Chapter 0007

Kristin's jaw dropped at his statement, her hands not leaving her chest.

"You barge in without knocking, and instead of apologizing, you choose to insult me?" she asked, glaring at him.

"Don’t expect an apology from me. I told you to fix yourself up snappily, but you decided to give birth in the bathroom," Richard replied, his face like a ten-thousand-years-old rock.

"Whatever, you should leave so I can get dressed."

"I have no time to waste, Peanut. Make sure you are ready when I come back," he coldly said to her before leaving the room.

"He is so annoying!" Kristin stamped her feet on the ground.

Remembering how Richard called her breasts small buttons, she rushed to the mirror to look at herself.

"It’s just the perfect size! How dare Mr. Grouchy call my breasts small buttons?" Kristin snarled.

Nevertheless, she dressed up hesitantly to avoid witnessing his anger.

She stepped out of the room and met Richard at the doorway.

"I’m ready!" she smiled.

He studied the dress she was wearing. She was slightly skinny, but it seemed the dress was made for her because it suited her perfectly.

"Follow me," he ordered and walked away.

Kristin scoffed lightly before following Richard from behind.

They descended the stairs, and Kristin's mouth dropped open when she witnessed the delicacies on the table.

The professional chefs were carrying out their duties of setting up the table.

There were lots of different kinds of food, and Kristin salivated immediately.

When Richard noticed Kristin wouldn’t stop watching the food on the table like a movie, he grabbed her hand and made her sit on one of the chairs.

The variety of food on the table was enough to feed the entire farming community in Glenwood.

While living with her parents, they only had one particular meal, but right now there were sushi, truffles, oysters, and many others on the table.

"Why aren’t you eating?" Richard asked.

"This will be the first time I’ve had so many meals on the table," Kristin said with a smile, but her eyes were misty.

"Eat as much as you want. We have a lot to do," Richard said.

Kristin nodded with a smile and began eating from different plates, smiling and grinning at the delicious tastes.

Being wealthy is definitely a good thing, Kristin thought to herself, enjoying the tasteful meals on the table, wishing her family were here to experience such luxury.

Kristin was still enjoying her food when she noticed that all the chefs serving them were male.

The chefs numbered in ten, but there wasn’t a single woman among them; the same thing applied yesterday in the fine dining establishment owned by Richard.

Kristin dropped her cutlery, wondering if the rumors about Richard were true.

"Are you done eating? Then let’s leave," Richard tried to stand up, but Kristin’s voice made him sit back down.

"I’m still eating, but I have a question."

"Did I tell you in our contract that you are allowed to ask me questions?"

"It’s important."

"If I find your question annoying, then you won’t like what I will do to you. Are you in?" His baritone voice asked.

Kristin nodded her head, and her eyes went to the chefs.

Richard got her message and sent the chefs away. They didn’t actually live with Richard; their duties were to cook his meals and leave.

"So what’s your question?"

"It’s okay if you are gay; you don’t have to be shy about it, even if you have a high reputation in Vegas," Kristin said.

"What makes you think I’m gay?" he asked, his gray eyes locking onto her brown, attractive eyes.

"It’s so obvious! Every employee you have are all males, there are no single females. It’s impossible not to have female employees."

"To me, it’s possible. I don’t like working with women. Their presence irritates me, I don’t have any business with the opposite gender. I hate them with a passion." His blood boiled and his eyes darkened with every word.

"But I’m from the same gender you hate," Kristin said, counting her words while pointing at herself.

"Then you will be the first woman I will associate with. I only need you to stop the rumors from spreading."

"May I ask why you hate women?"

"My life isn’t your business! I have no plans to ask you about your life, so you should do the same. We are in this marriage to clear my name, not to know more about each other. Understand?"

"Fine." She rolled her eyes and continued eating while Richard concentrated on his phone, no longer eating.

A few minutes later, Luke arrived just in time as Kristin finished eating.

"Luke!" Kristin waved at him with a smile, and Luke returned the smile.

"Good morning, Richard," he greeted with a smile.

Richard nodded and left the house while Luke approached Kristin.

"The dress looks good on you," he smiled.

"You were the one who got it, not Mr. Grouchy?"

"The money is his, but I was the one who got the dress for you. Richard has zero knowledge about women."

"Do you know why he hates women?"

"I'd rather not say. Let’s go; it’s time to get fixed up as Richard’s wife," Luke smiled at her.

They both came out of the house, and Richard was in the back seat as usual, his eyes on his Apple laptop.

He was a workaholic, which is why he became more powerful and influential than his adopted father.

Kristin joined him in the back seat, her head facing the window; she didn’t want any trouble from Richard.

Richard’s eyes didn’t leave his laptop until they arrived at the department store.

There was no one shopping inside the department store because Richard wanted to change how Kristin looked before announcing to the public that she was his wife.

He wanted to turn her into the classy woman everyone would believe he’d go out with. Kristin was far from being classy; it was obvious she grew up in the poorest neighborhood in Glenwood.

Kristin kept looking at the department store, grinning. It was luxurious.

Richard shook his head when he noticed how lost she was while looking at the department store.

A man with gray hair approached them; he owned the store and was accompanied by a few male workers because Luke strictly told him Richard hated the presence of women.

"It’s an honor to see you here, Mr. Richard. My employees will be at your service," the gray-haired man smiled.

Richard ignored him and walked away, but Kristin wasn’t following him, she was still admiring the structure of the department store.

He walked back to her and grabbed her hand unannounced, glaring at her.

Kristin looked elsewhere, knowing the reason for his glare, while Luke chuckled at their drama.

In no time, the shopping for Kristin began. The best designer dresses, bags, and heels were selected for her, and Kristin kept wishing Richard had given her the money.

The next step was her hair; her hairstyle was changed, and with the makeup applied to her face, her expensive strapless dress and heels transformed Kristin from a farmer’s daughter into a classy billionaire’s wife.

Luke could barely recognize her when she came out of the dressing room.

"Is this you or something else?" Luke teased, making Kristin laugh.

"Do I look beautiful?" she asked. Luke gave her a thumbs up, and she grinned.

"Isn’t she done yet?" Richard asked, walking up to them. He was looking for Kristin, unaware she was in front of him.

"She is standing in front of you," Luke said.

"Where?"

"I’m here, Mr. Grouchy," Kristin waved at him, hoping he would notice her presence, her dazzling smile lighting up the room.

Richard’s eyes fell on her, and before he knew it, the magazine he was holding fell from his hands.

He was stunned by Kristin’s beauty.