In this period of time, he had thought a lot. Actually, putting aside her lack of romantic sensitivity, she was pretty good in other aspects.
He was naturally playful, lacking ambition in his career, without grand aspirations. Being the only child in the family, with neither siblings nor crises to face, it was a given that he would take over the company after his father’s retirement. Accustomed to a lazy lifestyle, when his father brought another woman home and his mother was cast out, he couldn’t even find a way to fight back.
Perhaps it was because he grew up in such an affluent environment that he didn’t have to worry about anything, and even now, he still seemed like a child who had yet to grow up.
But Mia Foster was different; in both her personal and professional life, she was deft and resourceful. She knew how to leverage every resource at her disposal to deliver a fatal blow to her enemies and then seize what she wanted.
This could be seen from the way she dealt with that woman.
...He needed her. Not solely because she could help him with work, but also, during the days that woman vied with his mother for affection, those most unbearable days, he was in fact... reliant on her.
In his twenty-seven years of life, he had never truly fallen for a woman. When he first thought of marrying Elizabeth White, perhaps it was merely because she was different from the other women he knew, who were only interested in his family’s wealth and his money. Only Elizabeth, every time he gave her a check, she would say she wanted to use that money to exchange for more days with him...
Although he wasn’t clear if what he currently felt for Mia Foster could be considered falling in love, on the days when she was not at home, he found himself missing her. Missing the comfort she offered when he was most helpless, missing how domineeringly she would forbid him from doing this or that. Perhaps he was a masochist; without her control, he actually felt uncomfortable, ill at ease.
Mom said Mia was a good woman, and deep down, didn’t he know that too?
He didn’t want to let go because he feared that he might never find this kind of dependence again.
Felix Shaw looked up at the sky; perhaps the summer’s sunset was too dazzling, and without his sunglasses, his eyes began to feel sore and swollen.
Mia Foster lowered her gaze, her fluttering eyelashes hiding the emotions within. Speaking with a somewhat strained voice, she said, "Felix Shaw, after everything that’s happened, you tell me that you think you’ve fallen in love with me; don’t you think it’s too late?"
If it had been in the past, her hearing him say he loved her would have made her feel like the luckiest woman in the world. But now, she felt like the most pitiable woman on Earth.
"It’s not too late," Felix turned his eyes to her, his handsome brows deeply furrowed, "Mia, give me a chance, okay?"
Mia Foster smiled, an evident effort to curl her lips, and meeting Felix’s expectant eyes, she said, "Perhaps we are better off as friends. When bored, we could eat together, talk together. As for work," she paused here, taking a notable breath, her exhale trembling slightly, "if you encounter any problems, feel free to tell me, and if I can help, I will help you!"
Sniffling, Mia Foster continued, "Oh, and there’s something I forgot to tell you. I’ve already accumulated a considerable amount of Hutton Industries’ stock in the secondary market, and I’m about to reach the threshold for making an open offer. If you want, I can transfer them to you."
"I don’t want them; I only want you," Felix Shaw shook his head, his handsome brows even more tightly knitted, "Mia Foster, give me a chance, I will strive to be a good husband."
A sigh escaped her, and Mia Foster lifted her head, trying hard to make her lips curve upward, then she sniffed once more and said, "It’s too late..."
Having said that, she brushed off Felix Shaw’s hand and turned to walk away, a tear rolling down as she did.