Marianne chuckled lightly. “Well now, since we’ve all bumped into each other, why don’t you two girls come by our place for a bit?”“Sure!” Kandice agreed so quickly, it was like she was afraid the invitation would be taken back.Marianne froze.She really did want to take it back.It had just been a polite gesture. Anyone with half a clue would’ve known not to take it seriously. Most people would’ve laughed it off or politely declined. But Kandice accepted it like she genuinely didn’t know any better.Ruby was stunned too. She had fully intended to decline, but before she could even open her mouth, Kandice had already jumped in.Anyone listening could tell Marianne hadn’t meant it. It was the kind of empty courtesy people say all the time—like, “Let’s grab lunch sometime!” with no real plan to follow through. No one actually takes it literally. No one asks, “Great, how about next Tuesday?”Now, watching Marianne awkwardly frozen in place, unsure how to respond, Ruby just wanted
“In public, behaving like this—do you want the whole world laughing at the Duncan family?” Robert snapped, glaring at them. “If Aria were just some random girl, maybe it wouldn’t matter. But once people remember who she really is, how do you expect us to hold our heads high?”Grace let out a quiet sigh of relief. Thankfully, no one had recognized Aria today. Otherwise, this would’ve been a complete disaster.“It’s not just the family they’ll be gossiping about,” she said more gently. “Aria, with your background, the rumors won’t stop. And you’re a woman—it’s already harder for you. If something goes wrong, people will blame you long before they ever blame Archer. You really need to think this through.”Off to the side, Kandice sat silently, gloating inside.Watching Archer fawn over Aria earlier—so shameless, like he’d completely forgotten where they were—had stunned her. The man who always seemed so composed and untouchable had turned into some lovestruck fool. She couldn’t help w
If it had been a more private moment, Aria might’ve let it go. But now? With so many people around—the Duncans’ elders, the grandparents, his parents—every pair of eyes was watching. Her cheeks burned as she whispered, “I’ll feed myself.”But Archer caught her hand before it reached the strawberry. His dark eyes locked onto hers, intense and unwavering, making her heart race until she felt faint. That gaze—hot and focused—always left her completely defenseless.“Don’t fuss,” he murmured, his voice low and husky with just a hint of mischief.Aria couldn’t get a single word out. She wanted to ask who exactly was fussing here, but the strawberry was already brushing her lips. Its sweet scent lingered in the air, and its juicy red tip left a soft stain on her mouth.He gently pressed it against her lips again, urging her to take a bite.Aria was too embarrassed to look at anyone, especially the elders. She could practically feel Kandice shooting daggers at her from behind. But Archer
Aria swallowed the last bite of rice slowly, her lashes lowering slightly as they fluttered with quiet restraint.She had no trouble seeing through Kandice’s little performance. The girl had shown up uninvited, practically glued herself to the spot, and now sat here pretending everything was perfectly innocent—when in reality, she still hadn’t given up on Archer, even though he was clearly with Aria now.And now she had the nerve to accuse her of being rude?The hypocrisy made Aria want to laugh out loud.Kandice thought Aria was about to argue back. In fact, she’d already prepared a whole speech, hoping to use it to ruin Aria’s image in front of the Duncans.But Aria didn’t even spare her a glance. Instead, she turned to Archer, lifted a brow, and asked lightly, “Was I really that rude just now?”Archer cast a brief, uninterested glance at Kandice—so fast it didn’t even last a full second—before shifting his gaze back to Aria’s wind-reddened face.“No,” he said, voice low and m
Even so, Kandice refused to leave. She stayed right where she was—until a woman showed up holding a little girl’s hand and said, half-scolding, “Kandice, why’d you run off without telling me? I’ve been looking everywhere.”Kandice gave an awkward smile and scooted over to make room for her. “You were busy with your niece at the activity. I was alone, happened to see them, so I just came over to say hi.”The woman was Ruby, Kandice’s cousin. Ruby already knew about the arranged date between Kandice and Archer. Sandra had even bragged to her parents about it, hoping it’d boost the family’s social standing.But when Ruby glanced over and saw Archer tightly holding another woman’s hand, her eyes widened. She leaned in for a closer look, then gasped. “Aria?”Aria stiffened for a split second. Of course it had to be her—the one person she least wanted to see.She looked up, forced a tight smile that didn’t reach her eyes, and gave a faint nod. “Miss Williams.”Ruby’s lips twitched awkw
Aria lowered her gaze and noticed Archer’s clean, elegant hand resting lightly on hers. His skin was smooth, his fingers long and slender, and the tips gently pressed against the soft spot between her thumb and forefinger—the very spot he had pinched earlier.It was only then that she realized that pinch had been his subtle way of scolding her for taking too long to respond.But this whole “push and pull” act of his was seriously getting on her nerves. She let out a soft huff, pouted slightly, and pulled her hand out of his. She wasn’t in the mood to let him hold it anymore.Archer glanced at her. Her cheeks were flushed, but she kept her eyes fixed straight ahead with a prim and proper expression, folding her hands neatly on her lap.A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. Quietly amused, he reached over and took her hand again.Earlier, her hand had been by her side, and when he held it, it went mostly unnoticed. But now that it was resting on her lap, his action was mu