Chapter 492: The Person Who Matters

Ian was caught in a tricky situation. He wanted to move Mina to comfort, but she was not properly dressed. He tapped her shoulders, trying to wake her, but the woman was so drunk that she mumbled incoherently before going back to sleep. Ian picked up the bottle of whatever she and Mills had been drinking and shook his head. The proof was not even strong, and yet Mina was passed out as if she had been given hard liquor.

Realizing there was no way to win, Ian told himself that what Mina was wearing was a swimsuit as he picked her up. He nearly dropped her when he tried to stop her top from sliding down, and in the end, he ignored it, doing his best not to look. He tried to gently place her in the center of her bed, but feeling as though she was falling, Mina wrapped her arms around his neck, causing him to land on top of her. Ian tried to scramble away, but her arms were still around him, and he tried to coax her to let go.

"Your back," Mina whispered, and she lifted her face up to press the sweetest kiss on Ian's lips. His whole body stiffened before he melted into the woman; greedily devouring her mouth with his, until he realized that she was not reciprocating.

"No, no, no. Mina, wake up. I am here. Kiss me again," Ian pleaded. He did not know what possessed the woman to kiss him, but he wanted her to do it again.

Feeling like a pervert, Ian rolled off the sleeping woman. He put a shirt on her and covered her body with the duvet before punching the mattress. He stood up and walked toward his room, fully aware that he was going to need more than a cold shower to cool off.

----

Mina awoke in bed, and when the memory of the night before hit her, she covered her mouth to suppress a scream. She had kissed someone, she was sure of it, and from the lack of Mills in her bed, she was certain it was not her, or maybe it was and that was why Mills slept in another room? Mina pushed the memory away, hoping that the dream she had been having somehow melded into her memories.

It had been months, and that same unknown man had been haunting her dreams, making her feel lonelier at her loneliest times. She knew the dreams came with a trigger, but she had not quite narrowed down what the trigger was. Sometimes, she would be sitting down in a room, and scenes from the dream would appear to her, making her feel embarrassed, and Mina vowed to see a doctor about it when she returned to Pan.

Afraid that she had kissed Mills and scared the girl away, Mina started to prepare an 'I'm sorry' breakfast. She had been wanting to cook for the woman since they arrived, but they either ordered local food to the room, they were not in it long enough to eat, or they ate outside food.

Knowing that it would be their last day in Bal, Mina cooked a full spread, trying to use up everything that they had bought. She was not worried about waste because she planned to take whatever was left over to the children she met at the beach. She wanted to check in on them as well as say goodbye to them before she left the country.

Mina called out to Mills, and she heard the room door open. She turned to smile at the woman, but was instead greeted by President Lee, who looked like he had just gotten out of a shower. He had left his shirt behind, and water was dripping from his hair down to the small towel wrapped around his neck. She narrowed her eyes at the man, before slightly averting her gaze, because she knew she was staring, and she did not want to give him the wrong impression.

"Did you kiss me last night?" Mina asked with a snarl, and President Lee rolled his eyes before pulling the plate meant for Mills toward his body.

"Why? Did you dream about me kissing you or something?" Mina gasped with her hand on her chest, clearly offended.

"I did not. I just…" She paused because she did not want to be too honest. "I just thought someone kissed me." Mina lightly touched her lips, and Ian smirked. She was asking the wrong question. She had kissed him, and then he had kissed her back. If she had asked in that way, he would have answered honestly, but she did not, and he would take it as a harmless victory.

"Don't worry, it was probably a dream." Ian added, feeling guilty. "So, what are your plans for the day; other than feeding everyone on this floor?" Mina chuckled. She did not want to, but it was funny, because she had cooked way too much.

"I want to bring what's left over to the children I met." Ian nodded at the suggestion.

"Let's call Drax and Mills to see if they want to eat first."

----

Drax devoured the meal that Mina had prepared, and both Ian and Mills were looking at him with folded arms. He kept complimenting Mina, even going as far as to say that she was going to be an excellent wife before Mills slapped him on the side of the head to get his attention. Drax looked at his woman, totally confused, but then he winced when he realized what he had been saying.

"Of course, you won't be better than my wife, but a runner up," he added, and Mills approved. Mina smiled at the couple, once again wondering if she would be so lucky.

"Mills has never cooked for me," Mina said. "She told me that besides Milo, her culinary skills are only for you." Drax pulled Mills into his lap and kissed her. It was President Lee who replied.

"Mills has the right idea. I wouldn't want my wife cooking for other men either." Mina laughed theatrically, slapping her leg at the joke she thought President Lee was making. She then laughed louder when she realized he was serious.

"President Lee, I don't think you will have to worry about your wife cooking for other men, or for you, or for your children, or in general. In fact, I'm quite sure your wife will only step into a kitchen to slap people." Mina chuckled at her own joke, but all three people were staring.

"What does that mean?" Mills asked, not finding the last part of Mina's statement random, or funny in any way.

"Oh, it's from a movie I saw," Mina lied. "I thought it was well known. I didn't mean to spoil the mood." Mills narrowed her eyes; she did not believe Mina.

"I'm curious, what makes you think my future wife won't know how to cook?" Ian questioned. He was staring at Mina closely. If he had things his way, he would marry her, and he could tell the couple in the room understood the hidden meaning of his question.

"I don't see Miss Lisa as the hands-on type, but I could be wrong. I was joking, don't be offended." Ian desperately wanted to tell Mina that Lisa was not his girlfriend, but Lisa was not, not his girlfriend, and he did not want to look like a liar. "Then again," Mina added, remembering that the man had been spotted with several women in recent weeks. "Maybe you plan to marry one of your other girlfriends." Mills hummed, and Drax pinched her waist, making her elbow the man in annoyance.

"What? She is right," Mills whispered, and Drax pinched her lips shut. He knew what Ian was doing, but Mills did not.

"I don't have another girlfriend," President Lee said while coming to stand close to Mina, and she moved her head from side to side, the same way a person would tilt their hand as if they were unsure of something.

"You should explain that to the person who matters. Not me."