Chapter 80: Need My Help?

The evening breeze tousled Olivia’s hair as she removed her glasses, revealing bright, luminous eyes that shimmered like autumn waters. Her flawless, fair skin was tinged with a rosy flush.

“How was the soup?” Alexander asked, watching her as she leaned into the cold wind.

Olivia turned her head, her cheeks slightly flushed with irritation. “Grandpa went to the trouble of making that soup for you. How could you turn down his kind gesture?”

Alexander’s gaze lingered on her for a moment before he strode forward, his long legs closing the distance until he was standing just behind her. Already annoyed, Olivia felt her irritation spike as he drew nearer. She turned to glare at him, her face close to his.

“Can you back off a little?”

“Do you know why I didn’t drink that soup?” Alexander raised an eyebrow, his towering frame casting a shadow over her in the light.

Olivia froze for a moment. For some reason, the restlessness she’d been feeling seemed to dissipate slightly with his presence, replaced by an inexplicable urge to get even closer.

Wait a second. Realizing something was off, Olivia’s mind raced. “Are you saying there was something wrong with the soup?” she asked, startled.

Alexander’s gaze lowered slightly, his eyes meeting her flushed face. “What do you think?”

What the heck am I supposed to think? Olivia thought, starting to panic as Vance’s earlier words came back to her, sparking a sinking feeling in her chest.

No way. She looked at Alexander, wanting to ask but hesitating.

“I thought you’d figure it out,” Alexander said, his brow lifting slightly. “After all, didn’t you once give me something similar?”

Olivia was stunned. She remembered her past self—desperate and foolish—slipping him an aphrodisiac under Amelia’s influence, trying to force things to happen between them.

“So… you’re saying that soup… has the same effect?” she ventured cautiously.

Alexander’s silence was confirmation enough.

“You knew and didn’t say anything earlier?”

No wonder he had stubbornly refused to drink the soup. He’d figured it out right away!

Watching Olivia bristle like an agitated little bunny, Alexander’s tall figure leaned forward slightly, closing the gap between them.

“I thought you’d enjoy it.”

Olivia stared at him, her eyes widening as his face came closer. Reflexively, she pushed against his chest to create distance. But the moment her hands touched his heated chest through his shirt, it was as if an electric shock jolted through her fingertips. She snatched her hands back, her heart racing wildly under the influence of the soup.

Alexander’s voice dropped to a low murmur, his breath brushing against her ear. “Need my help?”

Olivia’s cheeks turned crimson, the color spreading so quickly it looked like she might combust. What kind of scandalous nonsense is this? “Help with what?”

In a flash, Olivia jumped away from him as though he were some wild beast, staring at him with wide, wary eyes.

“What do you think?” Alexander asked, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly as he regarded her from his position. The stark difference between this skittish girl and the bold one who had once drugged him and tried to force herself on him couldn’t have been clearer.

In the past, Olivia would’ve seized the opportunity to cling to him shamelessly.

“Absolutely not! I’d rather wrap myself up like a mummy than let you lay a single finger on me!” Olivia snapped, her eyes blazing as she stormed toward the door.

I need to get far away from him!

But then… It happened again. The door was locked. No matter how hard Olivia pulled, it wouldn’t budge.

Locked again? She froze, disbelief washing over her.

Alexander, now seated comfortably in a chair, watched her with an amused expression, his demeanor calm as he observed her growing panic. To him, she looked like a trapped little bunny, restless and helpless.