Chapter 27
"Where to, Mr. Vance?" the driver asked.
Emma and Lawrence were once again sitting in the back of the Maybach.
Before Lawrence could answer—
Emma's stomach growled.
Loudly.
She gave an embarrassed little smile, though she couldn't exactly blame it.
She'd treated her stomach terribly today.
She hadn't eaten a proper meal all day.
"Aurelia," Lawrence said.
Emma's eyes immediately lit up.
Aurelia was one of the most exclusive restaurants in Nance City. She'd heard about it before.
More importantly, she'd heard about the prices.
She'd never been inside.
Apparently Isabelle coming home with a boyfriend had hit Lawrence hard enough to unlock the premium dinner package.
"Thank you, Mr. Vance!"
Emma smiled sweetly.
Lawrence glanced at her.
Then looked away.
His fingers moved absently against his palm.
He could still remember the feeling of her hand in his.
Soft.
Warm.
Small.
After a moment, he asked casually,
"What do you do for work?"
"I'm a secretary."
Emma tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
Lawrence looked at her.
"Adrian Mercer's secretary?"
His gaze lingered briefly on her face.
Before tonight, he'd always thought Emma looked remarkably similar to Isabelle.
That was the entire reason he'd chosen her in the first place.
But after seeing the two women in the same room, he'd realized something.
They weren't actually that similar.
Most of the resemblance came from the styling.
The makeup.
The clothes.
Their actual features were different.
Emma's eyes were larger and more expressive. There was something naturally bright and mischievous about them, even beneath the soft, elegant makeup she wore tonight.
And when she smiled, her entire face came alive.
Most importantly—
whenever she looked at him, her eyes seemed full of affection.
Isabelle had never looked at him that way.
With Isabelle, there had always been something else beneath the surface.
Expectation.
Evaluation.
Calculation.
Emma smiled.
"Yeah. Mr. Mercer's secretary."
Lawrence frowned slightly.
"Aren't you still in college?"
"Yeah. It started as an internship."
Emma looked at him curiously.
Why was Lawrence suddenly so interested in her personal life?
Maybe Isabelle's return had shaken him so badly that he needed something else to think about.
Neither of them noticed the red sports car following behind them.
"You've lost your mind."
Ryan stared at Adrian.
"She's going on a date with another guy. Why are we following them?"
Adrian kept his eyes fixed on the black Maybach ahead.
"What am I supposed to do?"
"Just sit there and watch their relationship get stronger?"
Ryan slowly turned toward him.
"Yes."
Adrian looked offended.
Ryan continued,
"That is generally what you're supposed to do when the woman you like is dating someone else."
"She's not just some woman."
Ryan sighed.
"Adrian, you are literally following another man's girlfriend through the city."
Adrian glared at him.
"You don't understand."
"Oh, I understand perfectly."
"No, you don't."
Adrian looked back at the Maybach.
"You've never been in love."
Ryan stared at him.
This from a man who had discovered his own feelings approximately five minutes ago.
Ryan slowly shook his head.
"You know, people really do become the exact thing they used to hate."
Adrian frowned.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing."
Ryan looked out the window.
"Just reflecting on life."
Back in the Maybach, Lawrence suddenly asked,
"Do you like being a secretary?"
Emma considered the question.
"It's okay."
Lawrence was quiet for a moment.
Then—
"Come work for me."
Emma turned toward him.
"What?"
Lawrence himself froze internally.
Why had he just said that?
Why did he suddenly want Emma working beside him every day?
Emma, meanwhile, had reached an entirely different conclusion.
This evil capitalist.
She understood everything now.
Lawrence paid her five hundred dollars an hour.
A secretary made around three thousand a month.
So if she became his secretary, he could have her around all day without paying her hourly rate.
Emma stared at him.
You wish.
Do I look financially illiterate?
Lawrence saw the shock on her face and felt strangely satisfied.
Of course she was surprised.
She'd probably never imagined she'd get the chance to stay beside him every day.
"Yes."
He looked at her.
"You heard me."
Emma's mouth twitched.
"No, thanks."
Lawrence:
"......"
For once, he actually looked caught off guard.
"What?"
Emma's professional instincts immediately sounded the alarm.
Wait.
She was supposed to be hopelessly in love with this man.
Flat-out rejecting an opportunity to spend every day beside him wasn't exactly consistent with the character.
She immediately smiled.
Soft.
Gentle.
Devoted.
"Mr. Vance..."
"I think a little distance keeps things romantic."
Lawrence went quiet.
His expression softened almost imperceptibly.
So that was it.
She loved him so carefully.
She wanted to be close to him, but she was afraid of asking for too much.
Lawrence looked away.
"Forget it."
Emma smiled.
