Take My Breath Away

"Okay, please help me apply for a 10, 000-dollar VIP card," Debbie said to the young man. Deep down, she wondered if Carlos made her become bolder in spending money. This guy talked her into buying a 10, 000-dollar card, and that was not chump change. He appeared to have done so easily, like he had a gift for fast talk. It only took three minutes for her to be 10, 000 dollars poorer.

Even before Debbie's hair was dry, the handsome hairdressers had quickly fetched the VIP application form for her to fill in and sign.

They couldn't show more hospitality to Debbie by entertaining her with fresh fruits and beverages. In no time, a POS machine was put in front of her. So, without moving an inch from her seat, Debbie sealed the deal.

So, with her new hairdo, Debbie was warmly sent off by the handsome young men. Her hair was dyed brown, yet it looked black; it was trimmed, yet it looked as long as before. Well, the so-called new hairdo didn't seem that different at all.

In a daze, Debbie stepped out of the hair salon holding the Gold Card in her hand. This Gold Card was given to her by Carlos. She hadn't brought this bank card to New York and had kept it in another handbag.

She never expected to waste 10, 000 dollars so soon.

She mourned a bit, feeling sad to waste money so impulsively.

Then, she opened the WeChat app and posted an update in the Moments. She wrote, "Wow, nowadays, hairdressers are all young and handsome, but with mad sales skills! They got me to buy a VIP card. Aww, poor me! My heart is aching, and so's my wallet. If I could turn back time, I would've never stepped into that store..."

She then put two Crying Face emojis below the words.

On the other hand, working in his office, Carlos heard his phone beep when Debbie posted her update. He had set her account as the Top Focus, so he would get her updates right away.

He immediately tapped Debbie's Moments. However, as he read the content, his frown deepened. 'Young and handsome? She always calls me old man. Is she saying I'm old?' he wondered.

'And why was she sad for buying a VIP card?' He was intrigued.

How much money had Debbie put down on that card that made her so frustrated? He called Emmett in and asked, "Emmett, check how much money Debbie spent just now and where. All accounts."

Ten minutes later, Emmett reported, "Mrs. Huo spent 10, 000 dollars on a VIP card in a hair salon at the Shining International Plaza."

'What? Just 10, 000 dollars? And she's sad?' Carlos couldn't help bursting into laughter.

"Go and upgrade the card. The highest amount they have," he demanded.

"Um...yes, Mr. Huo," Emmett replied.

He hadn't made it to the office door yet when Carlos added, "Don't let her know."

Emmett nodded.

While she was hanging out at the shopping mall, Debbie chatted with her friends on WeChat. She complained, "I should've asked you guys along. You could have stopped me." It was just that she didn't want to bug her friends to keep her company all the time. So she decided to set out on her own, and do her shopping that way. It would give her time to think, at any rate.

Dixon sent a voice message. He said, "Bad idea. If Jared and Kasie were there with you, you would've spent 100, 000 dollars."

Dixon was right! Jared and Kasie led a more extravagant life than she did. But she didn't like squandering money, for the most part. Money was to get something you needed, not everything you ever wanted.

Kasie sent a Rolling Eyes emoji to Dixon and said, "You kidding? She's Mrs. Huo. If anyone knew who she was, and that she was crying over 10, 000 dollars, they'd laugh at her! Tomboy, it's only 10, 000 dollars. Show off a little. Money's no big deal for your husband. Remember, Megan spent 80, 000 dollars for three shades of lipstick. She didn't even feel bad..."

They might be right! Debbie sent a Heart emoji to Kasie and wrote, "You're right. If I don't spend my husband's money, Megan will use it up sooner or later. I shouldn't give Carlos any chance to waste money on her!"

Seeing the two women's words, Dixon felt that he'd better zip his mouth.

Then, as Debbie walked into a cosmetics chain store, she tapped the comments in her WeChat Moments. There were already dozens of comments under the new post.

Gail's and Portia's comments caught her attention. Gail commented, "You bragging about something?"

