âGrandma, weâre done eating. Mr. Flintstone, donât you have a meeting to attend?â Shirley smiled at Zacharias, her eyes hinting at something.
Zacharias nodded. He, too, didnât want to disturb their lunch any longer. âYes, the meeting is about to start.â
âGrandma, Old Madam Dawson, Mr. Dawson, weâll take our leave. Mr. Dawson, could you please take my Grandma home? Thank you.â She stood up, reached out to grab Zachariasâ arm, and called Tony to come along. âTony, letâs go!â
She couldnât leave Tony here; otherwise, her grandmother would overhear everything about her and Zacharias. Tony smiled, said goodbye to everyone, and left. Then, Shirley turned around and reminded Zacharias, âPut on your mask.â
After watching him obediently put on his mask, she nervously looked around before accompanying him downstairs.
Inside the car, Zacharias took off his mask. Shirley let out a sigh of relief and turned to him, scolding him in a low voice, âWhy did you come over?â
Seeing her genuinely upset, he replied truthfully, âI didnât want someone else to take you away.â
She choked and said, âTake me away? What are you talking about? I have a mind of my own. Iâm not a commodity that can be taken away with just a glance!â
Zacharias let out a chuckle. âAre you trying to comfort me?â
âAbsolutely not.â Shirley flushed red. âYou shouldnât have come. Now that my Grandma knows, my parents will also know tomorrow. The day after tomorrowâ¦â She felt a bit overwhelmed. After all, this was an extremely awkward situation as she had never openly discussed her relationship issues.
âSo, what if the whole world knows? Canât we love each other?â he asked with his eyes narrowed.
âWhen did I fall in love with you?â She expressed that she didnât even know something like this had happened. He reached out and rubbed the back of her head. âYou will sooner or later.â
Biting her red lips, Shirley chose not to argue with Zacharias for now. She would deal with it when they got back. After all, there were bodyguards in the car, and she didnât want to talk to him at the moment.
Throughout the journey, his gaze frequently fell on the girl beside him, appreciating her elegant and beautiful profile. It was like admiring a static painting; the view gave him the urge to make a drawing of her and preserve it.
Finally, they arrived at the Flintstone Residence. After getting out of the car, she opened the door, inviting the man inside before entering herself.
âAll right, scold me however you want!â Zacharias opened his hands. Shirley looked at him with strange eyes. âWhy would I scold you?â
âDidnât I ruin your blind date today? Arenât you angry?â
She had been quietly pouting during their journey home. With his chest tightened nervously, he wanted to let off some steam when they came back to the residence. She shook her head. âNo need. Iâll explain this to Grandma later.â
âWhy do you have to do that?â He raised his eyebrows.
âDo you think now is the right time to be in a relationship? You better focus on your work!â Shirley advised. Zacharias had just taken office. If rumors of their relationship spread, it would surely affect public opinion.
It could also provide an opportunity for those who had objections to him to use this as a pretext to suppress him. She hoped he would consolidate his political power before diving into a romantic relationship.
This was what she had been thinking about throughout the journey. Everything was for his sake.
Zachariasâ handsome face froze for a few seconds. Eventually, he stepped forward, hugged her, and uttered, âOkay, Iâll listen to you.â
Shirley pushed him away, or at least she tried to. But since he didnât budge, she stopped resisting. As she let him hold her, she felt the collision of two hearts in the quiet hall.
However, good things are always short-lived. Tony, who had just arrived, pushed open the door and saw the two people embracing in the hall. âI caught you again. Are you going to keep refusing to admit it?â he teased with a smile, his arms crossed.
âWe are doing it openly. How are we not admitting it?â Zacharias grumpily looked at his nephew. He felt like the younger man had disturbed him at the wrong time.
Shirley had nothing to say to this uncle-nephew pair. What kind of uncle would tell his nephew to follow her anyway? They were definitely on the same side!