"Though, if this place becomes a crime scene for Menghuo, I think you should follow me. We can open a business together in another city or country as a business partner and a lover. How about it?"

I sighed after hearing his offer. Really, Alex hadn\'t given up on his own promise that he wanted to date me. In fact, I still remember what he said last night during our date.

—

"I want to know you better, Ying Jie," Alex said to me.

"I… I don\'t have any interest in you. At least not romantically," I replied. I got the signal that Alex had that kind of romantic interest in me, which was quite abrupt for my taste.

\'Wait, Meng Bao also has a sudden love interest in me.. He was also abrupt as heck. But why did I find it adorable?\' I pondered.

"It\'s okay. I know it\'s not easy. But I\'m serious here, let me try it, and I will make sure that you will also consider me as a potential boyfriend for you. Even better, as a potential husband."

…

—

In the end, I had to yield and allowed Alex to court me romantically after that official date set up by the Rent A Boyfriend app.

I tried to stop him because I had no romantic interest in him, but oh well, they said that men were persistent when they were in love. So all I could do right now was to slowly deny Alex until he got bored and gave up.

\'And also, I should protect him, in case Meng Bao saw us together one day, and Alex might\'ve lost his head because of this.\'

"Are you serious about opening up a new business?" I asked.

"Uh-huh, do you know that I come here to work as a manager because I want to learn from Uncle Yang? Then I will open my own business later," Alex replied. "I want to be independent. You see, whenever I met with Menghuo, I do feel a bit envious of him. Because he earns a lot of money by himself."

"He told me that his motivation is his childhood sweetheart. That\'s what makes him working so hard to be rich. Because he wants to make sure that his future wife will live a comfortable life with him."

"He might be a bit crazy, but he does have a good working ethic and a hard worker," Alex genuinely praised Meng Bao, which made me feel even luckier to have someone like Meng Bao to love me.

\'Honestly, I still can\'t believe that he actually loves me. Especially when there is this talk of the \'childhood sweetheart\' of his. I don\'t know if he will leave me after he met with his childhood sweetheart. That\'s why I don\'t want to hope for too much.\'

\'There is no point of hoping with someone who hasn\'t forgotten about his love in the past.\'

I smiled bitterly, half-dazed, thinking about Meng Bao.

"So, Jie, you will work with me once I build my own company?" Alex asked.

"Uh-huh… okay," I replied subconsciously. I kept thinking about Meng Bao and what the future would hold for us, I mean, for me, as an average woman in my late twenties.

"Really?! Ah, Jie, I will not waste you!" Alex suddenly hugged and squeezed me tight.

"Ack!" I was choking when Alex hugged my waist lovingly… and tightly. I thought my waist would break.

"R—Release me, Alex. You will kill me!"

"Hehe, let me do this just a moment. I\'m so happy right now," Alex rejoiced after that.

But our time together was cut short when we suddenly heard the voice of a woman clearing her throat.

Alex stopped hugging and put me down, I fixed my crumpled shirt, and the woman commented, "Ah, I didn\'t know this is the kind of woman you\'re going for, Alex."

"Watch your mouth, Daiyu. Whoever I date has no connection with you," Alex said. He stood in front of me, trying to protect me like a knight in shining armor.

\'Wait, I think Alex does fit that kind of knight in shining armor fairy tale. I mean, even his platinum blonde hair is a sign already,\' I imagined Alex with silver armor and nodded approvingly.

\'Yep, definitely a good fit for him.\'

"Huh, of course, it has some connection with me. You were dating my best friend, Cassandra, for a while. And you leave her just like that, do you know that she is heartbroken?"

"I already told her that I want to focus on my career first. I want to build my own company. I can\'t be disturbed by that constant nuisance. She forced me to follow her for all of her photoshoots! I have my own life!"

"Hmph, sounds like someone has a commitment problem," Li Daiyu argued.

"I\'m not his servant that will follow her like an obedient dog. Tell her not to terrorize me in the middle of the night just because she wants me back. I already told her it\'s over!" Alex said.

"Well, that one is not my problem. Cassandra told me that you\'re not dedicated enough for her," Li Daiyu tilted her head to check on me, then she added, "Well, it seems to be a downgrade, eh? From top supermodel with amazing beauty and popularity to a humble secretary with fats on her stomach and waist. Why do you want to date a pig? Is it because you are feeling a bit adventurous?"

"Don\'t you dare to mock Ying Jie!" Alex yelled at Li Daiyu\'s face. But this woman didn\'t even budge. She just kept on staring at me, then raised her brow.

"Good catch, Secretary. Do you know that Alex has dated many supermodels in the past, also celebrities? You\'re nothing compared to them. Do you want to be one of his heartbroken victims? Trust me, you\'re not going to last with Alex. He is just feeling adventurous right now."

"You—"

"Yeah, he is indeed adventurous," I replied. I walked towards Alex and Li Daiyu with a cup of coffee just for the lady.

"But Alex is a good guy, at least for now. He never fails to make my day and make me feel complete," I put the coffee at the long table in front of Li Daiyu. Then I rested my hand on Alex\'s shoulder.

I looked at him with a loving gaze and then tiptoed to give Alex a simple kiss on the cheek.

Alex was stunned silly, while Li Daiyu was also surprised, not because of the kiss, but because of Alex\'s reaction.

Alex was dazed, and his ears turned red before his cheek also reddened. He looked down at me and said, "I will make you feel complete every day until our last."

I glanced at Li Daiyu, and after I found that Li Daiyu was so surprised with the shameless public display of affection in front of her, she just turned away.

"I can\'t believe you have such a cheap taste, Alex," Li Daiyu said. She walked away with her feet stomped the marble tiles. She went to the lift and leave the office.

"Good, she finally left. I really don\'t like her and her poisonous mouth," I commented. But what I didn\'t expect was Alex, who suddenly grabbed my waist and pulled me closer.

"Is that… the truth?" Alex asked. He stared at me with a hope glimmering in his eyes.

I dodged that kind of gaze. I felt a bit restless. Because it reminded me of Meng Bao. I couldn\'t deny whatever Meng Bao wanted if he showed me that kind of puppy eyes.

"I just don\'t want you to be insulted by that woman. Since you said that you want to change and become a better man, I don\'t think it\'s good to bring the past, right?"

Alex looked disappointed for a moment, then he resumed with a grin and nodded, "Well, you\'re not wrong. I do want to be better. At least, I want to show the world that I can do something without being spoon-fed by my mother."

I looked up at Alex and smiled when I saw his spirit. I knew that he didn\'t lie when he said he wanted to change for the better. Though… his upbringing still screamed that annoying playboy type who would charm you and break your heart the second after.

\'Really, Alex can be a good boyfriend. At least from my gut feeling, I can sense that he can be a responsible boyfriend, husband, father. It\'s just… he is not for me.\'

I already assured myself after I kept on thinking about Alex and compared him to Meng Bao.

Alex would be the dream man that any woman wanted, but he was not for me. I treated him more like a good friend, even a good brother instead of romantic interest.

Because I have harbored my heart to someone else. Though, I don\'t know if this person will continue loving me or not in the future.

\'Meng Bao...\'