Way Back Into Love (Essie)

"Essie, you've known Zac for a year. In fact, you're already married, and you're saying that you don't know whether he can drive or not?" Lucy demanded, narrowing her eyes at the couple.

Essie paled. "Well, mom, that's because he doesn't own a car. That's why I never asked him if he could drive or not."

Lucy snorted. She obviously wasn't convinced with her excuse. "This just means you don't know each other very well."

"Yes, we do!" she protested.

Wanting to get down to the bottom of this, Lucy turned her gaze to Zac. "Fine. Zac, tell me how much you know about our Essie."

'Shit! I forgot to write that down!' Essie thought to herself.

However, Zac was extremely calm when he answered, "In my opinion, her personality is a combination of contradictions. Although she's indifferent in nature, she's always careful with her money. In fact, every coin is precious to her that she even keeps her trusty notebook to jot down all her expenses. She's easily satisfied, but she's also very ambitious when it comes to her career. She doesn't easily back down from a challenge. Even if it would take days for her to finish even just one design, you can count that she'll be on her work desk for days."

He paused as his eyes gleamed with love. "She loves to laugh. In fact, when she's laughing, she'll grin so crazily that you'll find yourself smiling too. When she's deep in thought, she would hold her chin and squint like those mad scientists you see on TV. When she's making fun of you, she'll twist her lips. When she feels uncomfortable, she'll smile with tears glistening in her eyes. And when she feels sad, she will open her mouth and give you the most exaggerated smiles she could muster before running off to her room."

He took a sip from his tea and continued, "She likes to cry a lot too. In fact, she'll cry even in the smallest of things, but she'll do her best to hide herself while she was doing so. She doesn't want others to see through her weaknesses, so she'll keep a smile on her face before she disappears right in front of you."

While he was talking, Essie's heart trembled. His words were like hands strumming against her heartstrings.

Was he really observing her all this time? Why didn't she notice?

Bob and Lucy shared a look. From what he had said, it seemed that he truly did love their daughter very much.

"The dishes are getting cold. Let's eat," Bob said, smiling.

Zac stood up immediately and picked up some food for them. "Uncle, aunt, please help yourselves," he said respectfully.

Essie would've already swooned if it wasn't for her parents watching their every move. A while ago, he had been so cold towards her, and now, it seemed that he was the perfect son-in-law.

Once they were finished eating, they walked out of the restaurant. Essie couldn't help but feel a little bit worried at the thought of Zac driving the car. "When did you get your driver's license?" she whispered. If he had just gotten his license, then there was no way in hell that she was going to let him drive the car.

"I was eighteen when I got mine," he said carelessly.

"What?" Her jaw dropped. 'How could he have gotten his license at such a young age?'

"Yo-You're a driver like William, right?" Such a conclusion was reasonable given that he had learned to drive at such a young age.

Zac blinked at her words. Sometimes, he wondered if she was brain dead or something for forming such ridiculous conclusions. He coughed and started the engine silently, not even bothering to answer her question.

Taking his silence as a 'yes', Essie quickly fastened her seat belt. "This is a luxury car, so you better drive it carefully," she warned. "Even a scratch could cost us a hundred thousand dollars."

"Don't worry. Besides, there aren't many cars around." A charming smile made its way to his lips.

Essie frowned. One bout of carelessness, and they could spend a lifetime repairing their mistake.

After sending her parents back to the hotel, they returned to their apartment.

Essie peeled two apples and handed one to Zac. "So, you seem to be very observant towards the way I laugh or smile today. Do I really smile that way?" she joked.

Zac shrugged and ate the apple, not bothering to answer her.

However, she wasn't going to let him go that easily. "C'mon! Look what kind of smile I'm showing to you now." Her dimples poked out at the sides of her cheeks as her dark eyes widened with expectation. They looked like large gemstones.

Zac fixated his gaze on her for a moment before turning away. "You have another kind of smile," he noted.

"What is it?" Her thick eyelashes fluttered. He smirked. "That's your flirty smile. It means you're really attracted to me."

Ass! She glared at him. "I'm not attracted to you! You're the one who keeps peeping at me."

"Why would I peep at a dehydrated radish! It's you who always stay around me," Zac snorted, staring at her dotingly. To be honest, he didn't have a thing for her at first, but her damned smile seemed to break all his pretenses. Everything about her seemed to attract him now, leaving an imprint in his mind that he could never forget.

Essie gritted her teeth. She stared at the apple in her hand and imagined that it was Zac's face. Without another word, she took a large bite from the fruit. "I don't even know how your ex could stand you," she murmured.

"Well, it's none of your business." Zac rolled his eyes.

"They probably couldn't stand you. That's why they broke up with you!" Only someone as crazy as Mandy could tolerate such a cold man.

While they were talking with one another, Bob and Lucy were preparing to test their son-in-law's moralities. Lucy, who had experienced her ex-husband's betrayal, cared very much of one's loyalty. Since her son-in-law was incredibly handsome, they planned to test his loyalty for their daughter first.