Anastasiaâs smile stiffened for a few seconds before she let out a light cough. âOf course I know that.â
âAnyway, you shouldnât trust any other guys apart from me.â Nigel was tempted to just state Elliotâs name explicitly âI got it.â Anastasia nodded. Right then, Jared accidentally knocked into her bag on the couch, and a bunch of things fell out. Among the items were her keys, her lipstick, and an invitation card.
Nigelâs sharp eyes immediately caught sight of it, and he picked it up. âDid you receive my grandmotherâs invitation as well? My grandmotherâs the one who is hosting this charity dinner.â
âOh! Yeah.â Anastasia pressed her lips together into a smile. She didnât want to mention that her mom had once saved Elliot. Nigel was elated to hear this, and he quickly gave her a reminder. âYou have to come! Iâll be there too, and I can introduce you to my mom and dad.â
âOkay!â Anastasia nodded thoughtfully. She had already told Harriet that she would be there, so she had to attend the dinner. âOh, by the way, Iâll prepare an evening gown for you,â he offered.
âItâs fine.â Anastasia immediately rejected him. But Nigel didnât want to be rejected, so he continued insisting on his wishes. âIâll show you how good my taste is! Trust me. Iâm leaving now.â Anastasia sent him to the elevator. âDrive safe,â she uttered.
He turned around to give her another stern reminder. âPromise me that you wonât bring other men home, okay, Anastasia?â For the sake of reassuring him, she gave him a firm nod. âOkay, okay. I know you care for me. Iâll take note of what you said.â
Once he got into the elevator, she heaved a sigh of relief before returning home to give Jared a bath.
She read a book with him before she went to shower. When she came out of the shower, she heard her phone ringing, and she rushed over to see Elliotâs name on her screen.
âHello?â She picked up the call.
âAre you home?â The manâs voice was deep and thick, which made Anastasiaâs ear tingle. She knew that it was wrong for her to have stood him up, but she didnât have much of a choice. Itâs not my fault that Nigel showed up all of a sudden, right?
âItâs nearly 10.00PM. Of course Iâm at home,â she replied.
âWhatâs going on between you and Nigel?â The manâs voice carried a hint of distaste as he questioned her. âWeâre more than good friends,â she replied.
âI told you not to fool around with his feelings. If you donât want to get married to him, then you shouldnât give him hope.â The man gave her a stern warning.
Anastasia felt like he was too much of a busybody, so she rolled her eyes. âWhatâs wrong with us being friends? Furthermore, you are in no position to warn me about my relationship with Nigel. What are you going to do if I fall for him and decide to marry him?â
âDo you want me to tell him about how you forcefully kissed me twice?â The manâs voice sounded extremely sinister all of a sudden. She was taken aback by his words, and she immediately let out a cry. âDonât talk nonsense, Elliot!â
âWhat? Does he know about how the lines are blurred between us?â he asked.
âThere are no blurred lines between us. Things are clear between you and I-thereâs nothing going on between us at all,â she replied with a determined look in her eyes.
âYou owe me dinner. You have to make up for this in the future.â The man scoffed before ending the call.
Anastasia held onto her phone and gritted her teeth in anger. How can there be a man as annoying as him? Heâs really sticking his nose into all aspects of my life.
Anastasia lay on her bed for a while, but she couldnât seem to fall asleep as she knew that the prizes would be revealed the next day. Furthermore, there was going to be an award ceremony at 3.00PM. If she won a prize, she wouldnât just get the trophy; she would also win a cash prize of 1 million. Anastasia needed the money, so she naturally hoped to be the lucky winner. Such thoughts made it hard for her to fall asleep.
Meanwhile, Hayley was also losing sleep in her luxurious villa. Ever since she took up her fake identity of being Anastasia, she had been enjoying her life as a rich girl. However, she still felt empty with just materialistic pleasures-she didnât have the relationships she desired. She desperately wanted her relationship with Elliot to blossom. Ideally, sheâd be able to get physical with him.