"How come?" Lisa replies with a pleasing smile, "I like uniqueness."

"Really?" Evan asks with a mysterious smirk.

Avery stands in front of him with a condescending expression, observing the room like she's an outsider. Evan can't believe she's making that expression again— it's her don't-give-a-damn look. His pupils suddenly narrow and he smirks with malicious intent.

"Go get a dress from backstage," he commands Robert.

"What?" Robert hesitates, "They only have costumes back there."

The costumes kept backstage are flamboyant and revealing—designed for stripteases and pole dances. Robert knows he won't be able to find anything that will fit in with the elegant, designer looks at the women in the private room wear.

Lisa's look darkens. She's worried she overstepped her boundaries and hurries to explain herself.

"Evan, I'm only joking, I don't mind having the same dress like others. And I don't want to put on costumes. They're ugly."

"Who says I want you to wear them?" Evan replies.

"You mean—?" Lisa's question trails off as she turns to stare at Avery in amazement.

"Evan intends to make Avery wear it?" Lisa wonders.

The rich and spoiled women in the room gasp. They're shocked to find out that Avery occupies such an inferior position in her marriage—they've never been treated like that in their lives.

Robert is stunned too.

"Is this Evan's way of punishing Avery for not giving a damn?" Robert wonders.

"Hurry up already," Evan snaps irritably.

Robert jumps upon hearing Evan's voice, almost tripping in the process. He then hastens to leave. Avery stands in the middle of the room like she's the star exhibit in some sort of freak show. Evan and Lisa have resumed flirting as if nothing else in the world matters to them.

Avery wants to leave the room, but she doesn't dare to do or say anything for fear that she'll find herself in an even more humiliating position. The people in the room are like predators who enjoy toying with their prey—they get off on watching their prey's vain struggles as it dies. Avery knows that if she doesn't struggle, they'll quickly become bored—there's no fun in teasing her if she doesn't struggle.

Avery doesn't want to agitate Evan for fear he might tear his wounds. After all, he's injured because he saved her from the broken glass. Evan looks at Avery coldly, waiting for her to unsheathe her sharp claws. It's unlike her to submit without a fight. He feels his heart shrink as he sees the tinge of frustration in her eyes. Evan tightly clenches his glass, fighting the urge to apologize and ask her to come to his side.

Before Evan can speak, Robert pushed the door open. He carries a hanger from which a black leather suit hangs like the skin of a wildcat. Robert feels chills creep up his spine as every woman in the room turns to stare at him. He scoured the entire dressing room to try to find a costume, but most of them were either too erotic or too small.

He knows Evan well enough to understand that his boss would shoot him in the head if he returned with that sort of outfit for Avery. He felt immediate relief the moment he saw the leather ensemble.

"Mrs. Howel," Robert says embarrassed as he hands it over to Avery.

He averts his eyes awkwardly because there's no private space in the room for Avery to change in. Lisa gives Robert a complaining look; she's surprised and disappointed that he got a one-piece leather suit for Avery. If it were up to her, she'd find something that only a strip club dancer would wear.

"Evan is doing this for me, though," Lisa reassures herself, "And by the look of it, Evan wants Avery to change in public—how humiliating."

Evan glances at Avery, "Why aren't you changing?"

"Mrs. Howel, there is a changing room next door," Robert tells Avery.

"No need," Avery says lightly as she takes the suit from Robert, "I'll change right here."

She levels a stubborn look at Evan and reaches to loosen the zipper at the back of her dress. Avery's fair back seems to glow in the dim room. Before Robert can stop her, she unzipped her dress to her bottom. Robert is completely astonished.

"Only Avery would dare to cross the line in this way," he thinks.

Evan squeezes the glass with more force, causing a small crack to appear in the fine crystal. He is on the edge of bursting into a rage.

"How dare she take off her dress in front of so many people," he thinks.

Avery gives Evan a challenging look. She knows that he's petty and possessive. He will be completely humiliated if she gets undressed in front of so many bodyguards and Robert.

"He's such a hypocrite," she thinks, "He has this mad, enraged look but he's the one who asked me to change!"

Avery pulls her dress down a little more, shimmying seductively as she lowers the neckline. Evan's eyes burned with rage as he stares at her exposed skin—at any moment her cleavage will be completely revealed. Everyone is stunned. No one expected that Avery would change in public, least of all Lisa who heard from Cindy that Avery has an odd and haughty temperament.

Avery pulls the collar down with one hand and peels the tight fabric away from her skin in a flirtatious way. Evan grinds his teeth so hard that blue veins bulge on his forehead. Before she can expose her bra, he suddenly moves to wrap her in his jacket, "That's enough!"

"This outrageously audacious woman!" Evan roars to himself, "I only wanted to provoke some reaction from her, but of course she took it all too far!"

He wishes he had the heart to strangle her, but he knows he doesn't.

Avery lifts her jaw up and looks at him provokingly, "Didn't you ask me to change?"

Evan presses his lips together and holds her in his arms tightly. He grabs her hands in one of his to prevent her from continuing to undress.

"Take off your dress," Evan orders coldly.

Everyone is stunned: he points at Lisa as he speaks.

"Evan!" Lisa protests.

"Don't you understand English?" Evan roars, "Take your clothes off."

Lisa's expression changes for the worse.

"Avery really has some tricks up her sleeves," she thinks bitterly, "Who would have thought she could be such a seductress? She made Evan change his mind in an instant."

"Evan asked you to take off your dress," Veronica Smith reminds Lisa in a gloating voice.

"It's probably because he wants to see your impeccable body," whispers one of Lisa's more supportive friends.

Lisa gets up and reluctantly unzips her dress. She stands in the center of the room showing off her lacy bra and thong, and the dress falls in a crumpled heap at her feet. Her underwear does little to hide what's underneath—she is almost naked in front of everyone. Evan stares at Avery in his arms, completely ignoring the sexy, half nude creature in front of him.

"Evan," Lisa calls Evan's name flirtatiously trying to draw his attention to her.

She's never met a man who wasn't extremely turned on by her body. Evan seems to be the one exception.

Robert covers his eyes and hands the costume to Lisa, "Please get dressed, Miss Lisa."

He doesn't have the courage to look at her for fear of somehow angering Evan.

Lisa reluctantly steps into the leather suit. The tight, black leather covers her body completely, fitting her like a glove. Even though she's revealing less skin, she looks sexier than before.

"It fits like it was made for you," Avery says, lifting her head from Evan's arm, "Robert, you have good taste."

Evan follows Avery's gaze to look at Lisa, but as he looks, he slides one hand under the jacket, to caress her bareback. Avery can't help frowning. She can't believe Evan would caress her back in public and act like he isn't doing anything. She wants to make him stop, but doesn't want to draw attention to his shameless behavior.