Chapter 93 Who Are You Texting That Makes You Smile So Happily?
"Well, my appetite hasn't been great lately."
Aria just brushed it off casually, trying to move past the topic.
Lance asked with concern, "Did you eat enough though? Should I pack some easy-to-digest food for you to take home?"
Aria shook her head, "No need, I'm full. I ate quite a bit."
Seeing this, Lance didn't insist. He nodded, "Alright, drive carefully on your way back. Let me know when you get home."
"Okay."
After saying goodbye at the entrance, Aria drove home first.
As if he had timed her arrival, just as she got back to the villa, Lance's message came through, "Home yet?"
"Yes."
"Good, get some rest early. My friend just replied to me, saying your latest proposal works. The payment will go to your studio's account as before."
"Great."
After settling this matter, Aria breathed a small sigh of relief. This project could finally move forward.
She had been busy with this for a while and was indeed mentally exhausted.
Aria quickly passed the task to the studio, having Lucy arrange everything.
After finishing all this, she finally collected herself and got out of the car.
Walking through the garden, Aria went to check on the rainbow rose as usual. She noticed it was starting to sprout, and her heart stirred. She took a photo of the flower before heading inside.
"Where did you go? Why are you back so late?"
As soon as she entered, she heard a questioning voice.
Aria froze slightly and looked up to see Arthur, who should have been at the hospital, had somehow come back.
He was now standing on the stairs, staring at her intensely, as if trying to see right through her with his gaze.
Aria couldn't help but think of their argument on the phone earlier that day. Her brows furrowed slightly, and she ignored him.
Seeing Aria ignore him, a flash of darkness crossed Arthur's eyes. He had already taken the initiative to talk to her, so what was she still fussing about?
Arthur found that he was increasingly unable to understand what Aria was trying to do.
"Aria, are you done yet? Planning to treat me like a stranger now?"
Arthur walked up to her, looking down at her with some anger in his tone.
Only then did Aria reluctantly look up at Arthur, her eyes distant, "What? Not spending the evening with your lover? Not worried I'll do something again?"
Arthur was caught off guard by Aria's retort. He gritted his teeth and stared at her, "Aria! You're being completely unreasonable."
"Ha, you're only realizing this today?"
Since that's what Arthur thought of her, she might as well live up to it.
"I'm asking you, where did you go today?"
Arthur suppressed his anger, his dark eyes fixed on her, but what flashed through his mind was the scene of her chatting happily with Lance tonight and having dinner together.
How dare she!
Meeting that man so openly like this? Did she really think he was dead?
God knows how much he wanted to kill someone when he received those photos.
"What? Investigating me? How about you first tell me the details of how you spent time with your lover today? Then I'll consider telling you where I went. How about that?"
Aria took a step back, maintaining a safe distance from Arthur before speaking provocatively.
Arthur watched Aria step back, his eyes narrowing dangerously as he called her name in a deep voice, "Aria!"
"What? Already angry? Arthur, you won't sign the divorce papers, but you want to have it both ways. You're such a hypocrite."
Aria knew that continuing to talk with Arthur would just be a waste of time. She coldly threw out this remark and walked past Arthur up the stairs.
Arthur watched Aria's retreating figure, wanting to follow, but his phone rang at that moment. It was Sophie.
This call forcibly stopped him in his tracks. He took a deep breath, calmed himself down, and answered the phone.
"Sophie, what's wrong?"
Arthur answered the phone while walking outside.
Little did he know that Aria, who was on the stairs, paused slightly when she heard the name he called out. She gave a self-mocking smile and continued up the stairs.
After both of them had left, a door to a room on the first floor opened, and Elizabeth walked out, her expression complicated...
Over the next few days, Aria had completely handed over the project to Lucy to wrap up.
She was originally in charge of this, but Lance's words that day had scared her. She thought it best to minimize contact, which would also give Lance time to think about what his feelings for her really were.
During these days, Aria spent her time either at the studio or in the garden taking care of her rainbow rose.
On this day, she was just fertilizing the rainbow rose in the back garden when Lance sent her a message.
"How's that flower I gave you last time coming along?"
Seeing this message, Aria's heart stirred. She casually took a photo of the rainbow rose and sent it to Lance.
Lance quickly replied, "Tsk, you're growing it so poorly!"
Lance's comment successfully provoked Aria's anger. She directly sent him a voice message scolding him, "Are you kidding? I've grown it really well, okay! This is a rainbow rose! You probably couldn't even grow it this well."
Hearing Aria's spirited words, Lance's lips curved up as he agreed, "Yes, yes, yes, it is indeed very well grown. I was blind. I admit my mistake."
Lance's playful attitude made Aria laugh, "That's right."
"But Miss Hall, I recently imported some rare fertilizer from abroad. Should I send some your way? Maybe it could grow even better?"
Aria paused for a moment, but didn't hold back, "Okay, let me know how much it costs, and I'll transfer the money to you."
Lance said helplessly, "Why talk about money? Why are you being so formal? Aren't we friends?"
"Yes, but you said it's rare fertilizer, hard to come by."
Aria insisted, "If it's free, I won't take it."
Lance knew that Aria could be stubborn sometimes, so he could only agree verbally, "Fine, I'll settle the account with you later."
Aria replied, "Okay."
"By the way, my friend is very satisfied with this new proposal. After the final touches are done, he said he'd like to treat you to dinner. Does that work for you?"
Lance seemed to remember something and sent Aria another message.
Aria looked at the message, her lips curving slightly as she replied, "Sure, I'd like to meet your friend too. Just arrange it when you're ready."
Just as she sent the message, a magnetic voice came from the garden entrance, "Who are you texting? You look so happy."
She froze and looked toward the garden entrance...