Chapter 16

They walked in silence for a while, then Aiden broke it. "Is Daniel Chou the guy you've been waiting for these past three years?"

When Aiden suddenly mentioned Daniel Chou, Grace Li's emotions became complicated. She looked at him in surprise, her mind racing with questions: How did he know about Daniel Chou? How did he know I've been waiting for him for three years? Even though she had drunkenly mentioned "a friend" when talking to Aiden about her past with Daniel Chou, how did he figure out that it was her own story?

She tried to act calm and responded, "Nope, you're trippin'."

"You don't like him?" Aiden pressed.

Grace Li immediately shook her head. "No, I don't."

Aiden chuckled lightly, teasing her. "Good thing you don't like him. Otherwise, your taste in men sucks."

Grace Li instinctively hugged her Chanel-style jacket tighter and couldn't resist asking, "Why do you say that? What's wrong with him?"

Aiden raised an eyebrow. "He's average-looking, not tall, doesn't have much personality, and no backbone. And, as far as I know, he might even be a guy who lives off women. If you liked him, I'd seriously question your judgment. You can find someone better just by grabbing anyone off the street in New York. He's a total dud."

Grace Li was taken aback by his harsh words. Hearing Aiden put Daniel down like that, she couldn't help but start doubting her own judgment. But in reality, Daniel Chou wasn't that bad—he was considered pretty great in school, and a lot of girls liked him. Objectively speaking, Daniel was definitely in the group of the more successful ones. But in Aiden's eyes, he was completely worthless.

She couldn't help but retort, "Aiden, are you comparing him to yourself?"

"Duh, of course. If I'm judging someone, I use myself as the standard. I'm the real deal," Aiden replied matter-of-factly.

Grace Li thought for a moment. If she compared Daniel Chou to Aiden Thompson, Daniel would probably lose. Aiden was better in every way—looks, charisma, and ability. She suddenly understood. "So you're flexing, huh?"

Just then, a cold gust of wind blew through, and Grace Li couldn't hold back a sneeze. She quickly tightened her jacket around her and sniffed.

Aiden noticed and once again offered her his jacket. "Don't be a tough guy. Put it on, or you'll get sick."

"You're the one being a tough guy!" Grace Li muttered, then suddenly realized, "Aiden, why are we still walking out here in this freezing wind?"

Aiden was momentarily silent, then shrugged and said, "You were the one who wanted to walk here. You said it would be fun as hell."

Grace Li suddenly remembered it was her suggestion. Shivering, she turned toward the street and said, "Let's bounce, it's freezing."

Aiden laughed softly, watching her hurry away, then quickly followed after her.

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Grace Li thought to herself, she must be losing it.

After coming back from the finance cocktail party, she took a hot shower and planned to catch up on the financial news before going to bed. But the words kept swimming in front of her eyes, and none of it was sticking.

Right now, all she could think about was Aiden Thompson.

She kept replaying the way he had rescued her earlier that day—his smooth, effortless demeanor, the way he'd taken off his jacket and handed it to her. Her heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand. The image kept replaying in her mind, over and over again. If this kept up, she was going to lose her mind.

In a daze, she picked up a novel, but after reading the first chapter, Aiden's handsome face had somehow managed to slip into the image of the male protagonist.

This was getting out of hand.

Grace Li gave up trying to fight it. She lay on her bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. It had been two months since she first met him. From the initial shock of his good looks to working together, she thought she'd gotten used to having such a charming subordinate around.

But today—just because Aiden Thompson showed up at the right time and helped her out of an awkward situation—her heart was now racing uncontrollably. It was as if a little rabbit had taken up residence in her chest. Her mind was completely scattered.

As a career woman approaching her thirties, Grace Li never imagined she'd be this distracted by someone.

Somehow, she drifted off to sleep, her mind still racing. In her dream, she was back in college.

The professor had just finished his "U.S. Economic Policy" lecture, and Grace Li was packing up her books, getting ready to head back to the dorm with her roommate. That's when Daniel Chou walked up to her and said, "Grace, I need to talk to you."

Grace Li followed him out of the classroom, her mind full of questions. What could he possibly want to talk about? Her stomach was tied up in knots.

They reached the garden near campus, and Daniel stopped. He turned around with a serious look on his face and asked, "Grace, why did you tell people I'm your boyfriend?"

Grace Li's face turned pale. She hadn't expected this.

"I just…" Before she could explain, Daniel interrupted, "Don't you think this is making things awkward for me?"

Grace Li felt like the floor was falling out beneath her. Embarrassment and discomfort flooded her, and she just wanted to disappear. "I'm sorry, I didn't say your name. I just needed to turn down John Lewis…"

At that moment, she heard whispers behind her. She turned to see a small group of people gathered nearby, watching her with sneers and whispering among themselves. Though she couldn't make out what they were saying, the contempt in their voices made her feel like she was being stabbed in the back.

"I just told a little white lie to get rid of a guy's advances. I didn't hurt anyone, so why are they treating me like this?" Grace Li felt both confused and hurt.

Just when she was about to lose it, a familiar figure appeared in her line of sight. Aiden Thompson, wearing a sharp suit, his right hand casually in his pocket, flashed a charming smile as he walked toward her. He stopped right in front of her.

Grace Li stood there, stunned, still trying to process it. Before she could react, Aiden leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.

Then, he casually draped his arm over her shoulder, a smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. He looked at the group of people around them and said, "Looks like you guys got it all wrong. Grace is my girlfriend."

Grace Li felt her heart race like it might burst out of her chest.

Suddenly, Grace was jolted awake. The room around her came into focus, the morning light filtering through the curtains. Her heart was still pounding, as if everything from the dream had really happened.

She instinctively touched her lips, still stunned by the dream. Her face flushed with embarrassment. She couldn't believe she dreamt that Aiden Thompson kissed her. How crazy was that?

Although she couldn't stop thinking about Aiden after everything he did yesterday, deep down she knew it was impossible between them.

First off, they had quite an age gap. Secondly, someone as good-looking and capable as Aiden wouldn't possibly be interested in her. And third, Aiden always gave off the vibe that he was more into relationships with women who had financial power, probably looking for something in return. He didn't seem to take romance seriously.

The alarm hadn't gone off yet. It was only 6:30 a.m. But Grace Li was wide awake, no longer feeling sleepy. She'd left the office at 6:30 yesterday to attend the finance cocktail event, so her work had piled up. So, she decided to just get up and head to work.

When Grace Li arrived at the office, it was only 8 a.m. The skyscraper was quiet, almost eerily so. She stepped into the elevator, which smoothly ascended to her floor.

As she walked into the office, her gaze instinctively swept over Aiden Thompson's desk as she passed it. It was neat and orderly, with almost no unnecessary items. The only thing that stood out was an elegant ornament, a gift from a client. Grace had regifted it to Aiden during Thanksgiving, and since then, it had stayed prominently on his desk.

Thankfully, the cold weather had preserved the chocolates and candies she'd given him as part of the holiday gift. They sat neatly to the side, untouched and still in perfect condition.

Grace settled into her own desk and began her day.