Loving The Temperamental Adonis
Chapter 192: Fighting over a dress

Chapter 192: Fighting over a dress

As Mia completed her purchase in the men’s boutique and asked for a special wrap to wrap up the gift, she couldn’t help but feel a surge of satisfaction knowing that she had found the perfect gift for Neil. Even though it had cost her a fortune she was still pleased with it. For the past five years she’d been working as the main host of TalkWave Productions, she’d managed to gather a huge amount of wealth that would last her for two decades even if she were to stop working, which she didn’t plan on doing anytime soon but was just taking a break.

Now that she’d gotten Neil a gift, she had one more thing to get, a beautiful dress suitable for the party. Though she’d turned down countless invitations after her return, she wasn’t going to turn down this one even if she were to be the center of attention at the party. People would talk and insult her, but they wouldn’t do that forever, they’d soon get tired of her rumors and move on with their lives.

With the cuff in hand, Mia continued her exploration of the mall, her heart filled with anticipation and contentment. After walking around the mall for awhile, she came across a women’s boutique with beautiful dresses that caught her eyes, though this boutique wasn’t as quiet as the men’s, there were few women browsing through the high-brand dresses. However, Mia didn’t turn away and walked in instead. She’d been turning away from crowded areas like some criminal, she wasn’t going to do that this time around.

She walked into the boutique and to her delight the women were too busy browsing through their phones and dresses to notice her, thus she walked around the boutique to quickly grab what she wanted and pay.

She didn’t have to search for long before her eyes were drawn to a stunning dress displayed on a nearby mannequin. The dress was an exquisite creation, crafted from flowing silk chiffon in a vibrant shade of emerald green. Its bodice was adorned with intricate beading, while its flowing skirt cascaded elegantly to the floor, creating a vision of timeless beauty.

Immediately captivated by the dress, Mia felt a surge of excitement coursing through her veins. It was as if the dress had been tailor-made for her, its vibrant hue and luxurious design speaking to her soul in a way that no other garment had before, in short the dress was one of the most beautiful dresses she’d ever set eyes on!

Determined to get a closer look, Mia began to approach the mannequin. However, as she reached out to touch the fabric, a sudden realization struck her—mall rules prohibited customers from handling the merchandise without the assistance of a boutique assistant.

Turning around to seek out an assistant, Mia scanned the boutique, but to her dismay, there was no one in sight. With a frustrated sigh, she resigned herself to waiting for assistance as she knew they’d have seen her standing here through the CCTV cameras, her eyes still fixed on the mesmerizing dress before her.

As Mia was contemplating to go and look for one of the assistants or wait for them to notice her, she suddenly heard the sounds of clicking heels and voices approaching from behind her, turning around at the sound of the voices thinking the assistants were coming to assist her, however, her anticipation was short-lived as she saw three women along with two boutique assistants, one of whom she recognized all too well—Elena Fanning, her relentless rival from the office who’d replaced her position as the main host.

"Bring down the dress, I like it," Elena declared to the boutique assistant with a smirk, her tone dripping with arrogance as she laid claim to the garment which Mia had already set eyes on before her. Elena had seen Mia entering the boutique awhile ago, she’d been surprised the woman had the guts to still walk around the city after what had been trending online about her, and because Elena couldn’t allow this opportunity to pass by without her rubbing it in Mia’s face, she’d decided to buy the dress.

Before Mia could react, Elena’s gaze turned towards her, her voice cut through the air with a mocking laughter. "Well, well, well, look who’s finally decided to walk into the lion’s den," she sneered, her gaze locking onto Mia with a mixture of disdain and amusement. "Long time no see, Miss Harrison. I’m surprised you can still walk around after such intense activities you did last week. Tsk, I never knew you were such a whore, you should be a pornstar rather than a show host."

