Chapter 157
Aria’s POV
Lillian looked more shocked than I was. “I’ve been with you all day! You know everything I’ve done p>
Fair point.
As Aiden got closer, I remembered that I’d not only hung up on him earlier, but I’d also ignored his message asking when I’d be home.
My palms instantly became sweaty with guilt. “I’ve changed my mind,” I whispered desperately to Lillian. “Can I stay at your place tonight after all p>
Just one night!
Before Lillian could respond, Aiden was already standing in front of us.
Despite the muggy August heat that lingered even at night, he was dressed in his usual black shirt and loose dark pants. All black from head to toe, making his tall frame look even more imposing.
The familiar scent of sandalwood drifted toward me, and my heart pounded so hard I could feel my pulse in my throat. I stood there frozen, having absolutely no idea
what to say.
Lillian seemed equally terrified, backing away instinctively as Aiden approached. When he reached out his hand, I saw her actually pull out her phone—was she about to call the police?
But in the next moment, Aiden simply took my hand in his, and Lillian’s jaw practically hit the floor.
“Are you hot?” he asked softly, his thumb brushing over my sweaty palm.
His voice was completely calm, without a trace of anger.
I didn’t know how to respond until I glanced at Lillian and suddenly understood- Aiden didn’t know that Lillian was aware of our marriage arrangement. He was putting on a show for her!
I had no choice but to play along. “What are you doing here p>
“Picking up Mrs. Carter to take her home,” he replied.
As he spoke, his grip on my hand tightened slightly, his dark eyes holding a hint of warmth that seemed almost… affectionate.
My face betrayed me by immediately turning red. “I—I was just about to head back.” “Ready to go home, then p>
I nodded, all my righteous anger from this morning completely evaporating the moment he touched my hand.
God help me was he genuinely unaware I’d been angry, or was he just pretending?
“Yes,” Aiden replied, then turned to Lillian with a polite nod. “Thank you for keeping Aria company today p>
Lillian looked confused. “It was no trouble. Aria visits me all the time p>
Bless her heart-even now, she was trying to help me establish that I had a social life outside my marriage.
“Perhaps you could visit us sometime,” Aiden suggested. “We’d love to have you over p>
“That would be nice, Mr. Carter p>
After the brief exchange, Aiden led me away, his hand still firmly holding mine.
I caught a glimpse of Lillian watching us leave, and the expression on her face was priceless—like she was the one feeling left out.
When we got to the car, I realized Aiden had driven himself instead of having his driver bring him. My guilt intensified as I fumbled with the seatbelt, unable to click it properly.
Aiden leaned over and secured it for me, his face close to mine for a brief moment. “Tired p>
I’d braced myself for his anger, for demands about why I’d ignored him all day. His gentle question caught me completely off guard.
“I—I’m okay,” I stuttered.
“Want to grab a late dinner with me p>
Before I could answer, he added, “Mrs. Carter wasn’t home, so I didn’t have much appetite for dinner. I’m getting hungry now p>
My heart fluttered at his words. The resolve I’d had this morning was already crumbling.
“Sure, that sounds good,” I said, then added hastily, “I’m a bit hungry too p>
Aiden gave me a knowing look, his lips quirking into the ghost of a smile. “Hmm p>
I turned to look out the window, feeling completely transparent. This man was going to be the death of me.
Despite my expectations of a tense drive, Aiden drove smoothly and calmly through the night traffic. The truth was, I was exhausted. Lillian and I had covered what felt like miles of mall floors today.
She’d complained about luxury stores being nothing but capitalist traps designed to squeeze money from working people like us “I work a whole year to make $300,000, and they want $200,000 for a basic chain bag!”—all while enthusiastically dragging me from one designer store to the next. By the time we’d returned to her apartment, our step counters had recorded nearly 10,000 steps.
The cool air conditioning in the car felt heavenly. As I watched the city lights blur past the window, my eyelids grew heavier by the second. Before I knew it, I had drifted off.
I woke up to the strange sensation of being carried. Opening my eyes, I found
myself cradled in Aiden’s arms as he climbed the stairs to our home.
