Chapter 153: Chapter 153: I Want to Say I Like You
’Damn, I should have known,’ he thought. ’My eccentric parents would never have come back to the country so quietly.’
Dominic Thorne turned around and awkwardly extended his right hand. "Long time no see, Sary!" The woman smiled as she shook his hand, her aristocratic grace on full display. ’There’s no doubt she’s nearly perfect,’ he mused. ’She inherited the family business at a young age and has made it flourish. But she’s too formidable; I have no desire to protect her.’
"Long time no see, Young Master Thorne!"
"My parents must have caused you a lot of trouble on the trip. Thanks for putting up with them."
Sary, however, covered her mouth as she smiled. "Not at all. I find them quite humorous. Being with them always puts you in a pleasant mood."
"Is that so." ’How could that be? Sary must just be saying that to be polite. It’s not like I don’t know what they’re like. That’s why I never travel with them. I’d rather handle all the company’s trivial matters by myself than be their glorified servant.’
"Come on, let me buy you dinner to thank you for looking after them." Dominic Thorne stuck his hands in his trouser pockets and extended the invitation with a smile.
"Dominic, there’s no need to be so formal," Sary said, her eyes suddenly dimming. It was precisely because he always treated her like a stranger that she never dared to open her heart to him. Perhaps it was her pride that wouldn’t let her humble herself, or maybe it was just the fear of getting hurt.
Dominic Thorne paused mid-stride but didn’t turn to look at her. "It’s not being formal, it’s just the basic respect I show my friends." ’That’s right,’ he thought. ’They’re all just friends. Melody Donovan included. They’re all the same to me. I shouldn’t have designs on them, much less get involved.’
’And yet, it felt like his heart was already in too deep.’
"Just friends?" Sary hurried to catch up to him. He was tall and lanky, and he walked so fast it was hard to keep pace. But he wasn’t the type to wait for others.
Dominic Thorne gave her a nonchalant smile. "Yep. If you don’t mind, you can be one of my bros!"
Seeing Dominic Thorne start joking again, Sary was stunned for a moment before composing herself. "No way! Who wants to be your bro? How about you be one of my sisters instead?"
"That could work, too." Dominic Thorne reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear with his index finger, a coy smile on his face.
"Haha..." Sary could barely look at him. Only he would so shamelessly throw his image to the wind. But beneath her laughter was an endless ache. No one knew how desperately she wanted him, but she couldn’t say it. The timing wasn’t right, and she feared that if she confessed, they couldn’t even be friends anymore.
’If I just stay by his side,’ she thought, ’one day he’ll realize I’m the one who’s most suitable for him.’
In a beautifully decorated European restaurant, a woman sat by the window, her gaze drifting outside from time to time. She thought it was over between them. She’d long wanted to confess her feelings to him, and perhaps this outcome was for the best. ’But why does my heart hurt so much? Why do I miss him this badly?’
The first thing to enter her line of sight was a pair of long, straight legs. Her gaze traveled up to find a smile playing on the man’s lips. He still had that same roguish, devil-may-care air about him. Melody Donovan felt this was a sign from heaven—a chance. She wanted to throw her arms around him and shout that she liked him.
