âHuh? You mean Anna? I donât really know her that well.â
Ryan felt a chill in his heart. He thought he had dodged a bullet, but Alice hadnât forgotten about it after all. She had a memory like an elephant.
It seemed like from the start Alice wanted to have a serious talk. Was this just the beginning?
Ryan shook his head, indicating he wasnât sure either.
Even Ryan couldnât clearly define his relationship with Anna. As far as he remembered, their interactions were limited to the library.
At the time, Anna seemed to be struggling with her thesis, and the topic just happened to be something Ryan had researched before, so he gave her a few pointers.
Speaking of which, Ryanâs notebook was still with Anna, but since he couldnât go out anytime soon, he didnât mind.
Their relationship wasnât that deep. Why was she so desperate to save him?
âYouâre not close either?â
Alice looked at Ryan and pouted, clearly not quite believing him.
Her big eyes seemed glued to Ryan, never leaving him.
Ryan shrugged, avoiding Aliceâs gaze with a guilty conscience, as if to say, even if you keep looking at me like that, I still wouldnât know.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
The topic was paused there, but Alice was definitely not going to let it go so easily. She would definitely investigate Anna thoroughly after this.
âMiss Alice, how was your day?â
Ryan noticed that after Anna and Mia left, Aliceâs mood level had gradually improved.
Although sending Hannah away had dropped Annaâs mood level a bit, it was now over thirty, not too dangerous.
Earlier, he had heard Mia talking about some troubles, probably signaling another headache for Alice.
âWell, it wasnât very smooth. I donât know whoâs trying to trip me up again.â
Mia was worried about Alice, and she would definitely be skeptical.
But Ryan was worried about her, and she just felt it was natural.
Alice didnât hide anything from Ryan,on the contrary, she poured out everything to him, and talking to Ryan seemed to make her feel better.
She was starting to depend more and more on Ryan. Was that really okay?
Under Ryanâs hesitant gaze, Alice sighed and explained everything in detail from start to finish.
Listening to Alice, Ryan nodded slightly, sensing the strangeness of the situation.
A worker had violated regulations, and that worker wasnât even registeredâit was an undocumented worker.
With so many people on the construction site, it was just too coincidental that only he had an accident.
âDid you find that worker?â
The key to the situation was the injured worker. Solving his issue would presumably resolve the larger problem.
âCanât find him, he might have been taken away already.â
Alice rubbed her temples, her first reaction also being to find that person, but as things developed, he just disappeared.
âMiss Alice, are you suggesting that someone deliberately planted him there?â
Ryan stroked his chin, amazed.
If it had been before, he might not have believed it, but after yesterdayâs dangers, underestimating human intentions would be his mistake.
âI canât rule out that possibility, though I donât have solid evidence.â
Injuries on construction sites were not uncommon and usually manageable, but the timing of this incident was really unfortunate.
The business district was still under construction, and mishandling it could lead to economic losses and reputational damage, neither of which Alice could afford.
The business district near the subway station was a major project. Alice had planned and invested a lot in it, putting nearly ninety percent of her assets into it, leaving no spare resources to meet the workersâ demands.
âOne and a half times the usual rate, huh? Thatâs really troublesome.â
Ryan sighed, worried about Aliceâs situation.
This incident had just happened, and Alice had no clue what to do next. Ryan wanted to help but didnât know where to start.
It seemed he would have to go out with Alice to see the site himself to understand what was really going on.
âTomorrow you can make your own plans. If you feel like it, you can go out for a walk. Iâll handle the matter of getting a new assistant.â
âWe need to think long-term about this.â
Saying so, Alice stretched lazily, then gently tapped her shoulder with her right hand, signaling Ryan with her eyes.
Ryan nodded obediently and moved closer to Alice, placing his hand on her shoulder.
But just then, he suddenly realized something and pressed down hard.
âAh~â
A strange sound escaped through Aliceâs teeth, a delicate voice that made Ryanâs heart flutter.
Alice noticed her slip and covered her mouth with her hand, glaring fiercely at Ryan.
Ryan awkwardly smiled and quickly apologized. It wasnât really his fault,Aliceâs words had just been too impactful.
âMiss Alice, what did you say just now?â
Ryan gently massaged the girlâs shoulders, feeling Alice gradually relax, and tentatively asked again.
âI said tomorrow you can make your own plans, Iâll sort out your assistantâs status.â
âNo, not that part, the part before that.â
âYou can go out for a walk, isnât that what you wanted to hear?â
Alice huffed, if it werenât for Ryanâs earlier reassurance, she might not have even considered it.
Mia was right,she couldnât keep Ryan locked up forever. He needed some freedom.
Since Ryan had promised not to leave her, she might as well trust him this once. That way, their relationship could continue normally.
âBut, I have conditions.â
Before Ryan could react, Alice quickly added another sentence as if she had second thoughts.
She shrugged her shoulders signaling Ryan to stop, then turned around to face him, grabbing his hands.
When she was facing away, Ryanâs hands were on her shoulders, but now that she had turned around, Alice pulled them onto her lap.
The round and elastic touch momentarily confused Ryan, and he couldnât help but recall his previous discovery in Aliceâs room.
Blue and white stripes⦠and quite shapelyâ¦
Why would Miss Alice do this? She couldnât really have that kind of weird fetish, could she?
Alice didnât know what Ryan was thinking, but from his expression, she could tell it wasnât anything good. Her good mood vanished, and she asked coldly.
âWhat are you thinking?â
âEye mask⦠cough, cough, cough, no, nothing, nothing.â
Ryan coughed violently a few times, quickly shattering the strange fantasies in his mind.
Interacting with Miss Alice was always like this,after all, having such a beautiful girl constantly by oneâs side was a dream for many, and even Ryan couldnât always keep his cool.
âIâll give you one day a week to do as you please, but if thereâs an emergency, you must come to me.â
Alice stated this firmly, leaving no room for Ryan to question.
Ryan listened and nodded slightly, not seeing anything wrong with the arrangement.
One day was quite a lot for him, considering he didnât really have anything specific he needed to do outside.
It was more critical to be with Alice,in his view, spending the whole day with her was proper, that way he could be at ease.
His excitement was simply because it was too boring when Alice wasnât home,getting out for a bit was a good thing.
If he had a day, he could also visit the kids at the orphanage, wondering how they were doing.
As for needing to be by Aliceâs side whenever she required, that was only right,even if Alice hadnât mentioned it, he would have done so anyway.
Ryan had no objections, and Alice was naturally pleased to see this.
Actually, she still had some reservations about this arrangement, but if Ryan acted out of line, she would hide this matter and never bring it up again.
âSecond, even on your free day, you must return here in the evening. I will send someone to pick you up.â
âYou must have breakfast and dinner with me every day.â
Ryan squinted his eyes,this second request was almost too adorable, almost like a child asking for a hug.
But then Ryanâs mood sobered up. With Hannah gone, Alice really only had him, and he felt quite touched by her concessions.
If she werenât so concerned about losing him, why would she be so cautious?
âThe third requirement, and the most important, is that you must not interact with any other women.â
âIf I catch you, forget about going out again!â