Chapter 121

Chapter 121 Mandatory or by Choice?

Achoo! Leanna lost count of the number of times she had sneezed that day. She rubbed her nose and

picked up the glass of water beside her before taking a sip. “The temperature has been gradually

getting colder recently, Leanna. So, you should wear a few more layers to ensure you don’t catch a

cold,” Zoe said.

Leanna nodded. “Go on with what you were saying,” she reminded Zoe.

“Oh, where was it? Oh, right! I remember now. Didn’t Anthony get fired by the company? Well, his bad

deeds have spread all over town, and there isn’t a single company that wants him. Fortunately, I’ve

moved over to yours. Now, he’s waiting for me outside my house every day. I’ve already told the

management of the residence to file a police report,” Zoe said.

“You should really stay away from him. He’s left with nothing now, so it’s really possible for him to act in

extreme manners,” Leanna warned.

“Yeah. Don’t worry,” Zoe said while taking a bite of cake. “By the way, how have things been with you

and President Pearson?”

Leanna was speechless for a moment. “Did you have to change the topic so abruptly? You were just

calling him a b*stard a while ago.”

“Well, I have to be grateful for all he has done for me,” Zoe said with a sly smile. “I can’t talk bad about

him behind his back after he provided me so much help, right? Furthermore, I realized that he isn’t as

horrible of a person as we thought he was. He’s actually pretty nice to you.” Zoe continued talking while

Leanna stared at her speechlessly. “For example, let’s take a look at that incident with Mia. We were

the ones who had misunderstood him, and he did all of those things for you. Don’t you think that was

really sweet? Furthermore, he—”

Leanna felt goosebumps forming on her skin as she listened to the other woman’s words, so she

hastily spoke up to stop her. “Wait, wait. Stop. Stop right there.” Leanna didn’t see Aidan on a daily

basis—she would only bump into him during breakfast sometimes. They hadn’t spoken since what

happened that night. This was ideal for her.

“Fine,” Zoe mumbled. However, she quickly moved on to another topic. “What are you planning to do at

the charity dinner tomorrow? Since the Barnetts are hosting the dinner, I’m sure Zayn will be there. Will

you guys be awkward now that he’s engaged?”

“No. We’ve made things clear between us,” Leanna explained. They had clarified things that night in

the Pearson Family Estate. Leanna wasn’t worried about this matter; she was more concerned about…

I’m afraid that I might bump into some familiar faces during the charity dinner tomorrow. It’s okay if I

bump into some random people—I can just wear thicker clothes since the weather is turning cold. No

one’s going to pay attention to my belly. But the one person I’m terrified of is Anna, that crazy woman!

She’s the sort of person who would just charge over to you and bite you when you’re walking around

and minding your own business.

Leanna wasn’t afraid of Anna as a person, but she was worried that the whole Pearson Family would

find out about her pregnancy if Anna were to learn about it. But at the same time, since Harvey had

arranged for her to go, she had no choice but to show up.

After she got home, Leanna didn’t head upstairs immediately. Instead, she heated a glass of milk and

sipped it in the living room while waiting. Finally, at about 11.00PM, Aidan showed up in the hall.

“President Pearson…” she muttered while standing up. “Do we know each other?” he gazed at her

emotionlessly. She didn’t know what to say for a moment. Is this b*stard acting up again? I know he’s

acting sarcastic because I haven’t spoken to him in the past few days. Well, I’m not the only one with a

mouth. He didn’t talk to me either, right? “There’s something I’d like to talk to you about,” Leanna

uttered in a soft voice. He parted his long legs to walk over and sit down on the couch. “Spit it out,” he

spoke through his thin lips. Even though he was being mean, Leanna had no choice but to play nice

since she wanted to ask him for a favor. “I’m attending a charity dinner tomorrow, and I’m sure Anna

will be there. So, I wanted to ask you if—”

He interrupted her before she could finish her words. “Why are you going when you know that Anna’s

going to be there?”

Leanna explained herself patiently. “I’m attending the event as Lux Magazine’s jewelry designer. It’s

part of my job, so I have no reason to decline it.”

“Do you have no reason to decline it, or do you just not want to decline it?” Aidan crossed one of his

long legs over the other. “You want to meet Zayn, don’t you?” he asked flatly. Leanna didn’t want to get

into a fight with him because of this. She knew that he wouldn’t listen to whatever she told him—he’d

just come to his own conclusions based on his own judgment.

“I’m sorry for bothering you. You can just assume I didn’t say anything,” she said eventually. Right after

that, she turned and headed upstairs, leaving Aidan alone. He licked his lips as he watched her walking

away, but he didn’t say anything after that. Of course, he’d prefer for her not to attend an event like the

one she was supposed to participate in the next day. After returning to her room, Leanna thought about

it for a long while. Ultimately, she decided she would have to miss the charity dinner. Even if the

chances of her being exposed were less than 0.01%, she still wasn’t willing to risk it. So, she pulled her

phone out and texted Harvey to inform him that she wouldn’t be around for the charity dinner. Leanna’s

main task at the charity dinner was to introduce and share her inspiration and concept for her product

when they auctioned her necklace. So, Harvey would have to do her job if she couldn’t make it.

After providing Harvey with the necessary information, Leanna lay down on her bed and gazed at the

calendar beside her. It had been a while since she returned to Highside, and her baby was growing day

by day. She was due to have the child in less than four months. With that thought, Leanna felt her

spirits lighten. She allowed herself to forget everything about the b*stard and all the bad things that had

happened.

…

The next day, Leanna didn’t have much to do, so she went to Louis’ school to pay him a visit. It was the

weekend, and he didn’t have classes. When Leanna went over to look for him, she found him doing his

part-time job at the café opposite the school. A few girls were standing outside the café, and their

cheeks were flushed with excitement as they discussed something among themselves. They seemed

to have visited the café just to see Louis.

When Leanna got closer to the girls, she heard what they were talking about. “I asked him yesterday,

but he didn’t give it to me. Ah… I’m too embarrassed to go again. One of you guys should go!” one girl

cried.

“I’m not going. I heard that he refused to give his number even to the prettiest girl in our course, so why

would he give it to me?” another girl said.

“Gosh. If he has a girlfriend, his girlfriend probably feels really secure. I wish I were his girlfriend!” one

of the girls commented.

“That’s enough. Look at him! I’m sure his girlfriend is gorgeous as well,” one girl said. “Yeah. I bet she’s

prettier than the prettiest girl in our course,” another one said. Leanna smirked when she heard the

girls’ discussion. Then, she pushed the door open to enter the café. More than half of the people inside

were girls, and they would occasionally steal glances at the counter.

The owner of the café beamed as he patted Louis on the back. “You’re my lucky charm, Louis. Our

customers have doubled in amount since you came here to work. What do you want for lunch? I’ll buy

you a meal!”

Louis was about to say something when he saw Leanna entering the store. “It’s fine. Thank you.” He

politely rejected his boss. Then, he walked over to Leanna. “What are you doing here?”

“I came here to see you,” Leanna replied with a smile.