Chapter 33
Elizabeth's POV
Watching him bend over clumsily, trying to clean up, I couldn't help but think of the dozens of servants in his family's villa.
This young master who'd lived a privileged life since childhood clearly had never done any housework.
When Alex accidentally kicked up dust again, I watched him cough continuously and walked over, taking the cleaning tool from his hand.
"Why don't you go rest? I can handle this myself."
Aiden must have come alone, the damage wasn't too severe. I could manage cleaning up by myself, even if it took a while.
Alex frowned at my words, as if trying to prove something, and picked up the broom again, sweeping right in front of me.
"Pretty stubborn," I muttered under my breath.
"What did you say?"
Alex looked over. I quickly turned around, hiding my guilty expression, and said boldly, "Nothing, just feeling grateful. Thank you, Mr. Windsor. You're really a good person."
'You're really a good person.'
Hearing myself say that, it felt somewhat sarcastic, but luckily Alex didn't make a big deal of it.
Two people cleaning was more efficient than one. Before long, the entire villa had been cleaned.
I was exhausted, wiping sweat and panting, while Alex had only removed his jacket. Apart from his white shirt being damp with sweat, he seemed unchanged.
His whole being radiated an air of refined elegance, showing no sign of having just finished housework.
Maybe because my gaze was too intense, Alex frowned and looked over. I quickly looked away and said with a light cough, "Let me treat you to a meal."
"You have money?" His skeptical tone left me unable to argue back.
In his eyes right now, I was just a vulnerable woman abandoned by that scumbag Aiden, who had worked for free for him for so long, a penniless woman!
Though I could mention my designer identity, it didn't seem necessary for someone of Alex's status.
"There are different ways to enjoy food depending on your budget. It's mealtime now, and I can't let you go hungry!"
I ordered grocery delivery and went to the kitchen to get things ready.
"The kitchen equipment all works. At least that bastard Aiden didn't smash things here." I carefully checked the utensils, completely unaware of the increasingly intense gaze behind me.
After confirming everything was fine, I turned around and immediately bumped into a solid chest. The pain made me clutch my forehead.
"Why are you standing behind me so quietly!" I complained softly.
Alex's eyes looked down at me coldly, making my heart skip a beat. I instinctively looked away.
I almost forgot the gap between our statuses was huge. I needed to be careful around him.
"You can cook too?" Alex stood beside me, his eyes full of scrutiny.
I nodded, "Of course. You can also order what you want, and I'll try to make it to your taste."
Alex didn't respond.
I busied myself, and when the ingredients arrived, I quickly prepared a fairly generous spread and invited Alex to try it.
"Thank you for bringing me here and helping me clean."
After all, just imagining it, I couldn't have pictured him being able to do all this.
Alex wasn't interested in my small talk. He cut straight to the point, "Everything you cared about has been taken away. Don't you plan to do something about it?"
I clenched my fists, immediately understanding what he meant.
The fact was, Aiden had taken everything and left me with nothing.
"Of course I'll take it all back. I absolutely won't let Aiden get away with this." Flames of anger burned in my eyes. Looking at the food in front of me, I'd even lost my appetite.
Alex was provoking me with these words. Though I didn't know what his real purpose was, one thing was certain, he wouldn't stop me from going after Aiden.
I could even vaguely sense that he seemed to be looking forward to me doing exactly that.
Leaving the villa, I obediently followed Alex back to his place.
Alex went to work while I sped up making the apology gift for him.
Before long, Aiden's taunting call came through again. I answered it openly.
"Elizabeth, did you go back to the villa? You must be happy to see the gift I left you, right?"
He was talking about how he'd destroyed and smashed up the house, as if it was something trivial, not worth mentioning.
I couldn't help but laugh coldly. "Aiden, you're not even pretending anymore? If you want to marry Bianca so badly, why are you still bothering me?"
Aiden didn't respond right away, but I knew what he was thinking.
He'd simply realized that after showing his true face to me, he couldn't trick me into donating bone marrow to Bianca anymore.
His ultimate goal had always been my life. Everything he'd done was just to lure me out.
"Elizabeth, I know you're just saying that out of anger. You can't bear to leave me, right?"
Sure enough, his attitude softened immediately.
I suppressed the urge to laugh and went along with it, "If you don't want me angry, give back my parents' belongings."
"How about we meet up? What do you say?"
I was instantly on guard.
Meeting Aiden would definitely be dangerous. His words carried barely concealed urgency, just from that, I could tell his purpose went beyond this.
But I did want those belongings back.
"Didn't you sell everything?" I gripped my phone tightly.
Aiden heard my wavering, and his voice became even softer, almost seductive, "I was angry then, so I lied to you. I still have everything. As long as you come alone, I'll return it all to you."
"Come alone?" I narrowed my eyes, surprised that Aiden emphasized this point.
Could he know about my current situation?
Did he know I had connections with the Windsor Family, which was why he hadn't come here directly?
Otherwise, knowing Aiden's personality, he probably would have tracked me down already.
"It's up to you whether you come or not."
"I'll choose the location," I said firmly.
This was most likely just a trap from Aiden. If I just went along with what he said, it would only work against me.
If this was the only way to get back those belongings, all I could do was try to keep control of the situation in my own hands.
Aiden agreed readily enough.
After hanging up, I carefully packaged the gift for Alex and handed it to Lisa.
"Tomorrow, give this to Mr. Windsor. It's my apology gift for him."
"Ms. Spencer, won't you give it to him yourself?"
I shook my head. "He's already seen it, so there's no surprise. Besides, I have something to do tomorrow and don't know when I'll be back."
For tomorrow's meeting with Aiden, I chose a crowded plaza. I'd get the belongings and leave immediately, avoiding any confrontation with Aiden as much as possible.