Excellent.
Crisis avoided.
Then Lawrence seemed to remember something.
He looked at her again.
"We're alone now."
Emma blinked.
Then she looked toward the front seat.
The driver was very visibly sitting there.
Driving.
"Um..."
She pointed toward him.
"Mr. Vance, he's—"
The driver:
"......"
He had been doing his job peacefully for years.
Apparently, tonight he was no longer considered a person.
Lawrence:
"......"
Without another word, Lawrence pressed a button.
The privacy partition slowly rose between the front and back seats.
A few seconds later, he looked at Emma.
"Now we are."
Emma:
"?"
What exactly was he trying to tell her?
She blinked.
"Yes."
A pause.
"Yes, we are."
When in doubt—
repeat the client.
Usually safe.
Lawrence frowned.
Did she seriously not understand?
Or was she pretending?
"You said you had a pet name for me when we're alone."
Emma:
"......"
Oh.
That.
She'd made that up!
Emma stared at him.
Isabelle really had done some serious emotional damage tonight.
This man was acting weird.
Still—
client satisfaction mattered.
Emma searched her memory.
Then she remembered.
Lawrence had once sent her a message saying that, at most, he'd allow her to call him Baby.
Nothing beyond that.
Emma hesitated.
Then, softly—
"Baby?"
Lawrence froze.
Her voice was already naturally soft, but when she said it like that—gentle, sweet, almost tentative—the single word brushed over his nerves like a feather.
Lawrence swallowed.
His gaze immediately shifted toward the window.
His heart was pounding.
Far too fast.
Emma watched him.
Was that right?
Apparently.
He wasn't complaining.
Then the Maybach stopped at a red light.
A red sports car pulled up beside them.
Lawrence's window was still slightly lowered.
Suddenly—
something flew through the gap.
A packet of tissues hit Lawrence directly in the forehead.
Lawrence:
"......"
Emma:
"......"
Lawrence slowly picked up the tissues.
Who the hell—
He turned toward the window.
Blue hair.
Adrian Mercer.
Adrian had lowered his window and was staring directly at him.
"Mr. Vance!"
Lawrence's expression darkened.
Adrian pointed toward his own nose.
"You've got a booger!"
Then he pointed at the tissues.
"Thought you might need those."
Lawrence:
"............"
In Adrian's passenger seat, Ryan slowly covered his face with both hands.
He couldn't believe he was participating in this.
Lawrence was furious.
What kind of childish, uncivilized—
Then a far more important thought hit him.
Wait.
Did he actually have something on his nose?
Had Emma seen it?
Lawrence's entire body stiffened.
Against every instinct of dignity he possessed, he pulled out a tissue and wiped his nose.
Once.
Then again.
There was no mirror nearby.
He had no idea whether he'd gotten it.
Or whether there had been anything there in the first place.
This was humiliating.
Emma had heard Adrian shouting, but the traffic around them had swallowed most of his words.
She'd also seen something fly into the car.
Curious, she scooted closer to Lawrence.
"What was that?"
She leaned forward.
Lawrence immediately raised one hand between them.
"Don't come any closer."
Emma stopped.
Then calmly moved back to her side.
Oh.
Isabelle was back.
Now he was protecting his boundaries even more carefully.
Very loyal.
Very respectable.
Emma approved.
The rest of the drive passed in silence.
Lawrence either looked down or stared out the window.
Anywhere except at Emma.
Emma was perfectly happy with that arrangement.
She turned toward the city outside.
Early summer evenings in Nance City were beautiful. The air was warm without being oppressive, and the breeze coming through the slightly lowered window moved gently through her hair.
Emma relaxed.
Then—
a blue head appeared in her peripheral vision.
She frowned.
Adrian?
What a coincidence.
They'd run into him again.
On the same road.
Going in the same direction.
At the same speed.
Emma considered this for approximately half a second.
Small world.
Adrian noticed her looking.
His entire face immediately brightened.
He smiled.
Emma looked at him.
Then calmly pressed the button.
The window slowly rose between them.
Adrian's smile disappeared with every inch of glass.
By the time the window closed completely—
he looked devastated.
"......"
His lips turned downward.
"She's so heartless."
Ryan stared at him.
Then completely lost it.
"HAHAHAHA—"
He doubled over in the passenger seat.
Adrian had followed his romantic rival across half the city.
Thrown tissues at him.
Publicly accused him of having a booger.
And after all that—
Emma had rolled up the window in his face.
Ryan wiped tears from his eyes.
"This is the best date I've been on all year."
Adrian slowly turned toward him.
"Do you want to get out?"
Ryan laughed even harder.
"See? Now you're taking me on dates."
"Shut up."
Ryan couldn't.
Not for the rest of the drive.