Chapter 6 Let Her Make The Wedding Gown

Miriam slept through an entire day and night.

When she awoke, she found herself in the hospital with Patricia waiting by her bedside. She had brought her some food. While Miriam was eating, Patricia muttered with a frown, "You had a high temperature. Do you remember anything? I happened to visit you in the nick of time. If not for me, you would have died!"

Miriam stopped eating for a moment. She gazed at Patricia, touched, and thanked her quietly.

Patricia snorted and sat on the edge of the bed, crossing her arms over her chest. She looked thoughtful for a moment and then said, "I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Miriam took a breath, bracing herself. "The good news."

"The good news is that your design is approved."

Miriam didn't look as happy with the news as Patricia expected. It was rare for the first draft to be approved. Either a client liked her design very much or there was something else she wasn't aware of.

Patricia continued, "The bad news is Annette will be the one wearing it."

Miriam was stunned. Among all her designs, she put the most time and effort into the wedding dress. Now Annette would be wearing it whilst marrying her ex-husband.

How cruel Annette was!

Miriam didn't have time to rest now. She had to get to work and begin to craft the wedding gown.

Shawn was already aware of her and Kayson's divorce. He called Miriam and asked to meet him soon. He assured her he was on her side and that he would find a way to convince Kayson to remarry her.

Miriam politely refused his offer, using work as an excuse.

After hanging up the call, she stared at the phone screen blankly for a long time. Then, she took a deep breath and dialed Annette's number.

She needed Annette's measurements to make the dress.

The phone rang for about half a minute before someone finally picked up. A deep, male voice came from the other end of the line. Miriam's heart skipped a beat. It was Kayson.

"Hello. Annette is in the shower right now. Do you want to leave a message?" Judging from his polite tone, he had no idea who was calling.

Miriam's grip on her phone clenched, the words freezing up in her throat.

Annette was in the shower, and Kayson was answering the phone for her. Their sense of intimacy was so blatant it made her heart hurt.

"Hello?" Kayson prompted, a hint of impatience in his tone.

"Hello, I'm..." Miriam began nervously.

Before she could finish, Kayson cut her off. "Miriam! What tricks are you trying to play now? Why are you calling this number?"

His words were filled with accusatory maliciousness.

"This is about work, nothing else. Annette chose my design as her wedding dress." Miriam tried to sound as calm as possible.

"She chose your design?" Kayson was surprised, and there was also a hint of revulsion in his tone. "I see. Anne must be doing you a favor."

Miriam felt a dull ache in her heart.

She took a deep breath to calm her nerves. She reminded herself that this order was too important to let go of and that she couldn't risk offending the client, regardless of who they might be. "Please tell Annette that I need to measure her for the wedding dress. If she has the time..."

"No. Leave her alone." Kayson rudely interrupted her again. "I'll have someone deliver the measurements to you. Miriam, don't even try playing games with me! If any accident happens at the wedding, I'll hold you responsible."

He didn't wait for an answer. As soon as he uttered his threat, he hung up the phone.

Miriam remained still, the phone still pressed to her ear, the beeping noise from the ended call ringing in her ear. She remained motionless for a long while before finally lowering her hand and putting her phone down.

Her fever had subdued, but her head was still aching. She closed her tired eyes, a bitter smile appearing on her face.

Meanwhile, Kayson placed the phone down, his eyebrows tightly knitted. The contempt and resentment lingering in his steely eyes made him look somewhat sinister.

He didn't know why, but every time he thought of Miriam, he got irritable and particularly touchy.

Kayson heard the bathroom door open behind him. He turned to see Annette walking in slowly, scantily clad in a flimsy silk nightdress, her curly hair hanging loosely around her shoulders. She approached him with a soft smile and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Kayson, we're finally engaged now. I want to give myself to you." She bit her lip, her face flushing in shyness.

Kayson's frown deepened. He pried her hands off him as naturally as he could and said gently, "There's no hurry. You haven't even recovered yet."

Without waiting for her to respond, he strode out of the bedroom.

Kayson had denied her advances again and again. This time, Annette couldn't control her fury. Her face contorted with bitterness and rage, her eyes narrowing into slits.

Kayson had never had sex with her. Every time she suggested it, he used her weak constitution as an excuse not to. Could it be that he didn't want to have sex with her?

