Loving The Heartless Man

Chapter 31

Elara Pov

A strong wave hit us, so Alexander let go of me. I don't know why he did that and I can't ask him about it.

"Alex! Elara! What happened?"

We both looked where the voice of his mother came from. We saw the three of them walking towards us. I wonder if they saw Alexander kiss me.

Instead of answering, Alexander pulled me to the shallow part of the sea. When my feet reached the sand underneath, I slightly pushed him away from me and walked to the shore by myself. The four of them followed me.

"What happened earlier, Alex? We saw you panicking, so we immediately approached you," Edzel asked his friend when we were all out of the water.

My heart was pounding loudly as I looked at Alexander. He was also looking at me with a serious expression, so I quickly averted my gaze.

"Elara almost drowned," I heard Alexander say.

"What? Are you okay, Elara? Why did you almost drown?" My mother-in-law worriedly stroked my back.

"It's not her fault, Mom. I was the one at fault. I invited her to swim but she refused. I carried her and threw her in the water. I thought she just didn't want to swim. I never thought that she didn't know how to swim that's why she almost drowned," Alexander explained at length to those in front of him, his voice tinged with regret.

"You're so mean, Alex! What if you hadn't gotten her out of the water right away? You know the waves are big. What if she was taken to a deeper part of the sea? What if something bad happened to her?" Alexander's mother scolded her son. "Are you okay now, Elara? I'm sorry for my son's carelessness."

"I'm okay, Mom. Don't worry," I assured her. "I'm still alive, and nothing bad happened to me, so let's just forget about what happened. I don't want to be a killjoy to all of you."

"You already did. You ruined the happy atmosphere," Hannah remarked to me. Her gaze seemed to tell me that she wished I had just drowned completely so she wouldn't have any more problems.

"Stop it, Hannah. Elara almost drowned, and you're still talking like that. No one wanted this to happen," my mother-in-law scolded Hannah.

"Sorry," Hannah immediately apologized, but it was directed at my mother-in-law and not at me. When no one was looking, she would give me a menacing glare.

"It would be better if we returned to the boat and moved to another island," my mother-in-law suggested. She walked ahead toward our boat, where the tour guide and boat driver were waiting for us.

I did not expect Alexander to suddenly carry me to the boat. I struggled for him to put me down but he didn't.

"Stop struggling or else I will throw you again into the deep water," he threatened me with a serious face. I was scared of his threat so I just let him carry me until I got on the boat.

We continued island hopping and I secretly thanked that the joy and excitement around us returned until we went back to the hotel. There were too many islands so we couldn't visit them all. It wouldn't be possible to tour all the islands of Hundred Island in just one day.

No one mentioned anything about the kiss that I secretly appreciated. Alexander and I talked normally as if nothing had happened. The exhaustion we felt from touring the islands helped us fall asleep quickly, especially since we had an early departure back to the city the next day.

We left the hotel before five in the morning. This time, Alexander drove and he had me sit beside him while Hannah sat next to Edzel. Although I didn't see the latter's reaction, I was sure his eyes were burning with anger again because I was sitting next to Alexander and not her.

I didn't go to the office for a day. I took a rest because I felt my whole body was exhausted. When I returned to the office, Liam immediately asked me about what happened during our outing. I told him everything except for Alexander kissing me. I didn't want my friend to think badly. I'm sure I'd get a long lecture from him.

"I think you should be careful with that witch, bestie. We don't know what she thinks. What if she's possessed by a demon and suddenly tries to harm you out of extreme jealousy?" My friend's concern was evident on his face when he learned about my feelings regarding Hannah's strange look at me.

"I don't think it will reach the point where she'll try to harm me." Maybe I'm just exaggerating in my thoughts. I don't think Hannah's character is that bad.

"Don't underestimate the jealousy of a woman who deeply loves a man. I'm just reminding you, bestie," said Liam before leaving my office.

I was busy all day, and even in the following days, we were all extremely busy, so I forgot about what Liam and I talked about. Each of us drew a design that would suit Alexander's company. In the end, we chose my design for the women's uniform while we preferred Liam's design for the men's uniform.

With Liam's help, we adjusted and slightly modified our designs until we finally got the right design that Liam would present at the bidding. My friend will present at the bidding because I'm worried that my phobia might be triggered if I'm in front of many people, which could cause us to lose the contract.

After we finalized the design, we immediately bought beautiful and comfortable fabric and started sewing samples for the bidding.

I showed Alexander the design we made when I caught up with him at home. He had also been busy with the company, so we hardly saw each other at home these past few days. I also showed him the fabric sample we would use so that if he didn't like it, we could change it while there was still time.

The preparation for the bidding is only one month, so we need to move quickly but ensure the work is polished and satisfying.

"The design and the fabric you bought are beautiful. However, for the sake of fairness in the competition, I will let you present all the details of your presentation to me on the day of the bidding," Alexander said after seeing the design and fabric we will use to make the sample.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I heard what he said. "Thank you. I thought you wouldn't like our design and fabric and would replace it."

"I trust you, Elara. I believe you can win the bidding without my help," he said while looking at me intently. "By the way, I have a simple suggestion. Why don't you add my company's logo to the uniform you will make? But as for the style of the logo, it's up to you."

I thought for a moment. That's right. Based on the details we gathered, the employees' uniforms at Alexander's company did not have a logo. People only knew someone who worked for his company when they entered the building or asked the person. Now, just by seeing the logo on the uniform, they can immediately tell which company the person works for. The logo we will create is removable so that even if an employee is not in uniform, people can still see which company they worked for because they can still use their company's logo. What a brilliant idea!

Out of extreme joy, I suddenly hugged Alexander tightly. When I realized what I had done, it was as if I got burned and quickly let go of him, and without saying goodbye, I quickly ran to my room while my heart raced rapidly as if I was chased by a thousand demons.