The HR assistant who hired me had mentioned that Ava Barlow was the daughter of the big boss. She was definitely part of the same Barlow family that ran Richland Group. Her being at a small subsidiary like Intelli-Ware Solutions was probably just for training.On top of that, Richland Group also had a few senior executives with the last name Price. They had to be Gavin Price's family.It wasn't strange for a corporation to have people from different families in its ranks. Maybe a few old friends built the business together, and now their kids were all benefiting from it.As for whether there was any infighting, I couldn't be sure.After two days of mind-numbing boredom, Ava finally called me. It was evening, and I was on the toilet when my phone rang.I answered, and before I could even say hello, her emotionless voice came through. "Kian, I've signed the official contract with BTT.""Yeah? That's great news. But from your tone, you don't sound very happy about it.""I'm not unhappy.

He gave me another thumbs-up, then leaned in close to quietly discuss the psychology of a woman like Ava, and how one might go about pursuing her.He was just a very curious, friendly guy who loved to chat, and maybe a little bit of a closeted romantic.His colleague from BTT was deep in conversation with Ken and the others. Ava was talking quietly with a few of the female colleagues, letting out rare, soft laughs from time to time.A smile from Ava was indeed a rare sight.Come to think of it, I don't think I'd ever seen her laugh. She was always stone-faced, cold, and arrogant.Of course, she had her moments of fear. Like three years ago, when Rex Vance almost got her. Or recently, when I pinned her against the wall, and when I hooked her onto the bed with my foot. She'd looked terrified then.It just went to show that her cold, arrogant exterior was just an act. Inside, she was fragile. It was easy to break through her facade.Fueled by the drinks and the music, the atmosphere in t

She snorted loudly, took the pads into the bathroom, and slammed the door shut.I used the glass to crush the dates and ginger, carefully picking out the pits from the dates.Ava pulled open the bathroom door and walked out. As she passed me, she said, "I'd like to see what kind of tricks you can pull," then walked straight to the bed. She grabbed the remote, turned on the TV, kicked off her heels, and climbed onto the bed, pulling the blanket over the lower half of her body. She leaned back against the headboard and watched TV with a blank expression.I focused on preparing the dates. I checked the kettle and felt the water was about the right temperature. I took it into the bathroom and soaked a clean towel in the hot water."Here, put this hot towel on your stomach," I said, running over to the bed and handing it to her.She stared straight ahead, stone-faced, and didn't take the towel."It's going to get cold. Hurry up. The sooner you're done, the sooner I can go back to my room a

She was wearing a black slip dress, which made her skin look even paler and more radiant, especially around her chest and shoulders, where only two thin straps held the dress up.I held the bouquet of vibrant roses out to her. "Ava, these are for you. I hope you have a wonderful day.""Who are you calling Ava? Get out!" she snapped, her face flushing red. She covered her chest with one hand and pointed at the door with the other."You, of course. Doesn't it sound more intimate?""You... you're nothing but a scoundrel!""How am I supposed to win you over if I'm not a little bit of a scoundrel, right?"Ava was too angry to speak. She just spun around, walked into the room, and slammed the container of breakfast down on the table."Tsk, tsk, look at you, throwing a tantrum. You've spilled the porridge."I hurried over, placed the flowers on her nightstand, and then carefully opened the outer plastic bag. I wiped the container clean with a tissue and set it on the table."Have you brushed

She spoke as if she hadn't heard me, talking more to herself. "Actually, ever since I saw the scars on your body, I've felt incredibly guilty. I can't even imagine what you went through in that place. I just know those scars must have been painful.""If I hadn't run away back then, you wouldn't be like this. So I've always felt guilty, always blamed myself. But I didn't know how to make it up to you, how to apologize. Because you always act so shameless and disgusting, and it makes me so angry...""Ms. Barlow, hold on a second. You want to make it up to me? That's easy. Just go out with me."She continued as if I hadn't spoken. "I know you're not a bad person. I could tell from the day of the Festival of Waters. You're actually kind-hearted and soft. And last night... I don't know when I fell asleep, but when I woke up, the blanket was tucked in neatly around me... Thank you.""Oh, and I also heard that on the night of the festival, when Bansa and his guys were beating you up, you had