Although Vivienne had her phone back, her face had turned even paler than before. A sense of silence enveloped the two of them, with Asher standing quietly without uttering a word, and Vivienne's mind in chaos, naturally unable to say anything either.After a while, Vivienne finally regained her senses and realized that they were now standing at the entrance of a building. The security guard at the entrance had been staring at them with a strange look for a while."Let's leave here first," she said, taking just two steps before being pulled back by Asher."Why did Ezra call you?" he asked coldly, his fingers gripping her wrist bone, applying increasing pressure."Pain!" Vivienne exclaimed, her brows furrowing in pain."Does it hurt?" he lowered his head, looking at her wrist, and suddenly lifted it up. "It's red," he said.A red mark had appeared on her delicate wrist, where he had squeezed it."Then let go of me," she said, attempting to slightly twist her wrist, only to feel him gri
"Where are we going?" Vivienne couldn't help but ask.Asher remained silent as he drove, not answering her.After half an hour, the car stopped in front of a building in the city center. He pulled her inside the lobby.By the entrance of the lobby stood two rows of staff members who bowed and greeted Asher in unison, creating a scene that made Vivienne feel like she was watching a scene from a TV drama.A middle-aged man in a black suit approached them and said to Asher, "The representatives from Germany are already waiting.""Okay." Asher led Vivienne to the elevator and they stepped in.The middle-aged man followed along, curious about Vivienne's identity, but he maintained a composed demeanor, not looking at her much.After all, having been by Asher's side for several years, he was well aware of his boss's usual style and personality. This was the first woman he had seen Asher walking hand in hand with.The elevator reached the 23rd floor. As Vivienne stepped out of the elevator, s
"Sorry, miss, I'm really sorry," the waiter apologized repeatedly, looking uneasy."It's okay," Vivienne replied. She knew she could just wash her shoes and socks later. It was just uncomfortable to have them wet at the moment."I'll go get some tissues, please wait," the waiter said, about to leave, but then he stopped abruptly.He saw the CEO, who had been engaged in a conversation with the German delegates, suddenly walking straight towards the woman in front of him, asking, "What's wrong?""It's nothing, just my shoes got splashed with champagne," Vivienne waved her hand, thinking that maybe she could use this as an excuse to leave early.However, in the next moment, Asher bent down and lifted her horizontally in his arms.A gasp went through the crowd. Who would have expected the usually aloof CEO to suddenly embrace a woman in such a public setting?Vivienne was dumbfounded as she saw Asher carry her to a nearby sofa chair and gently place her on it.She was only a little wet fr
"So, don't go," he lowered his head, his forehead almost touching hers. "Let me hold you like this forever."She was stunned.He suddenly chuckled softly. "Now, you can only rely on me. You can't leave, can you?"His smile was enchanting yet childish, captivating enough to make it difficult to look away.And her heart was in chaos.As Asher carried Vivienne into the car, she said, "You should have your employees bring the shoes here now. They're just a little wet, and I can change them as soon as I get back to my dorm.""Do you have to wear shoes?" he asked."Yes," she nodded firmly. She couldn't possibly let him carry her all the way back to her dorm at school.He pursed his lips, then suddenly started the car. However, instead of heading to Vivienne's school, they drove to a nearby boutique mall.When Asher carried Vivienne into a shoe department, her ears were already burning with embarrassment. The saleswoman behind the counter looked at the two of them with curious eyes."Which p
Ezra's phone call to her was undoubtedly the trigger, and now Asher was on the verge of exploding, despite his current indifferent yet icy demeanor.She moistened her slightly dry lips and replied, "I don't feel anything.""Really?" His eyes narrowed slightly.She didn't avoid his gaze but raised her head halfway, meeting his gaze directly.Their eyes met in the air. After a while, he finally lowered his eyelids slightly. "Okay, I believe you. I said before, whatever you say, I believe."Unexplainably, when Asher said those words, Vivienne didn't feel relieved. On the contrary, she felt a heavy, uncomfortable sensation in her chest, as if something was pressing on it."You believe everything I say?" she blurted out."Yes," he said, taking her hand and placing it on the left side of his chest where his heart was.Her palm felt his heartbeat."I believe everything you say, even if it's a lie."Breathing seemed to become difficult. She stared at him in a daze. "Aren't you going to ask me
He brought her hands to his lips, gently pressing kisses onto her hand, as if imprinting them one by one. "Do you always need a reason to like someone?" he murmured, his cold voice flowing like a gentle stream. "When I met you at the age of six, I just felt that there was a lot of light emanating from you. I thought that if I were with you, I would feel warmth. So I hoped that you would only look at me, talk to me, and play with me. That was the first time I understood the meaning of 'hope.' Before that, the word was just a combination of letters without any significance."He paused and closed his eyes, rubbing his cheek against the back of her hand. "Vivi, you said, is this love at first sight? If it is, then I think I fell in love with you back then. If it's not, then in the future, I will only understand what it means to experience heart-wrenching, bone-deep pain because of you. You once said that only when you truly love someone, you can feel that kind of pain."Vivienne stared at
His thin lips slowly approached her. "Vivi, accept me," he whispered.She hesitated for a moment, but her body remained still as she watched his lips getting closer until they pressed against hers.He kissed her gently, softly, like a gentle breeze brushing against her face. It was just a simple touch of their lips, as if they were only trying to feel each other's warmth.Vivienne's body remained motionless, her hands clutching her skirt. This was the first time she truly accepted his kiss. Even though she had agreed to be in a relationship with him, she hadn't fully adapted to the idea of kissing yet.After an unknown amount of time, he finally ended the kiss."You didn't push me away," he smiled, his fingertips lightly brushing her lips.A blush appeared on her face. "I should go back to school. Take care on your way," she said, then opened the car door and got out.Because of the incident with the circulated photos on the internet, Vivienne was afraid that if Asher appeared at the
"So, you refuse to come back to me because of Asher?" His voice sounded cold behind her.She suddenly remembered Asher's question earlier in the day, asking if she hesitated to say the word "okay" because of Ezra. And now, Ezra was asking her a similar question. Taking a deep breath, she turned around. "Yes."Her simple one-word answer pierced his eardrums, and his face darkened. His fingers clenched until his nails dug into his palms."So, you willingly let him kiss you?" he asked.Vivienne paused for a moment, then realized, "You saw it?" From where Ezra's car was parked, he could indeed see what had happened between her and Asher inside the car."Whether I willingly let him or not is none of your concern, Mr. Donovan," Vivienne replied.None of your concern! These words, coming from her mouth, felt like needles, pricking at every nerve in his body."Whether it's my concern or not, try and find out!" he said coldly, taking quick steps toward her.What does he mean?! Before Vivienne