Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming!

Chapter 228: Don't betray my trust

Chapter 228: Don’t betray my trust

“Like Miss Alice?!”

Ryan was sipping his coffee when he heard Anna’s question and almost spit it all out.

Bending over, he coughed violently, his face turning a bit red as he finally managed to stabilize his emotions.

Seeing Ryan like this, Anna quickly moved to his side, soothingly patting his back.

She thought Ryan would hesitate as usual, never expecting such a big reaction from him.

A glimmer of hope sparked within her,Ryan’s reaction didn’t seem like one from someone in love.

“So, Ryan, you mean you don’t like her, right?”

Anna’s mood visibly improved, her eyes curving into smiles.

Ryan gave Anna a weird look, feeling like she was somewhat taking pleasure in his discomfort.

“Uh, why would you think that?”

He took the tissue Anna handed him, looking at her with puzzled eyes.

In his view, wasn’t his relationship with Alice more like a kidnapper and hostage?

Yet, she seemed to think he could fall for Alice under these circumstances. Did he have some strange fetish?

Miss Alice was great, almost too perfect to be real.

Right now, Ryan felt like he was in the same boat with Alice, developing a certain fondness for her that would likely lead to more interactions, but it was closer to friendship than romance.

Talking about love with Alice felt almost sacrilegious.

“It’s okay, just take another sip of your coffee to calm down.”

Anna’s eyes twinkled like crescent moons, not wanting to dwell too much on this topic.

All she wanted was a simple answer, and since Ryan had spoken, things hadn’t reached the worst-case scenario yet.

Ryan, for some reason, was sticking with Alice, even willing to give up his own life, but maybe it was because Alice had bound him with guilt.

As long as it wasn’t love, it was good news for Anna, and she would find a way to slowly win Ryan back from Alice.

“Hey, why don’t you join me for dinner later?”

“Dinner might be tough, but I’m up for something else.”

Ryan checked his phone, looking a bit embarrassed, but Anna didn’t seem too bothered, almost as if she expected it.

“Sure, then how about joining me at the snack street nearby? You know it’s not far.”

Anna giggled, finishing her latte in one gulp, then came over and grabbed Ryan’s right hand, waiting for his response.

He had experienced this before,Mia, that little rascal, always liked to cling to his arm.

But when it actually happened, Ryan was still taken aback. The height of the girl next to him and her more mature scent were completely different from Mia.

Mia was tiny, like a delicate figurine, while Anna was real, the pressure of her chest against his arm was not something he could easily ignore.

His hand trembled, Ryan dared not look at Anna, quickly finishing his coffee just like she did.

The fragrance was intoxicating, his right arm felt like it was wrapped in the finest silk, perfectly nestled between Anna’s breasts. He dared not think any further.

“Just the snack street should be okay…”

Ryan touched his nose, giving a vague answer. Alice’s warnings, under Anna’s relentless pursuit, had lost their effect and were thrown to the back of his mind.

A trip to the snack street should be fine, he thought,he just had to go back and have dinner with Alice later.

Meanwhile, a few miles away from Ryan, a black luxury car slowly pulled up at a construction site.

A bodyguard got out of an escort vehicle and jogged to the car door, respectfully opening it, waiting for the response from the person in the back seat.

And of course, it was none other than Alice, tapping her fingers rhythmically on her tablet, her brows furrowed.

The tablet showed Ryan’s location near the snack street in the university town, clearly beyond what Ryan had previously reported.

Ryan had told her he was going home, and she had agreed, but then he went somewhere else without updating her.

As a mob boss, shouldn’t Alice be kept informed of her possession’s whereabouts at all times?

In the past, Alice would have immediately sent someone if Ryan showed the slightest sign of slipping out of control. But now, as she tapped her fingers on the edge of her tablet while gazing out the window, she ultimately decided against it.

“If I’ve decided to give him freedom, I should at least trust Ryan a bit,” she murmured to herself.

“Ryan… don’t betray my trust,” Alice sighed, setting down her tablet, though it did little to ease her tension.

The pressing issue now was work-related,the construction site had been problematic these past few days, and today she needed to negotiate with the workers.

Alice had considered replacing the entire crew, but with the tight schedule, there was no time to delay if she wanted to get things back on track quickly.

She had been relentlessly following up on this issue, investing a lot of effort and feeling utterly exhausted, almost to the point of a nervous breakdown.

Rubbing her sore shoulders, Alice’s thoughts drifted back to Ryan.

“Maybe I’ll have Ryan give me a massage when I get back.”

“Miss Alice, sorry, what did you just say?”

“Nothing.”

Taking a deep breath, Alice knew she couldn’t afford to show any weakness in her professional role. Any vulnerability was only for Ryan to see, and even then, just a little.

Alice signaled her bodyguard with a glance, and the man immediately stepped back two paces. Alice disliked having men too close to her, a rule that was almost ironclad here.

Looking at the still chaotic construction site, she didn’t hesitate and stepped out of the car, her tailored trousers accentuating her nearly perfect legs.

High heels were impractical for such a setting, so she had switched to more appropriate leather shoes. Her entire outfit screamed power, warning anyone who underestimated her that they would pay a hefty price.

Alice’s assistant was Hannah, but since Hannah had left yesterday and Ryan’s transition to the new assistant wasn’t finalized, the position was temporarily vacant.

“Miss Alice, I’m the manager of this site, I’ll be coordinating with you.”

A voice called out, and Alice slightly lifted her head, her gaze sweeping forward to a somewhat portly man who had already positioned himself in front of her.

The man appeared very nervous, meeting Miss Alice for the first time. Indeed, her presence was not something ordinary people could match.

He rubbed his hands nervously, continuously wiping the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief, while Alice just tilted her head slightly, looking at him with a bit of speechlessness.

“Just do your job well.”

Her voice was as cool as ever, these people were all different from Ryan.

Others either foolishly harbored designs against her or showed respect masking their fear, unable to muster even a hint of resistance.

“Miss Alice, though you say that, I still hope you’ll be careful.”

The man kept rubbing his hands, his face a forced smile that looked more pained than cheerful.

He had only recently taken over the project and being put in charge of liaising with Miss Alice felt like being thrown under the bus for previous mishaps on the site.

Internally cursing his superiors hundreds of times, the man saw Alice’s displeased expression and quickly bowed, explaining.

“Miss Alice, the situation… it has worsened again.”