Chapter 223: Chapter 221: In-depth Exchange

"..."

A familiar voice rang out. A suffocating feeling washed over her, and Mia Grant’s hand, gripping the doorknob, began to tremble.

Her lips moved, but no sound came out.

It had been a long time since her legs had felt this weak.

If her hand wasn’t still gripping the doorknob, she would have already crumpled to the floor.

The room fell silent for a moment.

Perhaps because he’d waited too long for her response, the man’s fingertips twitched.

The next moment, the lights flared on.

The light was blinding. Caught completely off guard, Mia was exposed under the glare, feeling as if she were stark naked. The light burned her exposed skin, sending a sharp, dull ache through her heart.

She instinctively squeezed her eyes shut.

Then, she heard a soft click. Sensing the change in the surrounding light, she slowly opened her eyes a crack, squinting at the crystal chandelier overhead.

The warm, dim, hazy light illuminated every corner of the room, creating the illusion of warmth and happiness.

’It’s all a facade,’ Mia knew perfectly well.

Although she had long since prepared herself—Yates Donovan had even warned her repeatedly that Silas Grant had probably figured her out.

But when it came time to actually face him, the anxiety, the feeling of her heart leaping into her throat... it was just like when she was a child who had done something wrong, holding out her hand to be disciplined by her mother, waiting for the slap on her palm.

’Deep breaths.’

’I have to face him sooner or later. It’s not like I did anything wrong.’

’In fact, he should be thanking me.’

’Shouldn’t he?’

Remembering what she had overheard on the phone that day, Mia unclenched her jaw and looked up at him.

By the window, the man sat with his long legs crossed, leaning back in a dark green armchair.

His overcoat was draped over one of the armrests. Upon closer inspection, she saw he was still wearing the formal suit he’d had on for work and social engagements during the day.

’He must have just gotten back from his date with Quinn White.’

’No, that’s not right.’

Resting on the overcoat was one of his hands, a half-smoked cigarette smoldering between his fingers, smoke curling from the tip.

And on the table in front of him lay several cigarette butts.

He’d been back for a while.

He hadn’t just returned. He had come to her room to lie in wait for her the moment he got back.

She didn’t dare think about it any further.

Swallowing nervously, she slowly raised her gaze, her eyes traveling past his thin lips and high-bridged nose, tracing the familiar lines of his brows and eyes behind the frames of his glasses.

The man’s hair was slicked back, but a few strands had fallen loose, perhaps in his haste. It didn’t look messy, though; instead, it added a hint of roguish, untamed charm.

Before she could admire the sight, the man’s sharp, dark eyes behind his lenses locked onto her. They were like a falcon’s—direct, fierce, and blazing.

A single glance, and Mia’s legs went weak.

"Bro."

She steadied her voice and called out to him. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

A single word versus two—it might not seem like a big difference.

But coming from her, the difference was night and day.

In the past, she would call him "Brother," almost like she was whining affectionately.

Now, switching to a single word, it sounded for all the world like she was drawing a line between them.

Silas Grant let out an enigmatic laugh, his magnetic voice following immediately after. "Why are you back so late? Did you have dinner with Simon Adler?"

He truly sounded like a good older brother concerned about his little sister coming home late, worried she might have gone hungry.

His words were gentle, filled with the approachable affection of a brother.

Of course, if these words were exchanged between any other pair of siblings, they would be perfectly acceptable.

The key was, they weren’t siblings.

Mia could clearly feel her mind go blank for an instant.

Soon, her heart began to pound wildly again. When she started to speak, her heartbeat was so loud it drowned out her own voice, and for a moment she didn’t even know what she was saying.

"I... I ate before I went out. We, him and I... we went... we went to..."

’Went to what?’

’Went on a blind date for him?’

"Come here."

Silas’s voice was gentle. He flipped over the hand holding the cigarette, palm up, and beckoned to her. "Sit down and talk."

Like a patient teacher facing a misbehaving student.

"..."

Mia was at a loss for words. Her gaze swept over his blackening value.

’Just as I thought, it’s gone up. He really is angry at me.’

’But it’s not a threat for now.’

To be honest, she didn’t know why she was so nervous and scared.

It seemed to have become an instinctual reaction.

She didn’t dare go over.

She had a feeling nothing good would come of it.

It wasn’t just her; the system thought so too.

Mia even considered whether she should try to cough up blood to escape this predicament.

But then came the system’s soul-piercing question: [Host, don’t you think facing the problem head-on might cause a little less damage than coughing up blood?]

’Is that so?’

’I don’t believe it.’

[At worst, it’ll just be some... ’in-depth interaction.’]

"...You sure know a lot."

[Sigh, I’m used to it.]

"..."

"Not coming over?" Seeing her standing there in a daze, Silas pressed the cigarette in his hand against the table, forcefully extinguishing it.

As Mia stared blankly, he slowly rose to his feet. His long legs stepped out onto the carpet as he walked toward her.

When she snapped out of it, Mia’s pupils constricted.

’Should I run?’

’But... where could I possibly run to?’

If she made a scene and disturbed the old man, it would be another huge mess.

Silas alone was already difficult enough to handle.

While she was frozen in shock, the man was only a step away from her.

The second he reached out his hand, Mia’s body slid down uncontrollably. She let out a short scream and finally fell, landing on the floor with her back against the door.

The man’s hand froze in mid-air, unmoving for a long moment.

Mia was the first to react. Feeling her physical response was a bit over the top, she was at a loss, flustered. "Um, Bro, can you step back first? I’ll get up."

The angle was strange; she didn’t even dare to look up.

The person in front of her didn’t move.

The man lowered his gaze, staring at the top of her head as he fell into thought.

Beneath his calm exterior, a storm was brewing in the eyes behind his lenses.

’She’s resisting.’

’Her words, her gaze, her actions—everything is resisting contact with me.’

Seeing that he remained motionless, Mia scrambled up, turning her head away as she awkwardly used the floor and doorframe to pull herself to her feet.

Before she could stand up straight, a hand gripped her arm.

She froze, her body going rigid.

The man’s hand tightened slightly, pulling her upright.

"Thanks, Bro."

She struggled a little, but the hand on her arm didn’t let go.

He was in front of her, the door was behind her.

She had no way out.

Mia didn’t know what to say. Should she explain, accuse, or apologize?

’Why should I apologize? I didn’t do anything wrong.’

The atmosphere was awkward. She really couldn’t find anything to talk about.

It felt like anything she said right now would be wrong.

’Maybe I should just try to explain.’

’But the story is so long, and I don’t know where to begin.’

She needed to choose her words carefully.

Across from her, the man suddenly raised his other hand.

Mia only saw a shadow flicker before her eyes and instinctively jerked her head to the side to dodge.

The man’s hand missed its mark for the second time.

Her long eyelashes trembled violently, along with her quivering shoulders—all proof of her fear.

A soft, enigmatic chuckle sounded by her ear.

Mia slowly opened her eyes and met his, which were as dark and bottomless as ink. "That scared of me?"

"No... it’s not that I’m scared."

"You’ve dodged me twice now."

"..."

’It was an unconscious reaction,’ she wanted to say. ’I didn’t do it on purpose.’

Silas seemed to accept this, but then he added, "That’s because you believe you’ve done something wrong."

Hearing him say that, Mia frowned and retorted, "No."

"I did nothing wrong."

The words had barely left her lips when a sudden knock came from the door behind her, interrupting their conversation.

"Mia?"

It was Simon Adler.