Then who did he want? That bitch, Miriam?

Annette's hands clenched into fists, her teeth grinding together and her eyes filled with burning viciousness.

She couldn't let it go on like this. At this rate, even if she married Kayson, she wouldn't be able to win his heart.

She had to find a way to make Kayson feel interminably disgusted and sick to the stomach every time he thought of Annette.

Creating a customized wedding dress was no easy feat, and this particular wedding dress was one of the most paramount projects for the company, so Miriam didn't slack off at all.

Despite her illness, Miriam worked overtime every day in a subsequent week to get the dress done and even lost a significant amount of weight. She finally managed to finish it the night before the wedding.

Illuminated by the bright light, the pure white wedding dress looked ethereal. Layers of snow-white laces were infused into the intricate layers of the gown and made it look delicate and lavishly-created.

Miriam couldn't help but reach out and gently stroke the soft hemline of the dress. Every stitch and line of this dress was put together by her efforts.

But now, her treasured wedding dress and the love of her life were both being stolen by someone else.

Miriam withdrew her hand slowly and lowered her gaze, her long eyelashes hiding the pain in her eyes.

The next day was Annette and Kayson's wedding.

Understandably, Miriam did not intend to attend the wedding. But Annette insisted she come, claiming that the wedding dress's waistline needed to be altered.

The brilliant light flooded the grand hall, reflecting on the pristine floor and glistening off the decorated walls. Sweet music and scents flowed through the air. Miriam gazed around the luxurious and unprecedented banquet hall. She couldn't help but think back to the time she and Kayson got married.

It was a brief and soulless affair. They had only acquired the marriage certificate without a wedding.

Her eyes stung at the memory of it. She quickly withdrew her gaze from the luxurious hall and introduced herself to the receptionist. "Hello. I'm a designer from Artistic Design. I'm here to alter the bride's wedding dress."

The receptionist had been informed about this beforehand. He nodded and replied, "She wanted you to enter from the back door. It's closer to the venue."

"Oh. Thank you."

Without thinking too much about it, Miriam walked in the direction the receptionist showed her.

The back door was a little far away. The trail to it was eerily long and vacant. The path was shadowed by looming birch trees on either side and accompanied by the rustling of leaves. It looked very creepy under the darkening sky.

A figure suddenly jumped out of the woods and rushed to her. Miriam's heart leaped to her throat, and she immediately turned around to run away without a moment's thought.

"Wait!" The figure caught up to her and grabbed her wrist to stop her. It was a man. "Miss, I apologize for startling you. I'm not a stranger. I am the manager of Apparels Inc. We have cooperated before. Surely, you remember me?"

Panicked, Miriam looked over her shoulder, prepared to run again. But the man did look familiar. She felt relief wash over her, but her heart was still thumping loudly. She frowned and racked her memory for a moment. Then, his name finally came to mind.

"Caleb Nelson?"

"Yes, it's me." Caleb smiled amicably. "I heard you're the one behind the wedding dress. Are you here to do some alterations? Our company is in charge of the bridesmaids' dresses. I'm here to alter their dresses, too."

They chatted for a while and made their way to the villa, walking side by side. After they entered the villa, they bid each other goodbye and parted ways to get to their respective work.

Miriam was directed to the third floor. Perhaps it was because all the servants and guests were in the banquet hall, but the villa was so quiet.

It gave off an unusual atmosphere and made Miriam feel uneasy.

She looked around warily, her ears strained in the silence, her heartbeat quickening again.

When Miriam arrived at the bedroom on the third floor, she saw that the intricately carved wooden door was slightly ajar. She knocked on the door politely and called, "Annette?"

There was no response.

The apprehension fluttering in her gut was getting stronger. Miriam was about to give up and leave when a sound suddenly came from inside.

Miriam stopped and turned to the door again, opening it a bit more so she could peek inside.

She saw a vague figure in the room.

It was a gorgeous, half-naked man who had just come out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist. His skin was glistening, and his broad chest and washboard abs were revealed. Under his wet hair was a handsome face she was all too familiar with.

Her heart skipped a beat when Miriam recognized the man. She panicked and stumbled back but ended up tripping over her own feet and reeling forward, falling into the room.

With a heavy thump, she landed on the floor, right beside the man's feet.