Chuckling, Elijah grabbed another glass of champagne and passed it to her. "They only value the benefits of a coalition marriage, so it doesn't matter whether she was previously engaged to Aidan or not."
Besides, it was because of the fact Aidan had annulled the engagement with Georgina that Lloyd and Aidan's father could reach an agreement. Elijah kept his thought to himself.
Leanna pursed her lips and didn't say a word. No wonder Georgina was getting more hostile toward me when I met her the past few times. So, this is the reason, she thought.
This whole time, Aidan was the one Georgina wanted to marry, but she ended up engaged to his elder brother instead. That was why she took out all her anger on Leanna when she ran into Aidan having a meal with her the last time.
After a short pause, Leanna asked with a frown, "What about her and Daniel?"
Raising his head, Elijah took a sip of the champagne in his glass and turned to look at a spot not far away. "Don't worry about him. He has a way to solve this."
Following his gaze, Leanna realized that Daniel was here as well, and he was speaking with Mr. Jackson now.
To begin with, Elijah was quite close with Mr. Jackson, and not to mention Daniel was Elijah's friend too. Hence, it wasn't surprising that Daniel was on good terms with Mr. Jackson. However, Leanna couldn't understand what Elijah meant by Daniel having a way to solve the situation.
The engagement between Georgina and Justin was a union of interests between the Pearsons and the Crossleys. Would Lloyd really give that up just because of a few mere words from Daniel?
Unless one party had a better option, there was no reason for the annulment of this marriage.
Right then, a waiter approached Elijah and whispered something to him. He furrowed his brows slightly before turning to Leanna and said, "Wait here for a while for me, Leanna. I'll be back soon."
She gave him a nod. "Okay."
Before walking away, he scanned around for Aidan, and he only left after making sure Aidan wasn't around.
Holding the champagne in her hand, Leanna took a small sip, and when she was about to check out Daniel and Mr. Jackson again, she saw that they were no longer within her eyesight.
All of a sudden, a stoic voice belonging to a man echoed from behind her. "Are you looking for me?"
She felt like rolling her eyes at the narcissistic question. She slowly lowered the glass in her hand, not wanting to look back at all.
However, the next second, the man voiced out again, but this time, he spoke right next to her ear. His warm breath traveled down her fair neck. "Or are you looking for Elijah? If so, then you should stop. He won't be back for the next few minutes."
Hearing that, Leanna couldn't help but frown and turn around, wanting to say something. She was a second too late to realize that the b*stard's face was just inches away from hers, and her lips brushed past his cheek, leaving behind a faint trail of lipstick.
Aidan's eyes met hers as he raised his brows. "This isn't so appropriate in public. Once we're home, I won't resist anything you want to do to me."
Dumbstruck, she thought, Is he crazy?! Taking a step back, she said in annoyance, "So, you do know that we're still in public, President Pearson. Aren't you afraid of making a joke out of yourself?"
Leisurely, Aidan answered, "I have no control over other people's eyes, and neither can I cover all of them."
Leanna couldn't be bothered to waste her breath on him, but as she was about to leave, he grabbed her by the wrist. "Where are you going?"
"To the ladies' room. Are you coming along?"
"Since you asked, I'll accompany you even though I'm unwilling."
If it weren't for the fact that there were a lot of people here, she would have cursed loudly at him.
She merely jerked off his hand and walked straight forward. However, after taking a few steps, the b*stard spoke up again in a lazy manner. "That's the wrong direction. It's that way."
Stopping in her tracks abruptly, she took a deep breath and went in the direction Aidan mentioned. What's the problem with this b*stard? Why is he following me to the ladies' room?
Not long after she walked out of the event hall, she saw the washroom sign, and she also heard the soft sounds of people chatting. Just then, the man who was behind her the whole time reached out, grabbed her waist, and pulled her into a corner at the side.
Before she could make a sound, Aidan covered her mouth, and the people who were talking walked past them at the same time.
They were Daniel and Georgina.
When they had walked far off, Leanna pulled away his hand. "Did you do something against your conscience, President Pearson? Why are you hiding like this?"
Retracting his hand, Aidan stuck his hand into his pocket. "Do you want to say hello to her instead?"
She snorted softly and ignored him before turning into the washroom. By the time she was out, Aidan was smoking while leaning against the balcony on the side with a calm expression on his deep-set features.
At the sight of her, he put out his cigarette and tilted his head. "They're gone."
A few seconds later, she couldn't help but ask, "What excuse did you use to trick Elijah away?"
"Do you really want to know?"
She paused for a moment before responding, "Never mind."
Without even the need to think, she knew that nothing good would come out of his mouth.
At the event hall entrance, they happened to run into William, who was about to leave. With a smile, he greeted them, "Hello, President Pearson and Miss McKinney."
"The party has barely started, and you're going to leave now, Mr. Morris?" Aidan asked flatly.
"I need to attend to something, so I'll have to leave first," he answered.
"The show of the day has yet to begin. It'd be such a shame if you just left like this without seeing it."
Despite Aidan's aggressiveness, William kept a polite smile on his face. "I don't know what you mean, President Pearson."
He already knew for a long time that Aidan was checking up on him, and he had been on his guard in every way, yet Aidan still managed to find a chance to make a dig at him.
"If there's nothing else, I'm going first," William added.
Aidan didn't say anything and merely watched him as he walked away, wearing a cold sneer on his lips. Meanwhile, Leanna stared at him, wondering, Why is this b*stard being so enigmatic?
Meeting her eyes, Aidan flicked his finger on her forehead. "What are you thinking about?"
Pouting her lips, she looked away and strode into the event hall. Since she had already given the present, it was about time for her to leave, and she was going to inform Mr. Jackson of this now.
When she found him, Lloyd and Georgina were standing opposite him. And so was Daniel.
After a short moment of hesitation, she still decided to go over. "Mr. Jackson, I'll be taking my leave first. I wish you a happy birthday."
Mr. Jackson turned around. "You're leaving so soon? Where's Eli?"
The second he asked the question, he saw Aidan, who was following behind Leanna, and he immediately understood something. This youngster is quite capable, huh? he thought.
Right then, Georgina smiled and said, "Miss McKinney, not only are you invited by President Parker to attend Mr. Jackson's birthday party, you also have Aidan to accompany you. I bet many guests here are envious of you right now."
Leanna smiled but didn't respond to her. Instead, she said to Mr. Jackson, "I'm taking my leave first, then."
With that, she turned around and walked away, but she had barely taken a couple of steps when Georgina's voice came from behind her again. "Miss McKinney."
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