Wrong impression

He had become accustomed to people staring at him. The situation was typical. He was a powerful, wealthy, and gorgeous individual. Several women desired to be his. People aspired to be like him. It's easy.

In every place he went, people stared at him and spoke about how successful he was. Tonight, however, things were different; it seemed as though people were talking and laughing behind his back. He understood why this was happening. Unfortunately, the person responsible for this was likely hiding under her warm blankets, enduring the humiliation without any relief.

Now, Noah sat at the table at Food Hub, anticipating the delivery of their orders. Abby, his date, was constantly chatting, making it difficult for Noah to hear anything she had to say. "Noah, are you even listening to me?" Abby inquired.

After giving her a stern look, Noah calmly and collectedly spoke, "No."

Offensively, Abby let out a gasp. "You mean, this whole time, I've been pouring my heart out to you, and you haven't listened?" She was on the verge of yelling, which resulted in both her and Noah receiving stares.

In response to Abby's furious expression, Noah shrugged and said, "You know, you look prettier with your mouth shut." This occurred before Abby could say anything else. Abby's face turned bright red due to her anger and embarrassment. She looked around to check if anyone was paying attention to what she was saying and bowed her head. A smirk of contentment appeared on Noah's face; it was a challenge to get her to stop talking; she hardly ever made any sense in her statements.

It turned out that Noah was completely wrong about the remainder of his night; thirty minutes into the dinner, after the waiter brought their order, Scarlett Vanderbilt came to their table. Noah had imagined that the rest of his evening would be tranquil. "Mr. Jones, fancy meeting you here." She naively made the statement, clenching her handbag in front of her.

Scarlett, the journalist, had blonde hair, gorgeous eyes, long legs, and the body that modeling companies sought. She was your typical "Queen Bee." Despite her stunning appearance, she possessed a corrupt personality.

"This is my restaurant." Noah clenched his teeth.

Scarlett replied with a sly grin and then moved to the table closest to them, where she sat down and joined them at their table. Abby's face expressed disbelief as she looked at Noah, who tightened his teeth. Who did this woman think she was?

"Oh, there I am! That is the reason I am here." In response to Scarlett's smooth speech, Noah narrowed his eyes and looked at her more intently.

"What do you want?" Without taking his gaze off her, he grated his teeth.

"Pardon me, but what exactly is this?" In response to Abby's demand, Noah gave her a blank stare, which caused her to flinch.

While holding her hand, Noah smiled at her. "Sweetheart, why don't you freshen up in the restroom? I don't mean to say this, but your face looks like a botched cake." In disbelief, Abby gasped and looked between him and Scarlett.

"Go, sweetheart." Scarlett comforted her while displaying an expression of regret. Even though Abby was on the verge of crying, she quickly grabbed her handbag and headed out of the restaurant as soon as possible. "That was very harsh," Scarlett remarked.

"Well, it did get us some privacy now, didn't it?" Scarlett feigned surrender by raising her arms toward Noah, who shrugged his shoulders. "What is it that you want, Miss Vanderbilt?" When Noah asked, he scratched his chin and focused his eyes on Scarlett as if he were a predator waiting for its prey.

"A source of mine from London told me that your brother was arrested in Paris and that your best friends bailed him out, David Miller and Ryan Hall," Scarlett stated, leaning forward in her chair. After hearing her disclosure, Noah was taken aback, and the words "bailed him out" kept playing repeatedly in his head like a personal mantra. "So, what do you have to say about that?" She asked.

When Noah glanced at her with piercing eyes, she gulped a noticeable amount of air.

Standing, he pushed his chair back and continued looking at her without taking his gaze off her. After picking up his wallet from the table and placing it inside his jacket pocket, he lowered himself to her level and whispered threateningly, "Don't make me remind everyone what happened in June." Scarlett became more rigid. "Goodnight, Miss Vanderbilt; it was nice of you to join us." He said this calmly before leaving the restaurant and moving away from the table.

********

When Aria saw the set of expensive rings the jeweler had placed in front of her, she was so stunned that there was complete stillness. She shook her head in astonishment as she stared at the rings in bewilderment. She had anticipated much for tonight, but this was not even close to being on the list of things she had expected. They presented her with a collection of expensive diamond engagement rings, prompting her to choose the one she wanted.

"David, this is incredible; this is... wow!" As soon as she took a breath, David smiled massively at her, which immediately caused her heart to melt. The conflicting feelings she was experiencing led her to fixate on the rings to stop herself from crying. "I don't know what to choose; there are many options." She informed the jeweler that he should show more interest in the rings and concentrate more on David than the rings themselves.

Aria gave David a slight nod and drew a shaky breath before focusing on the stunning stones. David said calmly, "Choose something that will make all women wish it were them getting married to me." Aria then averted her gaze to the gorgeous diamonds.

