The woman who had just emerged was none other than Sienna. Seeing her alone, Grayson felt a twinge of confusion—wasn't she inseparable from Sebastian? Why was she here by herself, shopping for clothes?
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
Sienna's surprise at seeing Grayson in such an upscale boutique rivaled his own—even more so, perhaps. Grayson strolling into a place like this was as unlikely as spotting a polar bear on a crowded New York sidewalk.
Her shock barely registered before her gaze flicked to Jasmine at his side. "Are you here with that bitch?" Sienna snapped, rage flaring all at once.
"Yeah, we came together," Grayson admitted, but he frowned immediately. "Sienna, please be respectful to Jasmine."
"Respectful?" Sienna spat, eyes narrowing until it felt like she might burn him alive. "You've been sneaking around with other women behind my back, and now you have the nerve to lecture me on being respectful?"
Madeline, the sales associate, had been wrapping a skirt for Sienna but was carefully watching Grayson. Hearing Sienna's words, Madeline's lips curled in a private smirk. So he really was a playboy after all—he'd already moved on so quickly. He had a girlfriend and here he was, parading another girl around town and buying her expensive clothes. She couldn't wait to see how this would play out.
Meanwhile, Jasmine stood there speechless. Sienna calling her a "bitch" didn't sting so much—she'd been called that by Kayla and her gang countless times, often in worse ways. But Sienna's words felt different, like cold iron sliding into her chest: so Grayson had a girlfriend.
Inside, a wave of sadness washed over Jasmine. She knew now; she was nothing more than a convenient friend or charity case. A slow burn of resentment glowed behind her eyes, that delicate, emotional anger that only women could know. If Grayson already had a girlfriend, why had he been so kind to her? Why had he shown her compassion, worried about her, carried her on his back? But then she chastised herself—he had never crossed a line. They'd never been intimate, and he'd never said they were a couple. He'd simply cared about her. It was she who had mistaken kindness for something more.
Grayson felt speechless as Sienna raged. This woman had dumped him—over a month ago, they'd broken up. Now how could she talk to him as though they were still together? The memory of her subsequent accusations made his chest twist. He glanced toward Jasmine, and what he saw stopped him cold.
Jasmine's eyes shimmered with unshed tears, yet she had forced a faint, trembling smile. Her tear-streaked face betrayed the struggle inside—trying to look brave when her heart was breaking. He felt a rush of guilt: Jasmine had no right to cry. She was the one he had been helping, the one he had carried here. She deserved gratitude, not tears.
Jasmine's voice was small but steady. "Grayson, thank you for making me feel safe the last few days. I'll remember your kindness for a long time."
Then she turned to Sienna. "I'm sorry, but you've got it all wrong. I'm not Grayson's girlfriend. He only sees me as someone in need of help—he's a very kind person, and I hope you always love him."
Jasmine hurriedly covered her face, as if terrified her tears might spill, and bolted for the exit.
"Jasmine!" Grayson called out, his heart pounding. She was about to vanish into the crowded mall. He snatched her arm before she could slip away.
"Let go of me, Grayson!" Jasmine struggled fiercely, but Grayson held his ground. In their struggle, they knocked into each other, almost spilling onto the marble floor.
Sienna watched both of them—frustration and jealousy roiling inside her. Suddenly, she slapped Grayson across the face.
"Grayson, you're such a cad!" she sneered.
Madeline, who had been standing nearby, gasped. Her boss, the new owner of the shop, had just been slapped—and she couldn't stand aside silently.
"Excuse me, ma'am, please don't hit him," Madeline pleaded, stepping forward.
"What makes it your business? Get out of my way!" Sienna snapped, pointing a finger at Madeline. "He deserves every slap I can give him!" Madeline recognized the fury in Sienna's eyes, and convinced that Sienna must indeed be Grayson's girlfriend, she fell silent.
"Don't hit him—let me go!" Jasmine's voice had softened to panic. She truly cared about Grayson, but she had fully assumed Sienna was his girlfriend. She didn't want to cause any more trouble. Straining against his grip, she yanked free and dashed for the exit.
At that moment, a young man strode in. He carried two scoops of ice cream in waffle cones. "Hey, babe!" he called, rushing toward Sienna.
