A Graduation Gift

"Thank you for your concern, Aunt Michelle, but I am sure I won't regret any of it. I know what kind of woman I want to spend my
life with, so you don't have to worry about me. I can deal with this matter by myself."
With a gentle smile on his lips, Rufus had made up his mind to tell Amanda that the person he wanted to be with was Cassandra.
For the past one month, Rufus and Amanda had been inseparable. The two were seen together appearing in the public eye, as if
Amanda was Rufus's real girlfriend. The media did what was expected of it and published numerous articles about the two being
a perfect match for each other. However, only Rufus knew that such reports were far from the truth.
Rufus, however, didn't blame Amanda for drugging him with a philter and deliberately trapping her father into witnessing that
scene. There was nothing he could do about it because whenever he would get angry at her, she would instantly look at him
helplessly with tear-soaked eyes. Not to mention the fact that she was still suffering from sickness immediately softened his heart
towards her.
However, upon hearing the news about the Qin Group's recent financial crisis with the bank and Cassandra's difficulty to
continue running the company, Rufus realized that this was a good opportunity for him to tinker his broken relationship with her.
'I am financially well-equipped to help the Qin Group get out of its' current predicament without any difficulties. This problem is
really a blessing in disguise for me to help her this time.' Rufus had high hopes for the future.
Needless to say, a wide satisfied smile appeared on his face while he thought, 'Cassandra, you are too stubborn for your own
good. Now look what happened! You really need me to help you out this time, don't you?'
Rufus shook himself out of his reverie and transformed his smirk back into a benevolent smile, not knowing that what he had
dreamed would come crashing down just one day later.
Cassandra forgot how long it had been since the last time she saw him. Perhaps it had been a month, or two months. It could
have been longer.
Although the only thing separating the two of them was just a street, she still recognized Rufus through the crowd of people
passing by.
Cassandra saw him slumping against the corner of the wall, hiding himself underneath the shadow of the street lamp. For a
moment the only movement was the curling smoke from a half-burnt cigarette in his hand.

Taking small and slow draws of the cigarette, he blew the smoke out between his lips. In this way, she caught his handsome
profile silhouetted against the dim fire light in the background.
The mere sight of his face took away all her negative thoughts. Just a minute ago, she felt depressed, but now her heart was
singing with joy inside her chest.
And then suddenly, the truth crystallized in front of her. They were no longer together. Instead of the soul she loved for long, she
now saw a stranger.
Cassandra thought that she saw a hint of disappointment flashing in his eyes for a second right before she averted her gaze and
walked into the office building. She had just returned to the office building from having dinner outside and was about to go back
to her tiny bedroom for some much needed rest.
When she heard the sound of steady footsteps coming from behind, her subconscious urged her to run. Suddenly, before she
could run into the building, she felt someone tug her arm and turn her around.
"Hey! Why are you running away?"
Rufus frowned with displeasure, who was gazing at her face like he had been dreaming about her for some time.
"Why did you grab my arm?" she answered back, glaring at the man with eyes burning with fury.
Judging by the look on her face, he knew that she was just as stubborn as she used to be. Meanwhile, he also understood why
she was mad at him for grabbing her arms.
Even then, he didn't let her anger get in his way, as he kept his eyes on her to intimidate her, forcing her to raise her head to
meet his piercing gaze.
"Calm down. You don't have to be so vigilant. I am not going to hurt you."
Gradually, Rufus relaxed his grip on her arms and smiled winsomely at her.
He was caught in between feeling annoyed and amused by her defensive reaction.
Although she exercised prudence, Cassandra wondered why she immersed herself in his captivating smile.
"I hear your company's been facing financial difficulties. Is that true? Why didn't you come to me? I could have helped you."

As Rufus leaned in closer to her, his warm breath caressed the exposed creamy skin on her face.
"Thanks for the offer, but I don't need your help. I can take care of my problems on my own."
Cassandra quickly turned her face away to avert his eyes, but she felt the heat rise up to her ears.
'My body starts reacting strangely every time he gets close to me. I hate feeling like that. I wonder what it would take to avoid
being in this situation, ' Cassandra thought.
"Don't be so stubborn. Didn't you promise your father to keep the Qin Group running?"
Rufus tried to hide his emotions under a broad smile, all the while unhindered by her indifference. 'She hasn't changed at all. She
still refuses to take any help from me.'
"Well, you're right about that, but someone else has already made a commitment to invest in my company. Thank you for your
kindness!"
Upon breaking free from his grasp, she quickly scurried up the stairs and ran into her office as fast as she could without looking
back.
Rufus stood there with only a bemused frown on his face and mused, 'Someone else wants to invest in her company? Who in
their right mind would want to invest in the Qin Group right now?'
After shutting the door behind her, Cassandra looked out the peep-hole to make sure that Rufus didn't follow. Once she was
satisfied, she walked to the window to look at him from the darkness.
Much to her surprise, Rufus was still standing in the same spot under the street light. It seemed as though he was trying to look
into the office building, but she wasn't bothered because there was no way he could see her from where he was standing.
The only time she could dare to gaze at him so bravely was when they weren't looking straight into each other's eyes.
Over the past few days, she had seen him appearing in many places: the news, the TV, the newspapers and the Internet. The
local gossips about him and Amanda were running rampant all over the city.
Every time she would see or hear something about them, a tight and constricting pain would set on her heart. It unnerved her
more than anything, because she knew what it was. The more she paid attention to them, the more it harrowed her soul.

But today, he appeared before her in the flesh, offering to help her when she was making every possible effort to forget him.
'How ridiculous! I wonder what kind of a person he takes me to be? Does he think that I'm the kind of woman who wants to be
with him for the money?
Well, then he would be highly mistaken. It's obvious he doesn't know me well enough. I only want to be with him because I love
him, ' she thought.
Meanwhile, Rufus stood outside in the cold for a long time, still hesitating and unsure of whether he should go upstairs to have a
chat with her or not.
In the end, he decided to give her some space and go back to do some researches on the recent developments of the Qin Group
before making any moves. As long as the Qin Group could get through this crisis and she had moved past this difficult situation,
he would have nothing to worry about.
When she saw him walking across the street and driving away in his car, Cassandra ran downstairs and found herself standing
alone on the curb and watching Rufus's taillights disappear into the night.
Little did she know that her eyes had failed to suppress the longing and desire she had for him.
When he arrived at the Garden Villa, Rufus saw a person standing at the gate who seemed to be waiting for someone. He got
out of the car and walked closer to find that it was Amanda.
"Amanda, what are you doing here so late?"