“Zoe, Mr. Dolton’s looking for you.” Myra Oliver, who hade along with me, held up the phone.


    I’d really underestimated Alvin’s persistence. Given the situation, I had no choice but to take the call. I answered formally, “Mr. Dolton, how can I help you?”


    “Zoe.” Alvin’s voice was low and rough, tinged with obvious regret. “Why did you leave so early today? I came home, but you


    weren’t there.”


    I could tell he wasn’t calling about work, so I stepped away a bit. “I went out for breakfast.”


    “I’m sorry,” he said, st night… I couldn’t get away, so I didn’te back.”


    A cold chill ran through me, and I couldn’t help but smile bitterly. “Couldn’t get away? Why’s that?”


    Alvin fell silent.


    I held my breath, giving him an easy out. “Was it because you couldn’t find a caregiver?”


    “Yes…”


    I didn’t say anything more. Alvin spoke again, “Zoe, when are you done? I’lle pick you up. We can have lunch together.”


    It had been a while since we ate together. ording to Jedst night, he’d been with Thea. I thought, ‘Is this lunch invitation an attempt to make up for the abrupt way he leftst night, or is he having a sudden change of heart?’


    I didn’t know, and I wasn’t interested in wasting energy overanalyzing it. I replied indifferently, “I’m not sure when I’ll be done. It might be around noon… but even then, I might not be finished. Plus, don’t you have things to handle every noon?”


    “Zoe…” Alvin seemed to catch my sarcasm. He said my name in a heavier tone, then paused for a couple of seconds. “Don’t overthink it.”


    I thought, ‘After he could just walk away from my bedroomst night without a second thought, what is there to overthink?’


    It was work time, and I didn’t want to get into personal stuff with him. “I’m busy right now. If there’s nothing else, I’m going to hang up.”


    He didn’t say anything further, so I hung up.


    Today’s fieldwork involved both partner discussions and an on-site inspection. The meeting wrapped up by 10 a.m., and then Myra and I headed to the construction site.


    This was a theme park project I was overseeing, and I was in charge of tracking all the progress. The construction was about 80%plete, so I needed to check if everything aligned with the design ns.


    Since the partners had stuck to the blueprints, the likelihood of major issues was low. But I still needed to go through the motions. By the time we finished the rounds, my feet were swollen and my toes were aching.


    I found a spot to sit and rest, and Myra immediately noticed something was wrong. “Zoe, are you okay?”


    “Yeah, my feet hurt,” I didn’t hide it. If I weren’t at the site, I would’ve kicked off my shoes to give my feet a break.


    “Oh,” Myra said, looking at my face. “Zoe, it’s not just your feet, is it? You’re feeling sick, aren’t you?”


    I froze for a moment. Myra pointed at my face, asking, “You look kind of pale.”


    I hadn’t gotten much sleepst night, so of course, I looked exhausted. Plus, when a woman was in a bad mood, no amount of makeup could hide it.


    “Probably just about to start my period.” I made up an excuse and pulled out my phone, pretending to check messages.


    Myra was a talker, and I knew if I didn’t shut her down, she’d keep asking. I’d never be able to keep up with the lies.


    Just then, a shadow fell over me. At first, I thought it was Myra, so I didn’t pay much attention. But when I felt warmth on my ankle, I looked up to see arge, familiar hand.


    Alvin took off my shoes and ced my feet on hisp, gently massaging them. “Are your shoes ufortable?”


    I didn’t answer, my throat tight with emotion. He looked up at me, his voice soft. “Still upset?”


    “No,” I said, pulling my feet back a little.


    But Alvin didn’t let go. He kept massaging them. “It won’t happen again.”


    Today, he was wearing a deep blue suit with a white shirt underneath. His custom cufflinks glinted in the sunlight, sparkling just like he did.


    He massaged my left foot, then my right,pletely unfazed by the people walking past us.


    I noticed some young women ncing at us enviously, whispering about how handsome and affectionate he was-like they’d finally seen the perfect boyfriend in real life.


    I’d admit, I was touched, too. Any lingering difort I had fromst night seemed to melt away as he worked his hands over my feet.


    “Zoe, you’re so lucky!” Myra mouthed at me from a distance.


    With Alvin doing this, if I kept holding ontost night’s grudge, it would just make me look petty, like I was clinging to something that didn’t matter.


    “What do you want for lunch?” he asked.


    “Anything,” I replied, not really hungry, though I was feeling a bit better.


    “I’ll take you to have grilled fish. They also do grilled foie gras, and it’s amazing,” he said as he helped me into the car.


    Just as I reached for my seatbelt, he leaned over, his scent of soap brushing against my skin, making my breath catch.


    Noticing my reaction, he smiled, pulled my seatbelt across me, and then, as he straightened up, leaned down and kissed my cheek. “Zoe, you look so shy, just like when you were little.”


    I froze. The kiss, though quick, made my heart flutter. I really was hopeless. Just a small gesture from him, and I was over the moon.


    Thinking of Thea, I asked, “How is Thea now?”


    “She’s fine. She’s been discharged.”


    I didn’t say anything else. Alvin nced at me. “Why are you so quiet?”


    “I don’t know what to say,” I admitted.


    But as soon as the words left my mouth, his earlierment, “We’re too familiar,” shed in my mind.


    Yeah, we were too familiar. Familiar enough that we knew everything about each other, enough that there wasn’t much left to talk about.


    Alvin took me to a restaurant, and the server led us to a window-side table, where a bouquet of white roses-my favorite- was already waiting for me. I realized he’d made the reservation in advance.


    The grilled fish and foie gras were brought out, along with my favorite dessert. It was clear he’d put a lot of thought into this


    meal.


    I snapped a photo and posted it on social media-delicious food, beautiful flowers, and Alvin’s long, elegant hands.


    My coworkers immediately liked the post, and Myra sent a message. [You didn’t bring me.]


    When we first arrived, Alvin had told her to handle things on her own and promised to reimburse herter.


    Jasmine also saw the post. She didn’t like it, but she sent me a private message.


    Jasmine: [Look at this, he’s trying to make up for it. Not bad. Also, I checked with the nurse on dutyst night. He stayed in the room the whole time. Nothing happened.]


    I didn’t reply.


    “Stop looking at your phone and eat,” Alvin said, cutting up the foie gras and cing it in front of me.


    Just as I was about to take a bite, a familiar figure appeared in my line of sight, walking toward us with a bright smile.


    “Miss Kemp,” Thea said, approaching us.


    She then turned to Alvin. “Alvin, you’re here too?”


    I thought, ‘If he weren’t here, then who would it be? It wouldn’t be quite right for anyone else to be.’


    “What a coincidence, Miss Mills. What brings you here?” I asked, not mincing words.


    “I was at Benjamin’s grave and happened to pass by. When I smelled the foie gras, I couldn’t resist,” Thea said, her voice soft and smooth, her skin pale and delicate.


    “By yourself?” Alvin asked.


    “Yeah, so if you don’t mind, could I join you?” Thea asked, already slipping her coat onto the chair next to Alvin.