It was Sebastian.
"Oh, there you are," Sienna's face lit up as she hurried to melt into his embrace. "I can't believe it took you so long for those ice creams!"
So of course she had come to the boutique with Sebastian. Earlier, at the sight of the window displays, she'd asked him to fetch some sweets while she browsed inside.
"I've already tried that dress on," she told him, linking her arm through his. "You're so slow!"
Sebastian offered the ice cream and Sienna leaned back against him to take a bite. Both Madeline and Jasmine stood there in utter disbelief, mouths agape. This was the same Sienna who'd just exploded at Grayson—yet here she was, clinging to Sebastian, happily accepting sweets.
"Hey, look who it is—Grayson the loser!" Sebastian sneered, glancing at Grayson and Jasmine. "Still trying to win back Sienna? Please. You're a joke. Sienna dumped you over a month ago, and you're still trotting after her like dog droppings. Move on, loser!"
Hearing that, Grayson's heart twisted into a bitter sort of relief. Sebastian had just said aloud what he'd been thinking: Sienna was someone he'd once dated, but this was his new life. It felt good to see someone finally set him free from that false spotlight.
Madeline and Jasmine registered the truth in Sebastian's words. So Sienna was Grayson's ex-girlfriend, not his current one. She was the one who had walked away. In that moment, Madeline's irritation toward Sienna flared—how dare she act like she still had claim to her boss? How dare she slap him? As though Grayson could never love again!
Jasmine, likewise, felt her earlier misunderstanding melt away. The tight knot of sadness in her chest loosened. She took a step toward Grayson and gently placed a hand on his bruised cheek, concern shining in her eyes. "Are you okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine," Grayson said softly. Though he'd been hit, he said nothing about it—because, in some way, Sienna had been his girlfriend.
"Here—try this on," he told Jasmine, turning back to the white dress she still clutched. "If it fits, we'll buy it."
"Okay," Jasmine replied, letting herself be guided to the fitting room. Earlier, she'd decided she wasn't going to try on that expensive white dress. If Sebastian hadn't arrived just then, pressing Sebastian's own dramatic exit, she might have fled with it already. The thought turned her cheeks pink.
But as Jasmine reached for the dress and prepared to enter the fitting room, Sienna suddenly stepped forward and yanked it from her grasp.
"Hmph—this dress is mine!" Sienna declared, her voice overflowing with petty triumph. "Store clerk, wrap it up for me. I'm done with the blue one; I want this white one."
Her stare at Grayson and Jasmine made it clear: she was marking her territory.
Grayson frowned but paid her no mind. He turned back to Jasmine and picked out a stylish jacket for her. "Try this on," he said, setting it beside her in the fitting room.
"I'm ready to go, babe," Sebastian said, finishing his purchase of the white dress at the register while pulling Sienna close by the waist. Véra Calisé was an expensive boutique—Sebastian hadn't lingered for long, not wanting Sienna to get any more carried away and place a tab he couldn't pay.
"I'm not going anywhere, not yet," Sienna replied, staring daggers at Grayson, who was waiting for Jasmine to emerge from the fitting room.
Inside, her mind roiled with conflicting emotions. How had Grayson, a "loser" in Sebastian's eyes, been able to afford a day like this—treating Jasmine to designer shopping? Unless he'd held onto the prize money from that giveaway… Did he still have tens of thousands in his pockets after donating over eighty thousand? Maybe he was only here to show off his wealth, trying to impress that "bitch" Jasmine.
Pride and jealousy fluttered together inside Sienna. She had broken up with him, yet in her mind, she still insisted that she outranked everyone in his life. Even though she was free to smother Sebastian with affection, she supposed that Grayson must not dare talk to another woman, not without her knowledge. In her twisted logic, he still belonged to her.
Seeing how tender he was with Jasmine drove her nearly mad. She wouldn't let him put Jasmine on equal footing. She simply refused to believe: even though they were broken up, he must still pine for her. She raged inside at the thought of him–accepting Jasmine's presence, buying her clothes, coddling her. If she left now, she would lose her position forever.
No—she thought fiercely—she had to prove she was better than that "bitch." She had to buy more things than Jasmine. She would make him see: she was the one living a higher life.