Chapter 312: Can’t Wait (Part 1)
A wave of warmth washed over her as she cut the egg in half.
Then, she put one half in her mouth and offered the other to him.
“What?” Gabriel froze, clearly taken aback by her childlike gesture.
“Hurry up and eat it.” Regardless of his willingness, the fried egg pressed firmly against his lips.
He opened his mouth, holding the egg.
She watched him finish the egg and then the hamburger — each movement exuded effortless composure.
He seemed to sense her gaze and turned his head to ask softly, “Why aren’t you eating?”
Alison blushed slightly, realizing she was like a lovesick fool.
She quickly lowered her head and devoured the hamburger.
After finishing, she stacked the empty container on top of his.
“Thank you,” she said, half-teasingly.
“Sure.”
Rushing back to the office from the rooftop, Mia rested her head on her desk.
Hearing the footsteps, she lazily opened her eyes. “What time is it?”
“It’s time to work,” Alison gasped as she hurried back to her seat.
No sooner had she sat down than she caught the scent of roasted chicken.
Following the aroma, she spotted a nearly untouched bag of food in the trash can nearby.
“Mia, who threw this away?” she asked.
“What?” Mia said, still groggy.
“Did you throw away the food in the trash can by my desk?”
“No, not me,” Mia replied, sitting up straight and ready to start work.
Then it must have been Aidan.
Could it be… Aidan had seen something?
Fine, forget it.
She’d never hidden her relationship with Gabriel, nor did she fear gossip.
Because of Gabriel, she’d lost track of time since morning.
She had to hurry to finish her tasks before clocking out.
She disliked keeping Aidan waiting and, even more so, leaving work unfinished.
That afternoon, she worked frantically.
As closing time approached, she finally finished all the tasks.
“Mia, it’s all done,” she said.
“Then take it to the president yourself,” Mia said, smiling.
“Miss Fairchild, you’re something else — not even hungry after skipping lunch?”
Alison laughed awkwardly. “Actually, I had a little something for lunch — I brought it in my bag.”
With that, she gathered the documents and headed toward Aidan’s office.
After lightly knocking, she heard Aidan’s deep voice from inside.
“Come in.”
“Aidan, I’m done,” she said.
“Leave it there,” he replied without looking up.
“All right,” she murmured, unsettled by his sudden coolness, and turned quietly to leave.
“Wait.”
Just as her foot lifted, he called her back.
“Is there something else, Aidan?” she asked.
“Alison, this is the office. Please don’t use my first name during work hours,” he said.
“Okay.” She nodded.
Yet Aidan remained silent, neither dismissing her nor allowing her to leave.
After a while, she couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Mr. Winston, is there something else? If not, I’ll go back to work.”
“Wait here. We’ll leave together after work,” he said as he gathered items from his desk.
Then he grabbed his jacket and approached her. “Let’s go.”
She followed behind him silently. She was surprised when he forced her to link her arm through his.
Glancing at her phone on the desk, she protested, “Let go. I need to grab my things.”
“I’ll get them.”
He released her, strode swiftly to her desk, and retrieved her backpack.
He tossed her phone inside as well.
Handing it back to her, he said, “All set. Let’s go.”
Alison didn’t want to link arms with Aidan — it felt awkward.
Leaving the company on her first day, arm-in-arm with the CEO, was bound to spark gossip.
She murmured, “Aidan, I’ll walk on my own.”
The two walked out of the office, the air thick with tension.
She reached for the elevator button, but the moment her finger touched it, Aidan pulled her backward into the president’s private elevator.
What she hadn’t expected was that Aidan, who had always been gentle, could be so domineering today.
“Let go of me!” she shouted hoarsely, utterly taken aback by his actions.
He ignored her.
The moment the elevator doors closed, she was enclosed in the confined space with him.
His face was so close that it made her panic.
“Aidan, what are you doing?” she asked.