The single term of address "Mrs. White" left everyone in the room stunned, with their jaws practically hitting the floor.


    This misunderstanding had just gotten much bigger.


    Now, they all knew that I wasn''t Alvin''s significant other but Tom''s.


    In an instant, all eyes locked on me, brimming with curiosity. After all, it was the first time anyone had seen Tom bring a woman to a gathering like this.


    "You weren''t going to exin it to them? Hmm?" Tom''s voice was light as he reached out to ruffle my hair. His teasing tone made my heart skip a beat.


    "I didn''t have the chance to exin. You showed up too fast..." I replied, trying to sound calm.


    "I''ll believe you this time," he said, his fingers trailing down to the back of my neck for a quick, gentle squeeze before letting go.


    But even though the touch was brief, the roughness of his fingertips brushing against my skin left a lingering warmth that I couldn''t quite shake.


    My hand drifted to the back of my neck almost absentmindedly, rubbing the spot as I fought an odd sense of fluster. It was just a casual touch, but the familiarity of it unsettled me.


    It was almost like... I had felt it before...


    I shook the thought from my head. Maybe I was getting too into character, so much so it was starting to mess with my mind.


    "Mrs. White, nice to meet you."


    The group''s voices snapped me back to reality. One by one, they greeted me, all calling me Mrs. White in unison.


    I had never been in a situation like this before. My smile felt stiff as I nodded and greeted them back politely, though I could already feel the muscles in my cheeks aching from the effort.


    "Alright, get lost. Stop crowding around like that!"


    Noticing my difort, Tom waved them off with a yful grin.


    As the group reluctantly backed off, he took my hand and led me toward a corner booth with a plush couch.


    "This whole thing was put together by Alvin. These are all his friends. If you''re feeling bored or overwhelmed, just let me know, and we''ll head home," Tom exined as he sat beside me, draping an arm casually over the backrest behind


    me.


    The gesture was natural yet carried a subtle, almost possessive energy. Despite being shooed away, the group didn''t stray far. They lingered nearby, keeping a distance but still stealing nces at Tom.


    It was clear that within this circle of friends, there was a hierarchy. And Tom, without a doubt, stood at the top of it.


    Not long after, a few people who seemed closer to him wandered over to our booth.


    "Tom, I heard you''re involved in military tech research?" one of them asked. "Yeah," Tom replied with an easy nod, crossing one leg over the other as he leaned back slightly. "Why? Thinking about investing?"


    "Haha, I''d love to! The question is whether you''d even give me the chance..."


    Tom smirked faintly. "There''s a bidding projecting up next month. If anyone''s interested, you can check it out."


    The moment Tom mentioned the uing project, the group immediately buzzed with excitement. They swarmed closer as they talked over one another.


    The atmosphere shifted in an instant, turning lively and animated.


    At first, Tom responded sparingly, offering a few words here and there, but it wasn''t long before he fell mostly silent. Instead, his attention shifted to casually passing me pieces of fruit and snacks.


    "Tom, want to y cards?" someone called out from a nearby table.


    Tom tilted his head toward me. "Want to y?"


    "I don''t know how," I said quickly, shaking my head.


    "Come on. I''ll teach you." Without waiting for further protest from me, Tom took my hand and gently pulled me to my feet, leading me toward the card table.


    At first, my nerves got the better of me. My palms felt slightly sweaty as I clumsily held the cards, unsure of what to do.


    But with Tom standing right behind me and acting as my strategist, I ended up winning several rounds in a row.


    The pile of chips in front of me grewrger andrger, quickly ballooning to an amount worth tens of thousands of dors at the current exchange rate.


    I quickly excused myself, iming I was tired and didn''t want to y anymore.


    I could tell that the other three yers at the table had been deliberately letting me win, all out of respect for Tom.


    And favors like that came with strings. The more you took, the heavier the price. It was best to know when to stop.


    ...


    "By the way, did you guys check out Twitter''s trending topics today? Mandy and Gavin made their rtionship official! I heard they were both married and divorced, and now, they''re back together. True love, huh? After all these years of ups and downs, they still ended up finding each other..."


    The voice came from a man sitting a little ways off, and he was dressed in a loud floral shirt. His tone was animated as he gossiped, but he didn''t seem to notice the sudden shift in the atmosphere.


    "And I heard Gavin''s ex-wife wasn''t exactly innocent either. Apparently, she cheated on him during the marriage, and the guy she cheated with was Gavin''s best pal or something..."


    The man was getting more and more into his story, but just as the words left his mouth, his gaze collided with Tom''s.


    The icy look in Tom''s half-lidded eyes stopped him dead in his tracks.


    The man visibly flinched, the air going out of him in an instant.


    "Sorry about that, Tom. He''s just back from overseas and doesn''t know how things work. Don''t take it personally..." another voice cut in quickly, an edge of nervousness in their tone.


    I pressed my lips together, stealing a nce toward Tom. I felt a faint panic as a realization struck me with rming rity.


    Our messy history-mine with Gavin and now with Tom-was no longer a secret. These people knew. They knew I was Gavin''s ex-wife.