CHAPTER 138: CHAPTER 138: KISSING HIM FOR THE FIRST TIME

Wet drops of kumquat lemonade dripped one by one from Aiden Grant’s well-tailored suit jacket.

Even in such a disheveled state, Aiden still didn’t let go of Tiana Linden’s wrist.

Her slender, fair wrist was marked with a red circle from his grip.

His heart ached a little.

He never wanted to force the woman he loved most.

Yet the more Tiana struggled to break free from his grasp, the more unwilling Aiden felt.

His mind involuntarily filled with images of Tiana spending the entire night in the same room as Hector Chaucer, images that drove him insane with jealousy and heartbreak.

"Tiana, I can dismiss everything that happened with Hector Chaucer."

"As long as you return to me, I’ll love and cherish you just like before."

"Otherwise, I don’t know what I’ll do."

This time, Aiden’s tone was no longer one of desperate pleading.

It sounded more like a threat.

Even his pupils swirled with the ferocity of a hunter.

Yet within those fierce eyes, there was also a deep attachment to her.

"Tiana, come back to me."

"I’ve always remained faithful to you, never touching Vivian Linden, what more do you want?"

Ha!

Tiana almost laughed out loud.

She forgot the pain in her wrist from his tight grip.

She let out a cold laugh.

Although she was laughing, tears slid coolly down her cheeks.

She couldn’t forget how he had scornfully refused her and Daisy when she begged Aiden to take them in during her desperate times.

Or how much he distrusted her.

Even more unforgettable was when she was on the brink of death, how he harshly shattered the handmade ceramic dolls they had cherished, while she was begging him for a box of cancer medicine.

Her heart had already shattered into pieces along with those dolls.

Even though he later repaired the ceramic dolls twice, making them look perfectly new, they could never go back to the past.

Did he think that never touching Vivian meant he was truly devoted to her?

"Aiden, what’s most important between a couple is communication, trust, intimacy, and financial stability."

"Between us, we lack nothing but trust."

"Without trust, no amount of love would matter."

"If I were to soften my heart and return to you with Daisy now,"

"when you don’t trust me again, are you planning to throw me into the abyss again?"

She asked him painfully.

Tears streaking down her face were gently wiped away by Aiden.

"Tiana, I’m sorry, from now on I’ll only believe in you."

"Whatever you say, I’ll believe."

His warm fingers brushed her tears and cheek.

Tiana slapped his hand away, "Aiden, I’ve said enough, let go, don’t make me slap you."

Aiden didn’t respond.

His grip on her wrist tightened.

He didn’t let go, holding her wrist carefully yet firmly.

This was his firm yet gentle stance.

Within the gentleness, there was a hunter-like intimidation, "Tiana, I’ve said, if you don’t return to me, I don’t know what I’ll do."

Smack!

Tiana backhanded Aiden with a slap across his face.

"Aiden, I’m no longer the girl you can easily threaten."

This man was somewhat obsessive.

Tiana was aware of that.

In their younger days, during their fiercest fight, he went on a hunger strike for four days.

To threaten her.

Now, he could no longer threaten her.

Because she wouldn’t feel hurt anymore.

However, the mingling of past happiness and pain left a hole in her heart that hadn’t fully healed.

In the large buffet restaurant, the sound of the slap resonated sharply.

Nearby diners looked over curiously.

Aiden’s disheveled state was subject to the scrutiny and gossip of the crowd.

"She hit him so hard, he must be a scumbag, right?"

"If not, why was he slapped? He must be a scumbag."

"What a pity, he’s so good-looking, yet he’s a scumbag."

The word ’scumbag’ made Aiden clench his fists tightly.

He wasn’t a scumbag.

He had never betrayed Tiana.

Just too foolish to consistently trust her.

Tiana had already walked in high heels to the center of the restaurant.

She took another cup of kumquat lemonade.

And nonchalantly took a plate of fried bacon, returning to the table.

Hector was still on the phone, and when he saw her return, he hung up and looked at her.

She only had a cup of kumquat lemonade and a plate of fried bacon in her hands.

He couldn’t help but feel a little worried, "Why did it take so long, did you run into him?"

"Yes." Tiana composed herself, smiled at Hector, "I gave him a slap, it’s fine now."

Hector took a sip of milk, set the cup down, and said calmly, "If you want him to completely give up, I have a better solution."

Tiana paused her action of eating bacon.

Her long eyelashes blinked, filled with curiosity, as she looked at him.

"What’s the better solution?"

Hector deliberately teased, not answering immediately.

He took another big gulp of milk.

As the milk went down his throat, his prominent Adam’s apple moved within the smooth line of his neck.

In the quiet air, the subtle allure of this man’s every move was palpable.

Even the movement of his Adam’s apple carried a certain restrained tension.

Tiana waited for his answer amidst the visual feast.

He unhurriedly drank another sip of milk, making Tiana feel like a cat was scratching her heart with both curiosity and itchiness.

Feigning anger, she smacked him lightly, "Hurry up and tell me, what’s the solution?"

Hector set the milk glass down, his gaze briefly scanned a drenched Aiden not far away.

Then, he said nonchalantly to Tiana, "Come here."

Tiana leaned in closer, listening as Hector whispered softly beside her ear, "He’s watching."

Aiden?

Tiana didn’t look back, pretending not to know Aiden was behind her.

Beside her ear, Hector’s warm breath mingled with cedar scent wafted over in waves.

Tiana’s ear turned hot from the intoxicating presence.

The damp breath was steady, like feathers gently brushing her ear, causing Tiana’s neck hairs to tremble lightly in response.

Even without looking, she knew that Aiden would misunderstand.

She herself felt that the moment between her and Hector was simply intimate and tender.

Seizing the moment, she deliberately kissed Hector’s cheek.

Suppressing her rebellious heartbeat, with a playful grin right by Hector’s ear, she whispered, "Then let him misunderstand completely!"

She remained leaning slightly forward, maintaining an intimate posture with Hector, lowering her voice, "Now can you tell me what the better solution is to make that person completely give up?"

Hector’s nose brushed against her, whispering beside her ear without directly answering, "Tiana, no woman has ever dared kiss me so boldly before."