asked in a stunned tone.

"It's nothing," Sheryl replied with a grin and then she quickly skipped to another topic. "Have you seen Holley around here?"

"Holley Ye?" Susan frowned and asked, "She is attending this banquet as well?"