Alex looked at Sharon, then turned to the door that had remained opened:
"Let's go."
His footsteps carried a sharp and heavy purposeful rhythm. Even in the silence of the corridor where there were only the two of them, he was commanding attention. Behind him, Sharon's blue eyes shone with a faint light.
When the elevator arrived, Alex stepped inside first, then finally took a good look at Sharon after turning around. She was holding bags, both her own and a computer bag, along with a clipboard she was pressing against her chest. She was wearing a suit over a blouse that was left open below her neck, but without showing a cleavage. The suit was simple, not bad, and it hugged the chest it was buttoned under, giving her waist a narrower look, and her chest a more prominent appearance.
Below she had a skirt that stopped above her knees, while her shoes were modest black high heels that were not too high.
Alex frowned slightly, and looked up to see her hair gathered in a strict bun on her head, before he took his gaze back, and pressed on the button for the ground floor.
Sharon almost showed a confused frown at her new superior's furrowed brows when he looked at her, but she kept her image of a good secretary who was still getting to know her boss, and said nothing.
*Ding*
The elevator arrived at the lobby, and the two walked out. The blonde's eyes went to the reception desk where two employees she did not recognize stood up to greet them.
"Mr Lenner!"
"Mr Lenner!"
At the door, someone else seemed to have been expecting them, someone who bowed and called out in respectful greeting:
"Mr Lenner."
Sharon's gaze flickered, as she recognized the voice as belonging to the director of the property management office, the same voice that had replied to Alex's call the day before last. She took a deep breath to compose herself, and followed Alex who nodded indifferently in reply at the man.
Superiority, coldness, indifference. That was what Sharon saw in Alex, not expressed outright, but ingrained in a pride that seemed to come from deep within himself, and not just from his familiar name.
Lance had an obsequious expression on his face as he held the door for Alex. He carefully closed it behind him, before he ran to the other side to open the door for Sharon too.
"Thank you."
He nodded with a smile. It was only then that he returned to the driver seat. He looked at Alex's indifferent face through the rearview mirror, and asked with a sheepish look:
"To the Group?"
Alex have Sharon a sidelong glance, and vetoed the idea:
"To the mall."
"'K World'?"
Alex sent a cold glance to the wordy driver through the mirror, and the latter got his wits back right away:
"Of course, 'K World Mall', where else could it be?"
After wryly chiding himself, Lance looked at Alex:
"Understood. We will be there soon."
He pressed the button to start the engine, checked the road, and got going. Sharon looked at him, then glanced at Alex. Seeing his expressionless face, she recalled the words she had heard upstairs. Once again, she could not help but feel how mysterious Alex actually was under his casual facade.
All she had known about him before intruding into his room in the middle of the night a month ago had become a flimsy castle in the air built of rumors and what he had shown publicly, things the wind could sweep at any moment it were to decide to blow a little strongly.
A playboy? Maybe, no, most probably. A rich heir for whom money was just a number? Certainly? But beyond that, how many layers were hidden, or simply tucked away?
She took another look at Alex, then turned to the road. The ride was silent, with Alex not wanting to speak, Sharon not having anything to say, and Lance wanting to say something but hesitating to break the silence, especially everytime he glanced at Alex's face.
The car slowed down in front of the popular mall that had been the subject of much talk both on social media and beyond.
Alex didn't wait for Lance this time, or at least he didn't want to, but the latter hurried out to open the door for him, all for the sake of seeking forgiveness for his previous blunder of firing his mouth way too quickly for his own good.
Alex stepped out, snapped his suit, then threw Lance a glance more calm than indifferent:
"Stay in the car."
"Then I will be waiting for you guys."
With that answer, Alex looked at Sharon who had also left the car:
"Leave the bags behind. Let's go."
The two walked to the large entrance of the big mall. When their backs disappeared, Lance relaxed. He patted his chest, and exhaled in relief, before he straightened his back. He was finally out of the woods.
He pursed his trouble-attracting lips, and went back to sit on the driver seat after one last look at the crowd. But as he drove away to park the car and wait for the duo to come back, his eyes couldn't help but flash with a thoughtful look.
He might have spoken too much, and he might have dredged up some old, bad memories, but that did not take away the truth in his words. After ten years, it was time to let the past go, to bury the old scars and look forward.
Alex was not like him who was aimless in life. If only he could let go of that disappointment, as it was not even pain that he was dealing with. Pain could not be a source of detachment, only a source of anger, hatred, and there was none of that in Alex. If only he could embrace hope once again, hope in people, in humans and their hearts.
But maybe, maybe this time, a spark would fly. After all, the blonde had indeed stirred up Alex's interest a month ago. She was the first woman to have been allowed inside his apartment, beyond his family. And he had to say that she could rival the best of Alex's catches over the years, if not surpass them, with a bit of work, and her intellectual temperament.
Lance smiled. Faintly, the desire to share the news stirred in him, but recalling Alex's cold eyes when he got upset, he wisely pushed that desire even deeper than where it had come from, because being alive was good. He did not think that another one of his offenses would be forgiven, so he might as well behave well throughout his probation.
He found a spot and parked the car. But as he leaned back to think about how to pass the time, his eyes flickered. He seemed to remember something from the night a month ago, when he had seen the blonde for the first time, following Alex's gaze.
He seemed to remember Ron being distracted after the race with the blonde, as if she had attracted his attention, and remained in his mind even after leaving.
That might be troublesome. Or maybe not.
He narrowed his eyes.