"…… "I am Carla," she introduced herself curtly.
She kept walking without saying anything else.
Fred became more interested when he noticed that Carla showed no interest in him. He took it as a challenge as Carla's indifference aroused his desire to win her attention.
The autumn wind blew the maple leaves from the trees, leaving a pile of long thin leaves on the ground like a red silk. The sight attracted many visitors to come and take photos.
Carla was looking for a quiet place to take a perfect maple leaf scene, but Fred followed her all the time. She was annoyed and frustrated to get rid of the strange man.
Fred grew more and more fascinated in Carla. Knowing Carla was Steven's friend, Fred become more excited. As Steven's family was always strict with him, he was only allowed to date girls who were recommended by his father. If Carla was just Steven's friend, that meant she would only be that. His friend.
As a result, every time a girl approached Steven, Steven could only watch her being chased by his friends.
They would get bold and completely ignore Steven's feelings. They would throw themselves at him and would chase Steven to ask every detail about the new female friend's background in an overwhelming way. In the end, the girl always failed to resist the temptation of sweet words from rich young men like Fred.
"Mr. Su, if you really like Carla, you should take the chance to tell her and be honest with your feelings. Otherwise, I am afraid that Fred will take her away from you!"
Victor reminded Steven with caution.
For so many years that he served Steven, Victor saw this happen many times in the past.
Now Carla finally had her freedom, and Steven had made such an effort to invite Carla to a romantic place like this. The timing and the surroundings were all just perfect.
But Victor noticed that Steven was a little hesitant and did not realize what was going on.
"Mr. Su, I don't mean to offend you, but I think a man should be braver and less indecisive," he politely suggested. "Ms. Carla is single now. If you don't make a move, do you want to give someone else a chance to chase her?" Victor asked.
His sincere concern for Steven was evident.
When he saw that Fred kept moving around Carla with imprudent desire written all over his face, Steven put down his brush and walked towards them.
Victor kept murmuring his last few words, straightened his body and followed Steven's gaze.
"That's right. Men should be less indecisive!"
Although Carla was a divorced woman, she was mature and experienced. In Victor's opinion, Steven could learn a lot from her, especially when it came to love. Definitely, for Steven, it would also be a good thing.
'Mr. Su now needs an experienced woman to guide him, ' Victor thought in his head.
Carla closed her eyes and exhaled deeply.
She tried to ignore the man who kept talking by her side
and said, "Don't be so demure. We are all adults. Besides, we live in a modern society now. It's no big deal to hold hands, right?"
"Maybe you're right, but it also depends on the person," Carla slashed him out. Her voice sounded disappointed and unhappy.
What Fred painted looked just like him. The painting reflected the character of its creator. The red maple on the canvas looked mediocre, almost lifeless.
"Well, just right. Perhaps you're a little better than my daughter," she commented blandly.
"What? Your daughter?"
Fred almost choked on her unexpected comment. "What did you say?" "You have a daughter?" he asked in surprise.
"Yes, my daughter is over three years old now," Carla stated as a matter of fact. "Why? What's the matter?" Carla asked as she gave him a questioning look.
Fred dazed for a while. He froze there as if cold water was splashed on his whole body. He murmured to himself, 'I thought she was a virgin. It turns out she is a married woman, with a kid!'
Anger and embarrassment filled his heart. 'Steven! How could he do this to me? He should have told me this!'
Carla faintly heard the words he said even though Fred tried not to say it out loud.
She turned pale and walked away.
When Steven saw that Carla left unhappily, he realized something was not right. He was about to stand up to follow her but he was stopped by Fred.
"Steven, why didn't you tell me? She is a married woman. Why should I hang out with her? You know that this is the kind of woman I hate the most. Once I get close to her, I will be in trouble."
"Fortunately, I didn't say I love her. If I did, I would be in goddamn trouble..."
He kept on complaining. He didn't even give Steven a chance to speak.
Steven's face darkened and quickly punched Fred in the face.
"Fred! Stay the fuck away from me!" He was overwhelmed with rage. "You're not my friend anymore. You don't deserve to be my friend!"