Chapter 91
Elizabeth's POV
Unfortunately, Aiden never paid attention to me even once.
I watched the studio recede behind me and stepped forward.
I had no interest in dwelling on the past, and as for Aiden pestering me again, I absolutely wouldn't let him benefit from it.
Back at the company, I went straight to Alexander's office to explain the situation.
I only told him that I could resolve the funding issue myself. I thought he would press for details.
He didn't ask, and I didn't volunteer the information.
Just as I was about to leave the CEO's office, Alexander suddenly called out to me. "It's almost time to get out of work. Stay here for a bit."
He didn't even look up at me, his gaze remaining fixed on the documents in front of him.
I looked at him, blinking in confusion.
Then it dawned on me.
Was he asking me to stay here and leave work with him to go home together?
This should have been a perfectly ordinary thing, but somehow, my cheeks slowly grew warm.
I sat down on the sofa somewhat awkwardly, keeping my head down and looking at my phone, trying my best to ignore his presence.
Sharing a room together—when had this feeling become so unsettling?
The only sound in the air was the rustling of pages being turned. I stole glances at Alexander from the corner of my eye, and seeing that he wasn't paying attention to me, I boldly turned my head to look at him.
Alexander handling work seriously was more attractive than I'd imagined. That flawless face appeared even more chiseled and profound under the lights.
Without realizing it, I became completely absorbed in watching him.
Until a light cough sounded near my ear, and Alexander's voice drifted over leisurely. "Do you want to keep staring?"
I snapped back to reality, my gaze not knowing where to land, and I stood up abruptly. "No!"
It was time to go home.
Walking beside Alexander, I no longer felt that previous tension.
We didn't have much to talk about, but Alexander didn't seem awkward either.
Until we got in the car.
"You don't need to be so nervous. Just act like you normally do," Alexander suddenly spoke, his tone carrying a hint of concern.
I froze slightly and pressed my lips together. "Okay."
So he noticed?
Was I acting that nervous?
Could Alexander be misunderstanding something because of this?
My head filled with all these messy questions. As we neared home, I spoke somewhat deliberately. "Mr. Windsor, don't misunderstand. I'm really not that nervous."
I easily caught a flicker of surprise in his eyes, but that emotion vanished in an instant, giving me no chance to capture it.
After getting out of the car, he left first as if nothing had happened. I deliberately waited for him to enter the house before getting out of the car myself.
Only after returning to my room did I breathe a sigh of relief.
I didn't know what was going on lately. Whenever I was alone with Alexander, I couldn't help feeling nervous.
I would unconsciously magnify his presence, which made my entire body tense up.
It was as if I cared more about Alexander than before.
Lying in bed, I couldn't figure out what this feeling actually was.
The next day, after I secured the funding, everyone on the project team indeed fell silent.
I ignored their shocked expressions, guessing that most of them thought I'd been joking before.
My actually producing this money left them somewhat at a loss.
However, rumors soon started spreading.
Everyone said Alexander had privately given me the money. The rumors spread wider and wider, and by afternoon, it seemed the entire company knew.
I went to the break room to get water and was stared at the whole way.
Although I was used to all kinds of malicious looks, I still couldn't completely ignore them.
Until Tiana suddenly burst in, startling me.
"Ms. FitzRoy?" I called out politely after recognizing who it was.
Tiana's face was scrunched up, her eyes looking red, as if she'd just been crying.
Seeing my surprised expression, she furrowed her brows even tighter.
"Elizabeth, are you and Alexander really together? He actually gave you money for your project?"
I understood immediately.
She'd heard those rumors and came to confront me.
But this news spread way too fast, didn't it? Had even Tiana heard about it?
Looking into her eyes, I actually felt a sense of guilt.
I quickly spoke up, "It's not what you heard. Alexander didn't give me money."
Although I should maintain the boyfriend-girlfriend relationship between Alexander and me in front of Tiana, I didn't want her to misunderstand about the money.
Tiana clearly didn't believe me, and continued asking, "It wasn't Alexander who gave you the money? How is that possible?"
I gradually figured it out.
Just saying Alexander and I were a couple didn't seem very convincing, but once money was involved, this relationship immediately became real in others' eyes.
"Ms. FitzRoy, I think you should ask Alexander about this yourself. I can't explain it clearly."
I'd originally wanted to clarify everything, but seeing Tiana's reaction now, I immediately abandoned that idea.
She probably wouldn't believe whatever I said anyway, so I might as well push this trouble away.
The fact that Alexander allowed Tiana to come to this company was enough proof that their relationship was fairly good.
I'd better not say the wrong thing in front of Tiana, lest I make Alexander unhappy later.
After I said this, Tiana seemed completely frozen in place, her expression blank.
"You want me to ask Alexander directly?" Tiana's voice grew quieter and quieter. I looked over. "Yeah, if you ask him directly, won't you know everything?"
She bit her lip, and her face actually turned red.
"Do you think it's appropriate for me to go find him directly? Aren't you his girlfriend? You're telling another woman to go find him?"
Tiana became more and more agitated as she spoke. I blinked, looking at her somewhat puzzled. "Is there a problem?"
Telling another woman to go find your boyfriend—this did sound inappropriate.
But that person was Alexander. What other option did I have?
She looked completely baffled.
I continued along with her line of thinking. "Don't misunderstand. I'm telling you to go because I trust that you won't affect my relationship with Alexander at all."
Sure enough, after I said this, her eyes widened even more, full of disbelief.
"That's really what you think?" Tiana bit her lower lip and reached a conclusion. "So this money was from Alexander! He actually values you this much!"
I resisted the urge to continue speaking. If she insisted on thinking that way, I had no way to refute it.
I got my water and was about to leave when Tiana directly followed behind me, wanting to go to the office with me.
I turned around abruptly to look at her, and she immediately averted her gaze.
On the way back to the office, we attracted even more attention.
Everyone knew about Tiana's feelings for Alexander, so seeing her following me, they all found the scene incredibly bizarre.