On the other hand, Dan felt that he was really in luck today. After he had hung up the call from the old man, he had dilly-dallied for a while to make them anxious before finally boarding his convertible to go to the Golden Homes which was where the Anderson's lived.
However, mid-way, he noticed an obviously faulty car parked by the road that led out of the Golden Homes with a woman's figure standing beside it. At first, he had no intention of stopping to help even though he had felt puzzled as to why someone coming out of the Golden Homes had no chauffeur, after all, he was driving in not out.
Luckily to him, just as he drove past the car, the woman beside it raised her head slightly and he caught a glimpse of her side profile.
"F*ck! It was her?", He cursed out loud as he violently parked the car to stare heatedly at the woman. He couldn't believe he would coincidentally encounter the woman who had constantly been on his mind for the past week(though he would never admit this fact).
And though he had resolved not to care about her any longer since she had failed to contact him even after he had left his private number before leaving that day and took that as her unwillingness not to have anything to do with him. Moreover, he had never been the one begging women, it had always been the opposite!
However, now that he saw her again, especially as he watched her lonely and embarrassed figure standing by the road, his heart ached for her.
This was especially so when he remembered her family situation from the investigation reports he had ordered.
An indifferent father and a vicious mother.
He could even guess that her current circumstance was not unrelated to that stepmother of hers. That woman was definitely not a good person and would not watch placidly as the stepdaughter she had once sent away come back to inherit what she now considers hers.
By the time Dan had came back to his senses, he found himself stopping his car right beside her and though he did found his behaviour quite peculiar, particularly when the rationale behind it was a woman who seemed to despise him.
Though that even made him more puzzled as throughout his entire life he could count on one hand, women who disliked him or wanted nothing to do with him. He wasn't being narcissistic but his looks, charm or wealth guaranteed that majority of the female population find it hard to reject or dislike him.
Yet, now he was faced with someone who seemed like she did because apart from this, he couldn't come up with a reason why she hadn't called him not even once after that day.
Someone might ask why he couldn't be the one to call, he would reply - he, of course had his pride to keep! Why should he be the one to contact her first?! It was just a one night stand and he also wasn't short of women! So there was definitely no reason why he should put down his pride to call her first!
In the end, he had overestimated himself because seeing her again made the emotions he had been suppressing and pretending they weren't there be on the verge of erupting!
He really wanted to ask her why she hadn't called him because he has never been treated this way by a woman before! Did she really feel nothing for him after that day and just took it as a random one night stand?
Rage filled him at that thought and as he watched her with burning anger in his eyes,.a despicable idea couldn't help but form in his mind.
Having been paying attention to her, though he always swore he wouldn't do it the next time, he had come to know that today was the first day she would be working at her family's company.
And it would be ideal for her to leave a good first impression to her superiors, the employees and also the shareholders, but her present situation was an indication that someone obviously didn't want her to succeed!
Well, it just so happens that he could use that to his advantage! He had to recover his male ego which had been bruised by her. Dan's eyes flashed with a deep scheming glint before honking.
Even now, he was unwilling to admit that he had been moved by her and chucked everything to the fact that she had injured his manly pride.
He was being a tsundere!
'Who knows what the hell this woman is doing on her phone with her head lowered, that had made her not notice that a car was parked right in front of her? She really had zero vigilance towards her surroundings!', Dan thought to himself after he honked.
He then watched as she raised her head up and because he was driving a convertible with an open roof, he saw the shock and surprise in her eyes on seeing him clearly.
Good, atleast she recognised him.
He had no idea why that thought made him a little happy and unknowingly his lips curled into a charming smile before he looked at her with a hint of amusement as he said in a lazy and indolent tone.
"What? Still waiting for me to personally open the door for you and invite you in?"
....
Ariana couldn't hide her surprise when she looked up and her eyes collided into those familiar yet unfamiliar eyes.
"It's him? What is he doing here? Could he be a member of one of the aristocratic families in the compound?", She pondered and her guess was not unfounded as this road led directly to the Golden Homes, which was the residences of her family and other aristocratic families. The Golden Homes could also be said to be a symbol of status as all the families living in there were families that were still very much in power and ridiculously wealthy.
But even if he was, what has it got to do with her?, she thought to herself.
They had just happened to have spent a night together but she also believed that their connection had also ended the next day. This was despite the fact that she had felt a faint attraction to him after seeing him for the first, or why else would she have consented to sleep with him?
