Chapter 7 Hi, I'm Tia's Fiancé

• The woman came and went like the wind, and by the time Tia came out, Shannon had already left. However, her luggage was still left in the living room.
• Meanwhile, Elizabeth stared at the front door which was slammed shut before turning to Tia in bewilderment. "You two fought?"
• Tia smiled while shaking her head and reassuring her grandmother. "It's nothing."
• With that, she moved over to the couch to help Elizabeth sew the pouches.
• When Monday came, Tia wore the dress that she had just bought not too long ago. The pale blue color complemented her fair skin while her pair of two-inch heels made her legs look even more slender.
• As dismissive as she was about the marriage, she took the meeting with Lewis' parents seriously. She even freshened up in the ladies' room before clocking off.
• Later, she bumped into Lance at the elevator when she was about to head down to wait for Lewis.
• Instantly, the atmosphere became rather awkward with Lance saying nothing and Tia not knowing what to say.
• Soon enough, the elevator arrived and the two entered. She felt so awkward that she stared at the flashing number on display because the ride that usually took seconds now felt like forever.
• Finally, when the elevator ping came and the door opened, Tia heaved a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to step out, Lance's dark voice came from behind. "Does he treat you well?"
• Tia stopped in response and nodded without looking back.
• Behind her was Lance, who had smiled wryly. "Have we come to a point where we have nothing to talk about in person?" he asked.
• At that, she turned around and looked sorry at him. "Lance, we're still friends."
• He looked at her with a self-deprecating smile while mumbling under his breath, "Friends…"
• Right when Tia was at a loss of words to relieve this awkward situation, her phone rang and she pulled it out of her bag in response. Seeing that it was a call from Lewis, she excused herself and turned to answer it.
• "Have you gotten off work? I've arrived at the entrance." His deep, magnetic voice came from the other end of the line.
• Tia checked her watch and found that it was indeed the appointed time. "I'll be out in a sec," she answered hurriedly.
• After hanging up, she turned to Lance and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, Lance. I have a date." With that, she turned and headed to the exit.
• Sure enough, Lewis arrived just as he said he had. His luxury SUV parked at the entrance had drawn many people's attention. When he saw Tia approaching, he alighted from the car, looking stately and upright in his fitted suit.
• After arriving before him, Tia asked, "Have you been waiting for long?"
• "No, I just arrived." As usual, his voice was monotonous.
• She nodded in response and said, "Let's go then."
• Then, Lewis noticed something from the corner of his eyes as he looked behind her. "Is that your colleague?" he asked.
• Naturally, she turned around to find Lance approaching them with a grim face.
• "Tia, aren’t you going to introduce me?" Lance asked while looking at Tia, who felt awkward and unsure of what he was trying to do.
• Lewis seemed to have noticed her quandary, so he stepped in and introduced himself before Tia could say anything while extending his arm for a handshake. "Hi, Lewis Harvey, Tia's fiancé."
• However, Lance stared threateningly at Lewis, evidently hostile.
• Seeing that the man had no intention of returning the handshake, Lewis withdrew his arm and turned to Tia, no longer courting rebuff. "Shall I wait for you in the car?"
• Tia shook her head, then turned to Lance with awkwardness. "See you tomorrow, Mr. Garrett."
• With that, she turned to the front passenger door.
• Lewis, on the other hand, took an indifferent glance at Lance before opening the door. He placed his hand above Tia's head so that she would not bump herself when she entered.
• It was not until Tia sat comfortably inside that he closed the door, dipped his head toward Lance before turning to the driver's seat.
• Silence filled the car as Lewis drove them to the meeting point.
• The usual silence made Tia feel somewhat awkward, so she tried to find something to talk about. "Um… Have your parents arrived?"
• "Yeah. I've just dropped them off at the restaurant." Lewis nodded in reply, focusing his eyes on the road.
• Tia nodded reflexively, then suddenly thought to explain herself when she remembered what happened. "Um, the guy you met just now is my boss and my senior. Our relationship isn't what you think."
• Lewis glanced at her and pulled a rare smile. "I wasn’t thinking about it."
• Taken aback, Tia turned somewhat embarrassed and faced her head to the window. A soft ‘oh’ came out of her mouth as her cheeks were flushed red. Why did I even bother to explain… could’ve gone on without saying anything…
• "Can I ask you something?"
• "What is it?" Tia looked back at him quizzically.
• Lewis took a gander at her before asking, "I can tell that man just now likes you. So I wanna know, why would you marry a complete stranger and not someone who’s clearly in love with you?"
• To that, she curled her lips and answered self-deprecatingly, "I don’t think I can give him what he wants."
• "Affection and love are both a form of giving," Tia explained when she saw Lewis frowning, seemingly unsure of what she meant. "When you give, you'll naturally want the feelings to be reciprocated. No one will be willing to give and get nothing in return. Though what he wanted in return is very much reasonable, it happens to be something that I don't have. Not now, not ever."
• Lance had always said he would wait—even for years and decades—till the day she slowly accepted and fell in love with him, but what she refused was precisely this thing called ‘love’. She was positive that no matter how many years had passed, she would not be able to return the feeling. So, why should she give him hope only to disappoint him when she already had the answer?
• Lewis nodded and gave a barely noticeable smile in response.
• After that, the two said nothing while Tia looked out the window while Lewis focused on the road ahead.
• Soon, Lewis parked the car in front of a high-end restaurant. Before getting out, he turned to Tia out of the blue. "How do you know I'm not like everyone else? Aren’t you afraid that I would ask for those same things as well?"
• "Would you?" Tia asked plainly while gazing at him.
• To that, Lewis stared into her eyes for quite some time before he finally smiled and shook his head silently.
• It was not a no; in actuality, he did not have the answer himself, but Tia had clearly misunderstood.