"I'll go with this one." The enormous rock that she chose was a 24-carat diamond ring. Its stunning blue gem in the center made it stand out from the other rings, and any woman would dream of marrying David Miller.

"You have made the right choice; that's the only one available." When the jeweler eventually saw many zeros rather than the flame that was there in the room, he said.

David also nodded approval. "I agree with you. So, we can take it. Because we are dealing with a significant amount of money, Mrs. Luis, my attorney, will stay in touch with you," he remarked.

"I understand, Mr. Miller." As she carefully closed the ring box and placed it in her purse, Mrs. Luis spoke.

"OK, I need to get back to you regarding the size." David made this statement while removing the ring from Aria's hand. "I'll walk you out." He gestured toward the entrance and made a comment.

"Thank you." On the other hand, Aria rolled her eyes, and Mrs. Luis flushed.

As she was leaving, David thanked her for taking the time to come and see him. He then walked her out. After closing the door, he returned to the couch where Aria was sitting. "Listen, David, I—" Aria was just beginning to speak when David interrupted her by taking her hand in his and sitting down next to her.

"Before you say anything, Aria, I just want to thank you for all this; you have no idea how much it means to me." His face was filled with gratitude as he delivered his words of sincerity. A smile appeared on Aria's face; she had never seen David in such a state. "Honestly, I have never experienced anything like this before. For years, I have spent my time playing with the emotions and sentiments of women, under the impression that doing so would bring me joy. However, I was mistaken; it did not bring me any happiness, and it did not serve any purpose. The only benefit I gained from this experience was that I narrowly avoided losing the woman I deeply love." David chuckled, shaking his head. "To be honest, Aria, I'm not getting any younger. I must find a place to call home; I long to return to a place brimming with love and joy. I want to have my own family; I want to come home to my children rushing up to me and calling me "daddy." "I want to experience the joy and love that blossoms daily." As Aria took in every word he spoke, tears of delight streamed down her cheeks. However, everything stopped when he repeated himself, saying, "And I can't imagine life without April." Emotion swept through her.

"What?" "What?" she asked, causing David's cheeks to flush slightly.

"Shortly, I will propose to my girlfriend, April Williams. For this reason, I have asked you to come here and assist me in selecting the perfect ring for her." Aria yanked her hand away and jumped far from him in a manner that suggested he had suddenly transformed into a monstrous creature. The tears poured out fiercely, and David stared at her, unable to comprehend why she was abruptly moving away from him.

"Damn you, David Miller." Although she spoke softly, David was able to hear her.

"Excuse me?" He inquired about it.

She jumped from the couch and exclaimed, "I told you; you are a monster!" David Miller, you are truly a monster! I've encountered many cretins in my life, but I've never encountered a man as vile as you!" David's eyes were wide as he glanced at her. "Initially, you insulted me and referred to me as a whore. Subsequently, you extended an invitation to me to dine at your residence in order to assist you in selecting a ring for your fiancé." David flinched in response to her shriek; he had never witnessed Aria reacting violently before, but he was still unable to understand why she was upset with him. "I gave you my best, darn it! I went to get my hair done, I got my nails done, I got my eyebrows and eyelashes done, I bought a new dress and new shoes, and I had a makeover for you, and you didn't even notice! What a jerk you are; you didn't even bother telling me that I was gorgeous!"

After hearing her remarks, he felt an overwhelming sense of remorse; he finally realized why she appeared different. "Aria..." He rose to his feet, but when he extended his hand to touch her, she stepped away.

"Don't touch me!" She yelled, and David retreated a few steps in response. "I hate you, David Miller; I hate you!" She sobbed and clenched her fists in disgust at her foolishness. "I hate you." After making her statement in a low voice, she retrieved her handbag from the coffee table and moved away from him, heading toward the exit.

David apologized to Aria by saying, "Aria," but at that moment, she shook her head and opened the door.

"I feel sorry for the woman who's about to throw away her life for you." At the same time, she slammed the door shut and shook her head. David closed his eyes and ran his hand over his hair.

Aria wept for a moment as she stood outside his door. As she wailed, she slid down, her back against the wall. There was nothing in this world that could equal the pain that she was experiencing, and she needed medical attention.

Since she didn't own a car, she had no desire to drive back in the same vehicle that had caused her harm. She unlocked her purse with trembling hands and pulled out her phone to call Zoey. Aria did not have many friends; she and Zoey did not have a solid relationship; nonetheless, she could not think of anybody else to call. Zoey picked up the phone on the third ring after it had rung three times. "Hello?" Zoey's voice reverberated throughout the line.

"Zoey." After Aria's tears, there was complete and utter silence.

"Aria?"