Portia wrote, "I have a VIP card with 50, 000 dollars, for the largest hair salon at the Shining International Plaza. Go ahead and use my card."

Debbie could sense the sarcasm in Portia's comment.

Portia had become more and more aggressive against her. She seemed to smell blood, and like any shark, was attracted to it. Debbie didn't know why. 'I've been done with Hayden for a long time. Why is she still pissed?' Debbie wondered.

"Thank you for your kindness, Portia. But I have..." Debbie was typing a reply. She paused and wondered what was the highest amount of the VIP card in that hair salon. She giggled mischievously. Anyway, Portia didn't know any better. Debbie decided to brag about it. She continued to write, "I have a VIP card with 200, 000 dollars in it. If your 50, 000-dollar VIP card isn't enough, you can call me and we can use mine together."

Portia didn't take the bait and reply instantly. Instead, she asked her man to confirm it.

Emmett had already upgraded the card of the hair salon by the time Portia's men called the receptionist there. The worker had already put the money into Debbie's VIP card five minutes before the call. After getting the answer, Portia's man reported to her, "Miss Gu, Debbie Nian's VIP card indeed has 200, 000 dollars, and together with the 50, 000-dollar bonus, she has 250, 000 in total."

Portia was dumbfounded, her mouth agape.

Clutching her phone tightly, she hung up quickly. She wondered, 'Why does Emmett have so much money to spend on Debbie? He's just an assistant. Maybe he takes bribes?'

Now, the thought of hitting on Carlos burned stronger inside Portia's heart.

She began to fantasize the day when she would be the new Mrs. Huo. The first thing she would do was ask Carlos to investigate Emmett. If he was found out to have accepted any bribes, he'd be locked up. That way, Debbie would lose everything. She grinned broadly as she pictured the scene.

There was still no reply from Portia. Debbie didn't care, either. She closed the WeChat app and shifted her attention to the various lipsticks inside the lit glass counter. There were tons of shades, and accents on top of that. With exotic names like After Midnight, Love Bites, Everglow, and A Little Magic, there was a lipstick for practically every mood, if your mood was to attract a guy, of course. And with selections in matte, satin, or metallic finish, it was difficult for Debbie to make a choice.

'No, Debbie. You have more than enough lipsticks at home. Leave now and stop spending money!

But this color is so beautiful...' Debbie battled with herself in her mind. In the end, she couldn't resist the temptation and bought one more shade of lipstick. In the end, she decided on Moonlit Night, a mauve-ish shade that promised to give her a refined and elegant look.

Debbie had eaten dinner outside before coming back to the manor. Carlos hadn't come home from work yet, so she went to the yoga room. After doing a few poses, like Tree Pose and Downward Dog, she decided to head to the music room afterwards.

Carlos didn't come back until eleven o'clock at night. He found Debbie in the music studio and she was concentrating on writing a song.

He caught a glimpse of her scribbles on the paper. There were crosses or dots under most of the words. It seemed that she wasn't satisfied with the lyrics she had come up with.

Carlos stood behind her and patiently waited for a few moments. Yet, she didn't notice his presence. He stayed silent, even held his breath, trying to make himself as unobtrusive as possible.

"You..."

"Aargh!" Her high-pitched shriek interrupted his unspoken words.

Debbie jerked around to stare at the man who had sprung up from nowhere, her face white as a sheet. His sudden voice startled her so much that she felt like she was having a heart attack. As it was, she was still trembling.

Carlos inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. "Am I that scary?"

Debbie nodded, but then shook in panic. "No, you're handsome..."

A dash of satisfaction flashed through his eyes, but soon it vanished into thin air as he heard her say, "As handsome as a vampire."

Carlos sighed.

He threw a cold glance at her and demanded, "Go to bed now. Don't stay up late!"

"That's none of your business. Anyway, I can use my husband's money to buy the most expensive eye cream. I can use my husband's money to keep healthy no matter how late I stay up!"

Her words made Carlos happy but also angry at the same time.

In the end, he grabbed hold of her wrist and dragged her out of the music studio to keep her from talking any more nonsense.