That night had only happened because she had given her consent after he had asked and she had been conscious though a bit drunk when she had agreed. This had even made her admire him as not every man could find the time to ask a tipsy woman for her consent before procceding to the last step.
Even now, she couldn't help but wonder that what if she had refused back then, would he have stopped or would he still have continued in the face of her rejection?
However, now that the man was right in front of her, she didn't have the guts to ask him, because for one, asking him this sort of question could cause a misunderstanding.
While she was lost in her thoughts, she heard the man's voice which sounded like he was gritting his teeth.
"You have less than twenty minutes left before you are officially late! You sure you wanna continue waiting out here?"
Dan had thought that she wasn't willing to get into his car after seeing her not making a move to come over to the car.
'Does she really dislike me that much?'
Ariana looked at him with surprise when she heard his words. 'How did he know... that I would be..?
But then she remembered the day she had met him in the Night Kingdom whereas the people who had been sent to monitor her had looked both respectful and fearful of him, anyways that was the reason she had even gotten interested in him in the first place and asked him to bring her out, the second reason was his appearance.
After all, no matter how powerful a man was, if he was a older and greasy man, she would rather tolerate being monitored than asking that sort of person for help.
Yep, she was a super face-con!
Moreso, the fact that he could appear confidently on the road to the Golden Homes with that... car(which was ridiculously expensive), showed his identity was definitely not simple and lastly, they had even held a formal banquet to announce her return.
Meaning that anyone who had been paying the slightest attention to her would definitely be able to tell that she was officially beginning work today. So... this meant.. he had been paying attention to her?
But why would he do that? Don't tell me that he is interested in me?
She shook her head while thinking to herself, 'Nah, I don't believe that. He is obviously a playboy. Even if he is indeed interested in me now, it wouldn't take long for a playboy to get tired of chasing after a lone woman.'
Ariana was a very rational person, particularly after everything she had been through. Her rational thinking made her able to forcefully tamp down the budding feelings and attraction she felt towards Dan, as she knew it would take her no where.
In fact, she had resolved never to get married for her entire life after her father had slowly pushed her mother to her death together with his mistress, her current stepmother. In her heart, she understood that men were unreliable, you could never put your entire life in their hands, it was better to rely on yourself!
Meanwhile, Dan felt even more furious as he watched Ariana still not coming over even after he reminded her that she was going to be late in less that twenty minutes.
'She really wants nothing to do with me? Would she rather stay helplessly on the road than get into my car?', he thought to himself while feeling both angry and hurt.
He took a deep breath to suppress the emotions that were threatening to burn through his chest and made a move to turn the ignition key.
'Fine! If she doesn't want my help, then I will leave!'
He was too proud to keep making exceptions for someone who wouldn't appreciate it. But just as his hand landed on the ignition key and he was about to turn it to start the car, he heard her speak.
"Why are you helping me?"
He snapped his head up so fast that you would have thought it would definitely break and looked at the woman standing next to the front pasenger seat door with a hint of surprise and happiness in his eyes.
Seeing her looking at him with suspicions, Dan also regained his calm and looked deeply into her eyes while speaking frankly.
"Because I want you to be my woman!"
At his words, Ariana showed no surprise after all she already guessed as much and instead asked him calmly.
"Why? Because of the one night stand?"
"Yes and no", Dan answered her but didn't explain what he meant by his words, rather he stared at her and asked calmly, though a closer look would reveal the nervousness in his eyes and the tightly clenched fists hidden by his side.
"So... Are you willing to be my woman?"
Ariana stared deeply at him before suddenly smiling brightly at him.
"Sure, why not?"
She opened the paaseger seat's door the moment she finished speaking, got in, sat down and used the seatbelt. She did everything in one fluid move leaving Dan stunned.
He still couldn't believe that she had agreed... so easily. He had already made up plenty reasons why it would beneficial for her to become his woman and in the end... he didn't need it?
Noticing that he still wasn't starting the car, she turned to him and ask with puzzlement.
"The car has a problem?"
Her question snapped Dan out of reverie as he gave her a glance before acting like nothing happened.
"Sit tight."
His words has just landed before the car shot out like a rocket, almost leaving afterimages.
Dan, at this moment had completely forgotten that he was supposed to be somewhere else and had no idea that someone(make that two) was waiting anxiously for him...
whose names I couldn't mention(including me, myself and I). Thank you for supporting and reading my book, saranghae!