Love Began with the First Meeting

As she ran towards Aaron, her long hair swayed in the air softly. The first rays of the morning sun hit her face, making her look like a goddess. It would have been a divine scene if the goddess wasn't wearing a nightgown and running barefooted. Aaron was standing by the car door. As he watched her running towards him hastily, his heart thumped faster. But when his gaze fell on her bare feet, he frowned.

Ximena stopped in front of him. After gasping for breath for a few seconds, she raised her hand, showing the bracelet which was shaking slightly around her wrist. "Was this made out of that jade seal?" she asked. Aaron didn't answer. He looked at her without any emotion on his face. Ximena pursed her lips and asked again, "Why did you convert the jade seal into this?"

Her question sounded harsh, or perhaps he just thought it did. In an apathetic voice, he said, "As the person who is in charge of Leng's Corporations, I have the right to dispose of the jade seal which belongs to the Leng Family in whatever way I think is appropriate. Do you have any objection to my decision?"

Hearing his answer, Ximena looked at him with a slight frown. Without waiting for her reply, Aaron turned around and got into the car. When he was about to close the door, she stopped him by blocking the car door with her hands abruptly. Then she quickly slipped into the

car too.

Watching the scene which was unfolding in front of him, Ken felt the urge to burst out laughing. He had never before seen anyone dare do this kind of thing in front of His Highness. But Ximena was daring. She completely ignored the cold aura emitting from Aaron and did whatever she wanted to do. She was always surprising Ken with her wild behavior towards Aaron, and he believed that Aaron felt the same way too.

A shadow of a smile appeared in Ken's eyes. After Ximena got into the car, he closed the door and walked around the car to get into the driver's seat. Glancing at the two sitting in the back seat, he asked, "Your Highness, are we going to the East Coast first?" "Get out!" Aaron ordered coldly. He didn't even glance at Ximena.

But her mind was thinking rapidly. She knew that if she got off the car right now like he ordered, then he would keep her grounded longer. In order to regain her previously limited freedom as soon as possible, she had to try her best to make him happy. With that in mind, she turned her body towards him, held his face between her hands, and placed her lips against his.

Ken's eyes went wide in surprise. In a hurry, he pressed the divider button to roll up the barrier between the front seat and the back seat of the car.

Aaron was taken aback. Ximena's face was close to his, the scent of her body was driving him crazy. He caught her shoulder and pushed her away. In a stern voice, he said, "You are really-"

"That was to say thank you," Ximena interrupted him with so much pride and arrogance on her face. "You gave me this bracelet, but I have nothing appropriate to give you in return. The kiss is my gratitude to you."

Aaron squinted slightly as he stared at her without saying anything, observing her carefully with his sharp eyes. After a while, he said, "Get out of the car."

"I'm not wearing any shoes..." Ximena said with a small pout, while glancing at her bare feet. "I haven't purchased any clothes or shoes in a long time. Shall we go shopping?"

Aaron looked at her and was reminded of what Eric had told him earlier. He thought about how she had been frightened enough to pass out the day before. He felt a nudge in his heart. And as a result, he was now sitting on a sofa in a fashion shop, dealing with his business on the laptop, while the annoying woman was busy trying on countless clothes. He had his platinum card ready to pay for whatever she was going to buy.

Ken glanced at Ximena from far away. She was surrounded by several saleswomen. Ken had a faint smile on his cold face. Then, he discreetly stole a look at Aaron. Ever since her fashion design store had been opened, Ximena had seldom bought clothes from shops outside. Almost all the clothes she wore were designed by herself. But now, she was picking up expensive clothes one after the other. Ken believed it was reasonable to suspect that she was doing it to vent her frustration and to get her revenge on Aaron, though such a measly amount of money meant nothing to him.

'Women are such strange creatures, 'Ken thought.

As she put on different clothes and shoes, Ximena observed Aaron from the corner of her eyes every now and then. She was measuring his patience, so as to determine whether he would be upset about her proposal to go to her shop.

"All right. Pack all these and send them to His Highness' villa," Ximena said to one of the saleswomen. In her new black turtleneck shirt with lace edges and a khaki high-waisted pencil pants, she now looked like a successful businesswoman. "Send them to my manor," Aaron said in an indifferent tone. Then he stood up and walked out of the shop.

Ximena gazed at his retreating back and tried to guess what he was thinking. 'He told them to send the items to the manor. Does this mean that I am no longer grounded?' she wondered, getting up her hopes.

She caught up with him outside the shop. When they got into the car, she wanted to ask whether she could go to her shop, but she was afraid that he might refuse her and continue to keep her grounded. On the other hand, if she stayed silent, she was worried that her shop would fail to prosper sooner or later. She had to play her cards right to make sure that she didn't piss him off. She decided to face the music bravely.

"I... I was wondering..." she started fluently, but hesitated.

"Drop her at the shop," Aaron interrupted Ximena without even looking at her. He went on to watch the stock market analysis chart on his laptop screen, without saying a word to her.

Ximena remained silent. Leaning against the seat back, she turned her head to look out the window. She was lost in her thoughts, and her sight became blurred. She touched the bracelet with her other hand unconsciously. She didn't know when it had happened, but the meaning of the jade seal to her had changed. It no longer symbolized her yearning for James. Instead, it had now become a bargaining chip for her to stay by Aaron's side.

Even though she knew clearly that the jade seal was useless now, she believed subconsciously that he would not let her go as long as the seal was on her. After all, it was the reason why he had rescued her in the first place.