Chapter 10 You're Better Than Her
965 Words
Under her seat, Ashley stealthily dialed Hanson's number.
The call connected swiftly, and Hanson's voice, cold and tinged with anger, came through. "Where are you? Why aren't you here? How dare you hang up on me?! You're getting a pay cut!"
"No, please! Mr. Gardner!" Ashley's heart bled at the thought of a pay cut, but she managed to sound calm as she informed Hanson, "Mr. Gardner, I've spotted the woman in red you mentioned. I've been busy keeping an eye on her, so I couldn't answer your call earlier. You can let the others leave now."
Overjoyed, Hanson didn't suspect a thing and instructed Ashley to keep a close watch on the woman. He immediately ordered the bodyguards to let the audience leave the concert hall.
The audience, already irate from being held up, rushed towards the exit upon hearing they could leave. Ashley seized the moment to blend into the crowd, hoping to slip out with them.
Everything was going smoothly until, on her way past a side door of the concert hall, she bumped right into Hanson!
Why was he here?
Ashley's face turned ghost-white in shock.
Before she left, she had checked Hanson's location, deliberately choosing a path furthest from him. Yet somehow, she had run into him again.
Actually, the crowd had pushed Hanson towards the side door. When he allowed the audience to leave, most people rushed towards the main entrance. To avoid being swept away by the crowd, Hanson had hidden by the side door, not expecting to run into the person he had been thinking about obsessively.
His face broke into a thrilled smile, and in his urgency to prevent Ashley from escaping again, he tossed gentlemanly manners aside and grabbed her wrist.
Ashley was startled. She had planned to shove Hanson away and melt into the crowd, but with him holding onto her wrist, escaping was not an option.
Hanson held fast to Ashley's wrist, his voice filled with joy. "I've finally found you. I have something to ask you... uh!"
Before he could finish his sentence, Ashley suddenly stood on her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and planted her lips fiercely onto his.
His words were caught in his throat as Ashley's lips met his, soft and sweet, a sensation as wonderful as rose petals dancing between their lips. Hanson was slightly taken aback at first, but then he quickly took charge, returning her kiss with fervor. His tongue deftly pried her lips apart and ventured into her mouth, drawing in her intoxicating scent...
Just like that night, Hanson found himself unable to free himself from the deep, intoxicating vortex of sensation. But suddenly, he was jolted back to reality as he was pushed away forcefully, their lips parting, the lingering connection snapping like a delicate thread finally breaking.
Hanson was left dumbstruck, barely registering what had happened, when Ashley quickly stepped back. Sensing she was leaving, Hanson reached out to grab her, but Ashley had already blended into the crowd. Her red dress flashed in and out of view among the crowd, and soon, she was gone, swallowed up by the wave of spectators spilling out of the concert hall.
Darn it! She slipped away again!
Hanson couldn't help but curse under his breath.
His bodyguards had swept the area but didn't find her, so they waited outside the concert hall for further instructions from Hanson.
Having regained and lost her again, Hanson was irked. He scanned his line of waiting bodyguards; then his gaze landed on Ashley at the very end, her cheeks tinged with a slight redness.
His brows furrowed as he looked her over. "What's going on with you? Why is your face so red? And... your lips, they're swollen?"
Ashley was startled.
There was no way she could spill to Hanson that in just a span of five minutes, she had dashed to the restroom to change into men's clothes, then hustled back to join the group. And as for her lips...
Subconsciously licking her swollen, burning lips, Ashley thought bitterly, it was all because of his kisses!
As she thought about it, Ashley felt her cheeks burning hotter. It was she who had impulsively kissed Hanson first, but it didn't take long before he completely flipped the script on her. His lips were so fiery, sending shivers down to her core. His commanding tongue swept over her lips and invaded her mouth, tangling with hers in a wild dance that dragged them both down into a whirlpool of desire...
Ashley's legs went weak from his kiss, and even now, just thinking about it made her blush and her heart race.
She tried to steady herself, shaking off the heart-thumping images that flooded her mind, and managed to say, "I was just eating, and the food was kinda spicy, so my lips are swollen."
Hanson then remembered that Ashley was off duty today. He patted her shoulder approvingly, thinking to himself, Ashley was better. Even on his day off, one call and he was here in no time, not like that woman who kissed him and ran away, not even willing to drop her name.
Suddenly, something dawned on him. He reached into his suit pocket and fished out the necklace he had found on the bed. He looked at it intently for a few seconds, his blue eyes narrowing slightly.
AR... Could those be her initials?
They matched Ashley's initials. Thinking of this made his gaze towards Ashley soften significantly.
Feeling Hanson's eyes on her made Ashley's heart skip a beat. She feared she might have given herself away somehow. "Mr. Gardner?"
Snapped out of his thoughts, Hanson cleared his throat to cover his awkwardness and held out the necklace to Ashley. "Do you remember this necklace?"
- Writer
