Chapter 187
After Ava finished teaching. the young girl the agent brought over, she dove straight into her new design work. She lost track of time and fell asleep right at her desk.
William back, he knocked the door for ages with no answer. She didn't pick up her phone either.
He waited helplessly outside for a few minutes, then tried entering the door lock code. First, he tried her birthday - wrong. Then his own birthday - still wrong. When he switched to their wedding anniversary, the lock clicked open.
He sent James away, stepped inside , and kicked off his shoes.
The living room was quiet, and she wasn't in the bedroom.
. He walked over slowly and stopped at the study door.
Ava was slumped over the desk, a pencil still in her hand. Her dark hair was pulled up in a messy bun on top of her head, sleeping soundly.
The design on the paper wasn't finished yet, but he could tell it was a bracelet.
William narrowed his eyes. She used to fall asleep in his study all the time. Back then, he'd just thought her designs were chicken scratch, but now that he knew her hidden identity, he felt ridiculous.
He walked over to examine the design sketch on her paper. Sure enough, every stroke was drawn so casually, unlike the designers at their company who demanded high-quality paper and pencils, even using various tools to help.
All she needed was a pencil. Sometimes when inspiration struck, she'd even draw directly on napkins.
William pulled the pencil from her hand and slipped his arm under her knees to lift her up. His gaze fell on her belly - she was so small in his arms, as if she'd gained some weight.
Ava wasn't sleeping that deeply. She woke up when she felt herself being lifted.
A faint smell of alcohol mixed with his usual pine scent filled her nose.
"Why are you here again?"
William's long stride paused. Again? So she wasn't welcoming him.
He didn't care about saving face anymore. Whether she welcomed him or not, he was already here, and not only that, he planned to spend the night.
He gently placed her in bed and pulled the covers over her.
Ava opened her drowsy fox-like eyes, watching him being so attentive. She wondered if Sarah's soul had possessed her - she could hardly believe this was happening to her.
"Go to sleep. I need to borrow your study."
William settled her in, turned off the light, and tiptoed out.
He had a day's worth of work piled up, with some urgent documents that needed reviewing, or else these projects would all get stuck waiting on him.
He brought his laptop to her desk.
The desk was covered with papers she'd used for creating, many of them ruined drafts.
He gathered them up one by one, feeling like he was back in the past, except back then he'd only felt disdain for her, never once praising her work.
Looking carefully now, her ideas were truly clever. She could innovate on existing designs with patterns he'd never seen in this industry. Once SWAN's website released the news, it would definitely trigger copycats from all the major fashion brands.
She truly was a leader in this field.
He observed and tidied up, while in the bedroom, Ava couldn't possibly sleep.
He'd startled her awake, scaring away all her drowsiness.
After lying there for a few minutes, she suddenly remembered he said he needed to use the study, and she hadn't cleaned up her drawings yet. At this thought, she threw off the covers and got out of bed, running barefoot without even putting on shoes.
"Um..."
Before she could finish her sentence, they locked eyes across a few meters.
She saw William holding a stack of design papers, having been looking at them very carefully.
Ava felt inexplicably nervous, though she didn't know what she was nervous about - after all, she hadn't signed her name on the papers.
William's gaze fell on her bare feet. He extended a hand toward her.
"Come here."
Ava looked at him with hooded eyes, like a little fox under a spell, walking over obediently as if possessed.
His long arm hooked around her, pulling her to sit on his lap.
"Weren't you tired? Why aren't you sleeping?"
His breath sprayed against her neck, warm and tingling. Ava was a bit distracted, trying hard to control herself and stay rational.
"I didn't put away my papers."
She didn't say she was working on designs, just used the simple word "papers" to cover everything. She'd always been this low-key; no wonder he thought she was just doodling.
"I won't lose them."
William held her with one arm while opening his laptop with the other hand, the gentleness in his voice making Ava doubt this was really William.
He held her like this while reviewing documents - he was focused, while she was the one losing her mind.
Time ticked by second by second. After who knows how long, William suddenly spoke.
"Ava, would you consider joining the Morgan Group?"
Ava looked up at him and answered firmly,
"I already resigned. You approved it yourself."
Bringing up the resignation, William's guts were twisted with regret now. He finished processing his documents, closed the laptop, and rested his chin in the curve of her shoulder, his voice low with a hint of alcohol.
"I regret it."
Ava shivered at his flirtation and tried to jump off his lap, but before her feet could touch the ground, his large hand pulled her back.
"Ava, I'm serious. Can we sign another contract? Name your terms. SWAN is good, but it's still someone else's company. Come back to the Morgan Group, and we'll build a business empire together. With your standing in Grandpa's heart, giving you the company in the future wouldn't be a problem."
He extended an olive branch to her.
Ava froze, looking at him in disbelief, her mind full of doubts.
He mentioned SWAN - was he just drunk talking, or had he already figured out her identity?
William didn't get her answer and continued his self-reflection.
"I lacked vision before. From now on, you'll have the final say in the Morgan Group's design department. The sky's the limit - I'll give you enough space and authority. Plus, Grandpa would be happy if you joined."
He dangled Howard as bait.
Ava's heart was all over the place. Just today, she'd signed the new agreement SWAN sent over. In half a month, she was supposed to go to Lumaria and report to SWAN's headquarters.
She wondered if she could still leave.
William, like this, didn't seem to plan to let her go.
Ava scoffed.
"What would I want with the Morgan Group?"
Things that weren't hers, she'd never thought about fighting for. From start to finish, she'd only ever wanted him.
William had been drinking and was more talkative than usual, more clingy too. He'd completely shed his proud exterior, like a clingy big dog pressed against her neck, his tone pleading.
"Ava, stop going on blind dates, okay?"
Thinking about the young talents Howard had selected for her, he was furious. He just couldn't understand - those mediocre guys, whether in looks or talent, how could any of them compare to him?
The list Howard handed over - she'd actually looked at it a few times instead of refusing outright.