When our eyes met, I panicked and immediately closed mine again.
Maybe if I pretend I’m still asleep, this won’t be awkward.
I heard Aiden’s soft chuckle but he didn’t call me out on my obvious pretense. He
continued carrying me to my bedroom and gently laid me on the bed.
As I heard him turning to leave, I opened my eyes, intending to slip to the bathroom.
But at that exact moment, he flicked on the light switch.
I froze, sitting on the edge of the bed, caught in the act of my terrible acting.
Dear God, which would be more believable now-falling back and pretending to sleepwalk, or just owning up to being awake?
“Did I wake you?” he asked, his voice tinged with apology.
The question was so unexpectedly considerate that I blurted out the truth: “No, I need to use the bathroom p>
Desperately, in fact. I rushed past him toward the en suite.
Earlier at Lillian’s apartment, she’d insisted we get bubble tea. I wasn’t usually a fan, but I’d ordered a large
peach tea that was surprising ot
good. Between games and conversation, I’d absent-mindedly finished the entire thing..net
And now I was paying the price.
When I emerged from the bathroom, Aiden was still in my room.
“Still want that late dinner?” he asked, his eyes meeting mine.
I felt awkward now that we were home. “Maybe… I could make us some noodles p>
“Sounds perfect p>
As he spoke, he began unbuttoning his shirt further, his fingers casually working down from the collar.
I hadn’t seen him do this in front of me for almost a week. The familiar gesture
caught me off guard, and I instinctively averted my eyes.
Hmph. Like I care what he does.
I lifted my chin and walked past him with feigned indifference. “I’ll go downstairs and
start cooking p>
My feet were killing me after wearing
sandals att day, even though they were low-heeled. The first thing I did downstairs was change into my comfortable house slippers before
heading to the kitchen.
I’d assumed Aiden’s comment about not having an appetite was just an excuse, but
when I saw the garbage can full of barely-touched food, I realized he hadn’t been
lying.
Our refrigerator was always stocked twice a week with our favorite foods. On weekends, I usually asked our housekeeper to take the leftovers home.
Since I hadn’t been home today, she wouldn’t have dared to take anything without permission. The fridge was still full of ingredients, so I decided to make beef noodles for both of us.
Just as I finished cooking, Aiden appeared in the kitchen doorway. “I’ll carry those p>
I noticed his shirt was now unbuttoned even further than before, revealing more of
his chest than I’d seen in days.
What was that about? Was he trying to make it up to me?
Well, I didn’t care. I wasn’t going to look.
I kept my eyes straight ahead as I walked past him with the chopsticks, taking my
usual seat at the dining table.
Aiden soon followed with the steaming bowls of noodles. They were too hot to eat immediately, so we sat facing each other in awkward silence.
In the past, I would have desperately tried to fill this silence with conversation. But tonight, I didn’t have the energy or desire.
What was the point? We were just a fake couple. With no one around to perform for, why bother pretending?
“What did you buy today?” Aiden suddenly asked.
His question startled me so much that my finger slipped on my phone screen, accidentally playing a voice message from Lillian What’s up with Alden? Some woman downstairs just asked me forhis contact info—said he’s been waiting there since 8 PM p>
I frantically closed the app, immediately apologizing. “Sorry about that, my friend p>
Halfway through my sentence, I realized something. “Wait, you were waiting
downstairs at Lillian’s apartment since 8 o’clock p>
Aiden calmly wiped the condensation from his hands with a napkin. “Yes. Sunday evenings can be difficult for getting a taxi p>
His tone was so matter-of-fact, as if waiting for an hour and a half was perfectly
normal!
“But—but you never told me you were coming!” I stammered.
He’d been waiting there since 8 PM, and I hadn’t come down until 9:30. Had he
really been waiting all that time?
“You didn’t reply to my message. I thought your phone might be dead p>
I stared at him in disbelief. Seriously, Aiden? How could he be so clueless? I was at
my friend’s apartment—of course my phone wouldn’t be dead! I just hadn’t wanted
to respond to him!
A wave of guilt crashed over me unlike anything I’d felt before. I had no idea what to
say.