Take My Breath Away

"He's not broke. He bought me valuable jewelry once. I offered him money, and he turned me down. Over a hundred million! He turned it down, Dad!" Dollie had also told Evelyn straight up Sheffield was only using her, but she didn't believe it.

Carlos was furious. "That's only because he wanted more! Can't you see? He is not as simple as he pretends to be. I have investigated him. His parents were pretty well-off, had some business connections. Then they died in a car accident. But they weren't his real family. The man who died in that accident was Beric Tang. He had a kid, but it wasn't him. You've been together so long. Did he ever tell you who he really was?"

Carlos, for all his resources, couldn't find out who Sheffield was. He could only get so far in the background check, and there were some pieces of information that he couldn't get at. And if Carlos couldn't figure it out, then the young doctor must be hiding something. At least, that was what the elder thought.

It was dangerous for Evelyn to stay with someone like him. He would rather let Evelyn marry a poor boy with an obvious background, or a stubborn man like Calvert. At least he knew who they were. He could also dig up what he didn't know about them.

But Sheffield was different. His family background was fake. Even Carlos couldn't find out anything about him, because he had hidden his identity too well.

Evelyn stood there in shock. It was true. There was more to Sheffield than met the eye. She'd seen that. Fighter, doctor, race car driver. What else was he hiding from her? After a long while, she answered timidly, "He said his mother was a doctor of neurology. She was framed and imprisoned for dealing in counterfeit drugs. She died when he was young." As for his father, Sheffield never talked much about him, and she didn't ask him either.

Carlos sneered, "Are you sure he was telling the truth? Did you look into it? You just took his word for it? God, you're naive! If you asked him outright, he'd make up another story to make you feel better. He'll just lie to you. What's the point?"

Evelyn was struck speechless.

It was dead silent in the living room. After a long while, Terilynn, who stood on the steps, finally spoke. "Dad! It's late and Evelyn has been working all day. Why don't you sleep on it?"

Carlos heaved a sigh and stood up from the chair. He pulled Evelyn into his arms and consoled her lovingly, "There, there, it's not too late. If you break up with him, I can guarantee you'll be happier down the road."

Evelyn shook her head. "You don't know him. He couldn't have had sex with another girl. He listens to me and respects me. He treats me like a queen. He didn't tell anyone about his background. There might be something painful that he doesn't want to talk about..."

Carlos wasn't angered by her words. He said calmly, "Evelyn, even if he has a tragic past, why can't he tell you? You're supposed to be close to him, right? Do you think I'd hide something like that from your mother? Quit defending him. If he had something hard to deal with in his past, he would have told you. Which means you're not that close."

Debbie thought Carlos' words made sense.

"Baby girl, don't let him hurt you again. Just listen to your dad."

Carlos patted Evelyn's back and coaxed, "Don't get fooled by him again. That lie will grow bigger and bigger until you just can't escape it. If he closes his net of lies, you'll be trapped forever."

The living room was quiet again. Looking at all this, Terilynn widened her eyes. She felt very sorry for her sister, not to mention her parents. They were just worried about her.

By the next afternoon, another rumor about Evelyn went viral.

"The Eldest Princess of ZL Group Is Dating Calvert Ji, the Only Son of the Seventh Generation of the Ji Clan." Everyone was talking about it.

The article claimed that Evelyn didn't have a boy toy and the man in the photos was her boyfriend, Calvert Ji. They dated a long time, but they had a fight and broke up a few days ago. So Calvert took a bunch of flowers to apologize to Evelyn, and got her back.

The rumors made sense, but that didn't mean they were true.

Although the Ji family was rich, they were nothing compared to the Huos. But still, Calvert was a gemologist, an expert in precious gems and jewels. And that was a pretty lucrative job. People just reluctantly accepted the match, and blessings for the couple spread all over the Internet.

Evelyn's heart sank at the news.

She wasted no time calling Carlos. "Dad, is this what you want?"

"Yes!"

"Whatever."

After hanging up, Evelyn stared at her phone, deep in thought.

Half an hour later, Sheffield's phone number lit up her cell.

She picked up the phone. "Hi."

"Evelyn, I just got out of surgery. Looks like Dad still hates me. This time he set up Calvert as your boyfriend. Is he happy it worked?" He sounded so relaxed that Evelyn wondered if he even got upset when he saw the news about her and Calvert.

"Sheffield..." She wanted to ask, "Is Dollie really pregnant?" But she didn't have the courage to ask.

Sensing the change in her tone, Sheffield locked his office door and replied, "I know Dad did it. But don't worry. I don't mind. In fact, I get it. If I had a daughter as wonderful as you, raised her for nearly 30 years, and some guy swooped in and took her virginity, I'd be angry too. After I finish up here, I'll move in with your folks. I'll cook, wash, and serve our parents every day. I'll let them get to know me. They'll know I'm way better than Calvert..."

Sheffield just babbled away. Evelyn listened, laughed and then cried.

If he really loved her, the news should have broken his heart. But he still sounded mellow about it all. Evelyn wondered if it was because he was acting tough, or because he just didn't love her.

"Don't be sad. We'll grab coffee in Paris in a few days. We'll have a nice vacation and forget all this temporarily, okay?"

Evelyn closed her eyes. Tears streamed down her cheeks. "Okay."

"I gotta go. I have another surgery coming up." Actually, he just wanted to talk with her. After all, they seldom saw each other and he missed her. At work, he barely talked to anybody.

Yet, little did he know that what he said next would give her the wrong idea. "I've been making money like crazy recently. I haven't bought you jewelry for a long time. Evelyn, please don't hate me. When I get some more cash, I'll buy you the best things in the world every day."

'Make money like crazy... He brought up money just like Father said, ' Evelyn thought.