When We Meet Again
Chapter 30

Walking into the boutique with Melvin, Charlotte had to put on a fake smile. She had no reason to be happy; she never wanted to be there in the first place. "You should make your smile a bit natural. It's obvious that you are faking it." Melvin mumbled.

Charlotte scoffed. If he had not made this decision for her, she would not have been there in the first place, let alone fake a smile. She could not understand why he had insisted on shopping for new clothes for her when she had enough in her closet. She was also certain that the ones he had made her wear during dinner nights, social gatherings, and family visitations, not to mention but a few would be lying around somewhere in the house. Then why buy new ones? She wondered. Isn't that a waste of resources?

Charlotte shrugged. In as much as she didn't want him to spend his money on her, she was aware that Melvin would do that without asking for her opinion. So she decided not to dwell on that for too long.

She decided that she would try to make her smile more natural so they could get things done as soon as possible. Shw tried to be more relaxed hoping that her smile would come out naturally but she couldn't help it. She just had no reason to be happy. She tried to think of the things that made her happy. One of the things she could think of was her conversation with Mia in the morning. Thinking about that made her smile.

"That is more like it," Melvin said but Charlotte ignored him.

All she wanted was to get this shopping thing done as soon as possible so she could go home. Charlotte began to look around as they walked through the boutique to wherever Melvin was taking her. This was Charlotte's first time visiting a boutique used by the rich; she had always visited shops where clothes were cheaper before her marriage and now that she is married to Melvin, her clothes are always delivered to the house.

Charlotte could not see anything special about the boutique. There wasn't much difference with most of the boutiques she had visited before her marriage; except for the structure of the building and maybe the clothes they sell. "I know you haven't been to a place like this before. But you can't keep staring like that."

Charlotte scoffed. Melvin must think she was staring because she isn't used to places like this but she was only staring so she could compare.

"You must think this place is special," Charlotte answered. "There is nothing to stare at."

Melvin gave no reply to what Charlotte said but instead, he led her to the section where female clothes were hung. Charlotte stared at the clothes in front of her. These can't be the clothes he picked for her, are they? She thought.

Most of the clothes hung on the rack were either too short or too exposed. She was sure they weren't the ones chosen by Melvin.

"Are these the clothes you chose?" She went on to ask.

"Do you like them short and exposed?" Melvin asked.

Charlotte wasn't sure if he was asking her a question or teasing her. She decided not to give him a reply and just watched what he planned to do.

Melvin touched one of the dresses. "This would have looked good on her if she was a bit chubby."

His voice was so low that Charlotte doubted he wanted her to hear it. She was also not sure if he was referring to her or his girlfriend.

"How may I help you?" The sales receptionist asked.

"My wife here needs some beautiful clothes and I want the best," Melvin answered.

"Then you have come to the right place," the receptionist answered.

"Let's see what you've got," Melvin said

"Let's see what you've got," Charlotte mimicked.

The receptionist gestured to some ladies and they nodded. They left and returned with racks filled with different varieties of clothes, from gowns to shirts, to skirts and trousers. The receptionist began to explain how some of the clothes were limited edition. Charlotte stared at the set of clothes in front of her. They are all beautiful; Melvin has a good sense of fashion.

But would they not be too expensive? She wondered. If they are limited editions, they will definitely, be expensive.

She saw the dress worn by her favorite celebrity a few days ago. She had said that there were only three of the dresses in the country and two had already been bought and Charlotte had stared at the dress dreamily, wishing she could get the last one available. Charlotte was aware of how expensive the dress would be so she could only dream about having it. And when her favorite celebrity announced later that night that the last piece had been booked by someone she didn't know yet, Charlotte knew she could only dream about it.

If it has been booked as her celebrity had said, why is this here? She wondered. Is Melvin the one who booked it? Did he know that she wanted it and had brought it to her so she could choose it or it was nothing but a coincidence? That dress wasn't the only one Charlotte could recognize. Most of the clothes were either worn by their local celebrities or just brought into the country after being advertised by international celebrities.

Why would Melvin spend so much money just to get her things like this? She wondered. Is it really, just to make the media believe they have a happy home or there is more to it?

Charlotte shrugged off the thought immediately; she was getting her hopes up again. She needed to caution herself or she would get hurt.

It doesn't matter what Melvin gets for her today. She knows that they were all part of his plans and she should not be swayed by them. She sighed. She will just play along with whatever game he is playing in the boutique and also whatever he plans to do in Paris; if it's not going to hurt her or anyone. Then when she gets the chance she will return everything he had bought for her and also refund him the money for the plane ticket

Charlotte smiled. "These are beautiful, honey."

Melvin stared at her. He was certain that her smile was genuine.

Is she only trying to play along or does she love them for real?

This was one of Ryan's suggestions to take her to the boutique and buy her clothes, shoes, and bags.

"Women do not say no gifts. Especially clothes and shoes and bags." He had told him during their meeting. "Every woman loves being spoiled."

Melvin wasn't sure if Charlotte was one of this every woman Ryan was talking about but he still decided to give it a go. With the genuine smile on Charlotte's face, Melvin could not help but think that Ryan's theory might be right. "Darling," Melvin began. "You should make your choice."

Charlotte smiled. "I don't think I can make a choice. I might be tempted to take everything. They are so beautiful."

Charlotte hoped that asking Melvin to pick would make him pick less but his reply shocked her.

"We want everything on the racks in her size."

Charlotte blinked. Did he just say that?

"You are joking right?" Charlotte mumbled.

"Of course not." He answered. He faced the receptionist. "While your girls get those ready. How about you lead us to the shoes and bag section, we need some shoes and bags."

Charlotte's heart skipped a beat. What is Melvin up to?

**

The shopping ended and they went to the restaurant close by to have a meal before they headed back home. While they sat down to eat, Charlotte kept looking around for reporters but she could find none; she did not see anyone in the boutique either and that made her wonder if Melvin made up the media showing up to make her operate.

She was tempted to ask him about the media he had claimed would be coming, but she decided against it. Instead, she decided to look out for people that are looking or acting suspiciously but she found none too.

"I have told you, you can't keep looking around like that," Melvin said, cleaning her lips slightly.

He had picked up a serviette a while ago to clean Charlotte's mouth so the media could capture it. He is the only one who knows where the media are and all he wants from Charlotte is to act naturally but instead, she seems suspicious of everything.

"I know you are looking for the media. They are here but you can't see them. I know you do not believe me now but when you see the news..." He smiled. "You will."

Charlotte sighed. Melvin already has it all planned out. She is not meant to know what the plan is but she is expected to go along with the plan.

How is she supposed to do that?