Madam Zhang looked at Zoe with Interest as they ate. The young boy before her looked too much like Jiang Zoe, and he ate like a proper lady even though she could tell he was deliberately trying to eat noisily.
"So, Zane. What's the name of your mother?" She asked him with a smile.
"Oh! I don't think you know her, and she isn't rich," Zoe said without looking at her.
"Oh! I see. So, what do your parents do?" She asked again.
"Mom, you need to stop asking such questions. You're embarrassing me," Zhang Wei whispered to his mother even though Zoe could hear him.
"He wasn't complaining, or are you?" Madam Zhang asked Zoe, who swallowed nervously before shaking her head.
"Wei says you helped him pick out the ladies for his blind date. Is that true?" She asked and smiled when Zoe simply nodded her head briefly.
"Okay, I will leave you both now briefly. I need to make a call," Madam Zhang said before standing up. Her hand hit the glass of water, which was close to Zoe knocking it over on Zoe and splashing the water over her.
"Oh, My God! I'm so sorry," Madam Zhang said, reaching for Zoe to wipe her wet clothes with a napkin.
"Come on, Mom!" Zhang Wei exclaimed and hurried to Zoe's side, but she hurriedly moved away from both their reach.
"It's fine. I'm okay," Zoe said nervously, even though she was far from okay.
"Take off your shirt while Wei gets you one of his," Madam Zhang suggested and almost laughed out loud when she saw the look of horror on Zoe's face.
"That won't be necessary. I'm fine," Zoe rushed to assure her.
"I won't feel comfortable unless you get out of those wet clothes," Madam Zhang said with a look of distress on her face.
"Don't worry. I'll take care of it," Zhang Wei assured his mother and led Zoe away from the dining to his bedroom.
Madam Zhang watched them with a puzzled frown on her face as they both left. How was it possible that a guy would look so much like Jiang Zoe and bear the same family name yet claim they were estranged in family relations?
She walked into her room before taking out her phone to dial Mrs. Jiang's number.
**********
"You can take off your shirt now. I'll just get you something else," Zhang Wei said passively as he looked through his closet for a shirt. He turned around to see Zoe still standing, clutching her wet shirt to herself while she looked around his very neat and organized room.
"You really don't want to take it off?" Zhang Wei asked with a frown making Zoe pull her ear nervously as she returned her attention to him.
"I don't like other people seeing my body," Zoe explained reluctantly.
"Why? You have scars, or it's just not something you don't do?" Zhang Wei asked, jumping on the bed and resting his chin on his hands as he watched Zoe.
"I'm Gymnophobic," Zoe said without looking directly at him, making Zhang Wei cock his brow. He seemed to have a lot of phobias.
"Okay then, you can change in the bathroom," Zhang Wei suggested with a sign and shook his head when Zoe smiled in relief before rushing off to change.
When she stepped out of the bathroom after changing into his oversize polo top, Zhang Wei patted the bed and asked her to join him in playing a game of monopoly.
"I don't know how to play it," Zoe said, looking at the game with Interest.
"You really don't know? Come on, then. I'll teach you how. I'm going to make you a champion," Zhang Wei promised as Zoe joined him on the bed.
By the time they had played for over three hours, Zoe was rolling on the floor and howling with laughter.
"Why did you do that?" Zoe asked Zhang Wei while still struggling to stop laughing. Zhang Wei had overturned the game board because Zoe was about to win him for the third consecutive time.
"I said I was going to make you a champion against others, not myself. How did you learn to be so good anyway? Cause I'm sure that had nothing to do with what I taught you," Zhang Wei said grudgingly, making Zoe giggle.
"Let's just say I have good business instincts," Zoe said triumphantly as she packed up the game.
Zhang Wei picked up his pillow and hit Zoe with it making her turn to look at him with dim eyes. "You called for it!" Zoe said before picking up a pillow and joining Zhang Wei in his pillow fight, running around the room and laughing loudly.
Madam Zhang stood at the other end of the closed door and smiled. If her suspicions were true, then Jiang Zoe was likely going to become her daughter-in-law.
************
"I'm yet to understand the kind of relationship you have with your employers," Brad told Grace when she informed him Ann would be coming with them to see Mrs. Shu.
"What do you mean?" Grace asked curiously.
"What is your relationship with your boss' father?" Brad asked, making Grace frown.
"I don't understand. Did he say something?" Grace asked curiously.
"He sounded like you were both in a kind of relationship. He even asked me to keep my hands off you. Can you imagine?" Brad asked, making Grace swallow a smile. Ann had been right. Her father still felt very protective of her even though he didn't know she was truly his daughter.
"Were you thinking of touching me?" Grace asked and wished she hadn't when Brad shot her a glare. She just succeeded in reminding them both of their brushed lips.
"You're my cousin, and I can't touch you. But I won't mind touching your boss. She's hot," Brad said with a wink making Grace scoff.
"Who says you're her type?" Grace asked with a smirk.
"If she weren't engaged to my boring look alike, I would have done a great job of sweeping her off her feet. But who knows? I might still stand a chance. Cousin secret," Brad said, grinning at Grace as Ann joined them.
"We will go in my car unless you have made previous arrangements," Ann said, looking from Grace to Brad.
"We'll be using your car. Let's go," Grace said before walking ahead of Brad and Ann.
"What do you see in that prude? Isn't he too boring for someone as hot as you are?" Brad asked Ann in a flirty manner, making her grin. Was her own cousin trying to hit on her?
"He's a good man. And quit calling him names," Ann told him with a smile.
"Seeing as you may be my sister-in-law in the future, I should probably take your advice," Brad said with a sigh of resignation.
"Sister-in-law?" Both Ann and Grace asked in unison. Grace had been pretending not to hear what they were saying, but that last line caught her attention.
"Yeah. Didn't he tell you? He wants us to do a DNA test to be sure we aren't related since we were both adopted," Brad said with a shrug.
"You were adopted?" Ann asked curiously.
"Yes. My parents couldn't have a child. That's your mother's elder brother. So they adopted my sister and me," Brad explained, making Ann nod her head thoughtfully. At least she was getting to know something about her maternal family, no matter how little it was.
Ann processed the information in her head. Could he possibly be related to Tae-Joon? What would that mean for all of them? She wondered.
"I doubt you would be related to him. You both are totally different," Grace muttered.
"I know, right?" Brad asked before walking over to put his arms around Grace. "We are going to get along just fine, cuz!" Brad said, making Ann giggle.