Chapter 4

"Tessa, didn't… Didn't you go to the orphanage?"

She pointed at the snacks on the ground. "I came here to buy something for the children."

Henry wanted to hide the shopping bags, but it was pointless. His hands were filled with them. "I… I'm here to accompany my boss' daughter to do some shopping. He has work today, so he got me to come shopping with her. I didn't buy any of these."

The more he explained, the more guilty he felt. His last words were the most unconvincing.

Tessa looked at the glaring brand logos on the shopping bags. Even though she did not recognize any of them, it was not difficult to guess how expensive they were when a mere set of lipsticks was worth a hundred thousand dollars.

"I didn't realize your boss was so rich."

Henry did not reply for fear of saying something wrong. He put the shopping bags down to help Tessa pick up all the snacks.

Serene smiled as she walked over. She placed her long, slender, and fair fingers on Henry's shoulder to stop him.

"Tessa, he shouldn't help you even if he's your boyfriend. He still needs to shop with me. That's his job today."

That was when Henry paused in his steps and looked hesitantly at Tessa. "My boss gave me the orders, Tessa. I…"

"I understand. I'll handle this on my own. You should continue shopping." Tessa stopped him from saying more.

What did she do to deserve an heir and heiress putting on a show for her? All she wanted was for them to leave.

Tessa crouched to the ground and started picking up the snacks.

Henry's fingers twitched, but Serene dragged him off in the end.

…

Every child in the orphanage was happy to see the snacks. They chattered while surrounding Tessa. She looked at the pure smiles on their faces and finally felt a tinge of warmth in her heart.

The director was curious to see her alone. "Where's Henry? Why isn't he here with you?"

Tessa pursed her lips. She had no idea what to answer.

The director thought they had gotten into an argument when she saw Tessa's reaction. She patted Tessa's shoulder and tried to advise her. "I watched you grow up, Tessa. I know you've always wanted a family of your own.

"Henry works three jobs a day just to save enough money to marry you. He stands up for you in the face of danger and always has fun with the children whenever he drops by the orphanage. You can tell from all of these that he's a good man. He's worth living your life with.

"Don't make any rash decisions out of anger. You should sit down with him and talk things through if there are any problems between you."

Tessa was filled with bitterness. She did not tell the director about Henry's cancer misdiagnosis. The director had no idea that Tessa even sold a kidney to 'save' him, only to find out everything was a lie.

The couple had spent every night and day together for two years. Tessa knew very well how good Henry was to her. However, she had given him her heart too. That was why her heart was filled with so much pain when she found out the truth. It shattered her.

When Tessa got home, Henry had prepared a table full of food for her.

"It was my job to accompany my boss' daughter as she shopped today, Tessa. I had no choice but to leave you there alone. I promise never to leave you behind like that again once I earn enough money."

He sounded apologetic and reproachful of himself.

Tessa had heard many similar lies from him. She no longer felt anything. All she did was grunt a reply and sat down to eat.

It could be because of their awkward encounter earlier, but they had their meal in silence.

Henry put down the cutlery and took out a box, handing it to her.

"It must've been hard on you to take care of me at the hospital, Tessa. My boss' daughter was in a good mood today, and she gave me a tip. I bought this present specially for you. Open it up and have a look."

Tessa took the box from Henry as he looked expectantly at her. She opened the box and saw that it was lipstick. The logo on the box looked exactly like the one on the set of lipsticks he bought for Serene earlier that day.

However…

Tessa felt the sticky bottom of the box and smiled sarcastically. The label must have been freshly peeled off. She did not have much knowledge of high-end brands, but she knew that only complimentary gifts would have labels stuck on them.

Henry had given her a free gift but bought Serene a set of lipsticks worth a hundred thousand dollars.

Tessa was probably just an orphan to Henry, and that was why she only deserved free gifts like this.

Henry was surprised by the lack of emotions on Tessa's face. She used to treat his gifts like treasures, but she did not react to his gift today.

"What's wrong? You don't like the shade? I don't understand cosmetics, so I got the staff to pick the shade for me."

Tessa put the box aside and shook her head. "There's no need to spend anything on me."

They were about to break up, after all. She did not want to be financially entangled with him in any way.

Henry sighed with relief. 'It seemed like she didn't want me to waste money like this.' He thought.

A familiar, adoring smile appeared on his face. "It's only right for me to spend money on my girlfriend. Besides, you spent your life savings on me. I should be spending on you too."

Tessa pursed her lips slightly but said nothing. She was exhausted from all the traveling today. She took a bath and went to bed early.

She was still sleeping the next morning when she was woken up by a call. She was still in a daze when Lawrence's anxious voice was heard on the other end of the call.

"Someone reported that your graduation thesis utilized fake data. The university wants to investigate your work."