Mia hid her frustration and anger behind a smile as she tried not to look angry at Elena’s words. Though she had no idea what activities Elena was referring to, she decided not to pay heed to her insults as she knew the young woman would do anything to put Mia ’back in her place’ like she’d always claimed. Mia sigh as she glanced at the other two women behind Elena who were looking at her like she was a trash beneath their feet. She then said calmly, "Actually, Elena, I saw this dress first, I was just about to call for assistance to try it on."

Elena’s laughter echoed through the boutique, a cruel sound that grated on Mia’s nerves like nails on a chalkboard. "Oh, please," she scoffed, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "There’s no way you saw this dress before me. Even if you did, you won’t be able to afford it. You don’t have a job anymore, remember?" She continued, "In case your manager failed to inform you, the company has decided to terminate your employment completely. And just so you’re aware, the co-host position has been given to Claire. Isn’t that right, Claire?" She turned to the young woman on her right, and Claire nodded with a smug grin.

"Yes, Elena is correct. I was offered the position this morning, and your name has been removed. If you doubt us, you can check with your manager."

Mia was momentarily stunned; she had received an email from her manager earlier that day but had forgotten to read it before Rayne arrived to pick her up. Could it be that her manager had emailed her to notify her about...

Initially, Mia tried to maintain her composure, but the anxiety became too much to bear, prompting her to want to check the email right now. She retrieved her phone and calmly read through the message, and, to her dismay she had indeed been dismissed from her job entirely, not even the co-host position was available. The justification cited was the online videos trending about her, and the company wanted to disassociate from someone like her. Her manager even suggested that she should leave the country if she wished to start anew elsewhere.

What videos? Apart from her press conference videos, she knew of no other videos. Mia thought as she felt her heart sink from the realization that she no longer had a job. Her hands shook but she controlled her emotions knowing the women before her were waiting and watching to see her break down. She’d always known Elena Fanning was jealous of her ever since she’d joined the company as the face of the entertainment industry and now that she’d successeded in taking her position, she’d do anything to want to step on her further, thus Mia tried not to show her hurt.

"It’s no big deal," Mia said, "I’ll get another job in no time, you can shove it down your throat. What I know now is that I am going to buy this dress because I saw it before you did."

Elena scoff, "You seem so full of yourself. You are a nobody now, and I’m certain you will soon return to the slums you emerged from. If I were you, I’d start saving the little money I have left. Oh, I forgot, you can always rely on selling what you have between your legs to make a living once you fall from grace. You don’t belong with us anyway. I’ll spare you the embarrassment; just leave the mall and don’t insist on dragging the dress with me."

Mia refused to let Elena intimidate her, not when she had a dress to claim as her own. She’d intended to use Neil’s black card to buy the dress before, but she’d had a change of heart after Elena’s remarks. She realized that using a card with Xavier Galverra’s name on it would only lead to being labeled as someone who relies on men for financial support. Retrieving her own card, Mia turned to the assistant and asked, "How much does the dress cost?"

The assistant sneered at that question because from what she’d seen, Mia wouldn’t be able to afford it and she wasn’t going to waste her time on someone as worthless as a whore. Thus, she turned to Elena and said, "There’s only one of this dress in the world and it was designed with rare materials. If you like it you can try it on, it’s only costs 4 million dollars."

Elena’s smug expression faltered. Though she had meant to buy the dress to rub it on Mia’s face, hearing the price made her waver a bit. She had only 5 million dollars in her account, buying this dress would drain her account to one million. However, knowing that she’d get double that price now that she had taken Mia’s position she didn’t hesitate to say, "I will buy it!"

Mia calmly stated, "Not while I’m here, Miss Fanning. It’s either I purchase that dress or none of us will." If it had been someone else, Mia would have been willing to let go of the dress easily. However, knowing that Elena was only attempting to bring her down further by buying the dress, she was determined to not let that happen, beside she’d loved the dress at first sight.

Elena approached the assistant and grabbed the dress from her, saying, "Let me see you try to take this dress." She then turned to her friends and instructed, "Girls, if she attempts to prevent me or interfere with the cashier, make sure she learns a lesson she won’t soon forget, even if it means resorting to physical force."