Chapter 103 Mr. Monroe
To be honest, it wasn't that Lance was overly suspicious. It was just that the situation at the time was way too coincidental. How could that flower pot just happen to fall right then and there?
And in that exact spot?
Aria understood what Lance meant. Her eyes flickered slightly as she said slowly, "I did ask around. It should have been an accident."
The fact that she and Lance walked through that corridor wasn't part of any plan.
She had Lucy check out the spot where it happened. Lucy said the screws were a bit loose—probably not fastened properly, not tampered with by anyone.
Lance nodded and didn't say more. "That's good then. Guess I was overthinking it."
Aria paused, looking thoughtful as she responded, "I'll have Lucy check if there are any security cameras around."
"Okay."
......
After that, Aria stayed at the hospital a bit longer before getting a call from the studio and preparing to leave.
Lance originally wanted to go with her, but Aria ordered him to stay at the hospital for observation, so he reluctantly stayed put.
After leaving the hospital, Aria went straight to the flower exhibition to handle the remaining matters.
Fortunately, the incident with Lance's injury didn't affect the overall exhibition. The whole event was very successful, and Aria's studio became even more well-known.
Right after the flower exhibition ended, her studio's orders more than doubled from before. Everyone at the studio was swamped with work.
Aria also sped up her plans to expand the studio. She herself was incredibly busy, barely touching the ground, leaving early and coming home late. She had even fewer chances to run into Arthur.
That day, Aria had just arrived at the studio when Lucy said someone with the last name Monroe was looking for her.
She was a bit puzzled but followed Lucy. She saw a man in a suit with a distinguished air sitting in the reception room.
As soon as the man saw her, he quickly stood up to greet her. "Hello, Ms. Hall."
"Hello. I heard you were looking for me?"
Aria had no recollection of the man before her, but she still greeted him politely.
"Yes, my last name is Monroe. I'm an architect—the one who contacted you before."
Aria paused as some memory came back to her.
"I happened to see some of Ms. Hall's landscape designs, and they gave me some inspiration. Sorry for the intrusion, please forgive me."
Mr. Monroe stated his purpose and handed Aria the bouquet of flowers he had brought.
Aria froze and didn't take the flowers. She just smiled lightly and said politely, "Not at all. It's my honor to be appreciated by Mr. Monroe."
He asked Aria some questions about landscape design, and Aria answered them all.
As Mr. Monroe listened to Aria's professional responses, his eyes grew brighter and brighter, filled with admiration for her.
"Ms. Hall, some of your views really align with mine! I wonder if I'd have the honor of taking you to dinner?"
Aria met Mr. Monroe's gaze. A dark glint flashed in her eyes as she shook her head and politely declined. "Dinner won't be necessary, Mr. Monroe."
"How could it be a bother? Having dinner with a beautiful woman would be my honor."
This guy had ulterior motives. Aria finally got the full picture. She smiled and said, "Mr. Monroe, I don't know if I'm misunderstanding, but I still want to tell you—I'm not considering any romantic matters right now. Please don't waste your efforts."
Monroe wasn't bothered. A hint of amusement flashed in his eyes. "I really like how smart Ms. Hall is. But it's fine—we can start as friends, right? I'd be very happy to have a friend like Ms. Hall."
His words were so tactful that Aria couldn't refuse. After all, he was a potential client. She couldn't shut him down completely, so she could only nod. "Yes, I'd also be very happy to have a friend like Mr. Monroe."
Monroe stayed at Aria's place a bit longer before leaving.
Mr. Monroe had just left when Lance arrived. A few days had passed, and the bandage on his head had been removed. However, the hair in that spot had been shaved, leaving a bald patch, which is why he'd been wearing a hat whenever he went out recently.
Aria had just asked Lucy to take care of the bouquet. The two of them had just come out of the meeting room when they ran into Lance.
Lance's gaze swept over the flowers in Lucy's hands, and he thought about the person he'd run into on his way in. He raised an eyebrow slightly. "Who sent flowers?"
"Mr. Gray."
Lucy stopped to greet Lance as soon as she saw him. Lance naturally saw the card on the flowers, which clearly read "To Ms. Hall" with "Monroe" signed at the bottom.
Lance raised an eyebrow slightly and looked at Aria, teasing, "You became famous overnight, huh? Do I have another rival now?"
Aria met Lance's slightly teasing gaze and rolled her eyes at him somewhat helplessly. "Has your wound healed? Is your mouth getting smart again?"
Lance smiled and nodded. "Indeed. I feel like I haven't seen you in days. I'm not used to it anymore."
A hint of amusement flashed in Aria's eyes. Just as she was about to say something, her gaze froze, locking onto something behind Lance.
Lance frowned and turned to follow Aria's gaze, only to see Arthur appear over there.
Seeing Arthur, Lance's smile faded, and his tone became mocking. "If it isn't the groom-to-be? What brings you here today?"
Arthur had originally come today to check on Aria's studio, but he didn't expect Lance to be here too, opening with such irritating words. He gritted his teeth somewhat. "Has Mr. Gray been very idle lately? Coming to my wife's place to make your presence known?"
Lance laughed outright at Arthur's words, his laughter full of contempt. "Wife? Which one is Mr. Grant's wife now? I remember Mr. Grant is planning a wedding with someone whose last name is Smith, right?"
Lance turned to look at Aria, the corner of his mouth curling up. "Aria, did you change your last name?"
Aria immediately rolled her eyes. Lance's mouth really had a way of getting under people's skin. That said, watching Arthur's expression change, Aria felt somewhat satisfied.
Arthur watched the undercurrent between the two, his heart growing even more annoyed.
Especially seeing Aria just tacitly allow Lance to talk about him like that made him even more irritated. He turned his gaze to Aria, but she only glanced at him indifferently without saying anything.
Arthur took a deep breath. "Aria..."
Aria ignored him and just looked at Lance. "I still have some things to handle. If you want tea, ask Lucy."
Lance's mouth curved up as he nodded in agreement. "Okay, I'll help myself. No need to attend to me."
Lance's completely at-home attitude really pissed Arthur off. Arthur tried to call out to Aria again, but she didn't even look at him and just went upstairs.
After Aria went upstairs, Lance looked at Arthur, a hint of coldness in his eyes. "When is Mr. Grant's wedding? Shouldn't you invite me for a drink too?"