They Thought I’d Steal Him, I Woo My Boy

Three years ago, after Mila Smith dumped Jacob Hayes, every girlfriend he dated had a tear-shaped beauty mark at the corner of her eye, just like hers. Everyone sighed over how devoted Mr. Hayes was. They said he would probably never escape the shadow of his first love. That was until half a month ago, when Jacob went public with his new girlfriend and announced their wedding date on the spot. But his new girlfriend had no beauty mark by her eye. In both looks and personality, she was nothing like Mila. On the eve of the wedding, Mila flew back to the country overnight. Everyone knows how these stories go. Once the ex shows up again, the woman standing beside the man never wins. When the rumor reached Jacob, he only replied lazily, "She came back too late. There's no chance for us anymore." Mila merely smiled without a word. Sorry, but she had not come back to steal the groom. She had come back to coax the sweet young man she had upset so badly that he had flown home in a huff. ***** At the airport, the gossip reporters were still trying to ask about the two of them. Jacob gave his bodyguards a look, and they immediately cleared a path to the car. The two of them sat together in the back seat. Mila looked out the window and said, "The country has changed a lot. I heard you're getting married?" The car window reflected Jacob's gaze, cold and distant. When she turned back around, she saw Jacob looking down at his phone, as if he were texting someone. In a flat voice, he said, "Did you think I'd forgive you just because you came back now? That I'd cancel my wedding with Kate Vance?" "Smart people don't believe every rumor they hear," Mila replied calmly. Jacob let out a cold laugh. He clearly did not believe her. He took a photo of the sunset outside the window. When Mila looked at him in surprise, he explained, "The sunset is beautiful. I'm sharing it with Kate." Mila lowered her head and said nothing. The Jacob she remembered had never been good at expressing himself. Whenever they were apart, he rarely chatted with her. Once, he went three whole days without saying a word to her. His only explanation had been that there was nothing urgent, so there was no need to make small talk. The Smith Family and the Hayes Family had been close for generations. She and Jacob had grown up together. When they reached marriageable age, both sets of parents were pleased with the match and began discussing the wedding. But the night before the two families were supposed to meet formally, Mila suddenly broke up with him and left the country overnight. The sudden ring of a phone pulled Mila out of her thoughts. Jacob answered, and a clear, delicate female voice came through from the other end. "Honey, did you pick up Mila?" "We're on our way back." "Oh, right. Mr. Smith and the others have moved abroad too. If Mila needs to stay over, she can only sleep in the storage room. It's my fault. I just had to renovate the place a while ago." The voice on the other end paused, then continued, "Oh, taxis are taking forever. After you drop Mila off, come pick me up." After hanging up, Jacob repeated calmly, "Kate said you can stay in your old room." Mila showed neither joy nor anger. "No need to trouble you. I booked a hotel." He rubbed his brow hard. "I'm letting you stay over for old times' sake. Don't be so picky." Back then, Mila had been particular about where she slept, so Jacob bought a new house for her, renovated the bedroom, and gave her the best of everything. But now, even a storage room was apparently fine. She lowered her eyes in silence for a long moment before saying half-jokingly, "So I can spend the whole night watching the two of you show off your love?" "Kate is very generous." Jacob paused. "I wasn't planning on receiving you at all. Kate was the one who said you've been abroad for years and barely know anyone here, so she asked me to take care of you." Mila steadied her emotions. "About what happened five years ago..." "It's all in the past!" Jacob cut her off. "I'm very happy with Kate now. She's more sensible than you, and she's loyal. It's useless for you to regret anything now. After tonight, I hope you won't disturb us again. Otherwise, I'll have to assume you're willing to be the other woman." Mila's heart skipped. After a long while, she breathed out and said, "I won't." She and Jacob could never get back together. Not even if they died. A little over ten minutes later, the car stopped by the roadside. Mila was just about to move to the passenger seat when she heard Jacob say calmly, "Sit in front." She froze. It took her a long moment to force down the burning irritation in her chest. She should have refused to ride back in his car at the airport. A few minutes later, Kate opened the car door. "Jacob, I'm exhausted. Hurry and give me a kiss." She whined as she threw herself into Jacob's arms. When he did not react, she looked up and finally noticed the person in the passenger seat. She immediately sat up straight. "Mila? I didn't expect you to still be here. Sorry you had to see that. Jacob and I are usually like this." Mila did not care. "You're a couple. It's only natural." Kate linked her arm through Jacob's and asked, "Then when are you getting married, Mila?" "Kate," Jacob said, stopping her. She pouted, looking a little aggrieved. "Mila is already twenty-nine this year, right? She really should get married. You're her childhood friend. Instead of urging her, you're speaking up for her? Marriage is something you should do early. I just saw a report about a woman who fell in love with a married man. That woman was practically insane." Mila listened to every word in silence. Before coming back, she had already heard that Kate was difficult. It turned out the description was quite accurate. "So when are you planning to get married, Mila? When the time comes, Jacob and I would love to prepare a wedding gift for you." Seeing that she did not answer, Kate continued with a bright smile. Mila touched the ring on her ring finger. Five years ago, she had already registered her marriage in Sunrise City.