55 "That Was A Test?"

"I'm sorry for whatever I might have done that made you hate me," Tae-Joon told Grace over lunch.

"Why are you apologizing? Because I'm traveling? Or because you think there is a chance we might all be related?" Grace asked cocking a brow at him arrogantly.

"No. I'm apologizing because you mean so much to Grace, and I don't want to be on bad terms with you," Tae-Joon said as he sipped from his glass of wine.

"Oh! That's really noble of you," Grace said coldly but remembered Ann had pleaded with her to be nice, so she smiled instead to add a little warmth to her cold attitude.

"So you said I hit you with my car some years ago? What happened?" Tae-Joon asked, making Grace roll her eyes inwardly. Was that all there was to talk about? Now she had to cook up a story for Ann's sake?

"Don't worry about it. I'm totally over it. You have to be nice to her, though. She is a really nice person when you look past all your differences," Grace said and instantly wished she hadn't. Who was she asking him to be nice to? She didn't want him to leave there, thinking he stood a chance with her, the real Grace.

"Yeah, I've been able to see that in the little time I've spent with her. I had no idea I could get along with her so well," Tae-Joon said with a pleased smile.

"Well, miracles do happen, don't they?" Grace asked with a stiff smile.

"So, now that we are past our differences, I want your expert opinion, from a lady's perspective, that is. I want to court her, and I want to make her fall hopelessly in love with me, and seeing as you're really close to her and she loves and respects you a lot, I want your advice," Tae-Joon said with an embarrassed smile.

So he wanted her to teach him how to woo her? "Well, how has she encouraged your advances so far?" Grace asked curiously.

"She kissed me first. Is that encouraging enough?" Tae-Joon asked, making Grace swear inwardly. So Ann had actually kissed him first? She had actually made him think she was a teenager who had been dying for his affection and attention.

"More than encouraging," Grace said through gritted teeth even though she was smiling at him.

"I reckon whatever we discuss here will remain between us?" Tae-Joon asked, scratching the back of his ear nervously.

'It's definitely going to remain between us.' Grace muttered to herself. She was going to literally die if another ear heard she had made the first move on him.

"Sure," She said with a stiff smile as she urged him to go ahead.

"If she really kissed you, then what is stopping you from proposing to her and getting married already?" Grace asked thoughtfully.

"She wants love and romance. She mentioned something about me falling in love with her soul and being soul mates," Tae-Joon said with a confused frown.

"Oh, that! Yes, I was going to come to that. You shouldn't make your relationship physical. She was just testing you with that kiss. Grace is strongly against premarital sex, and no matter how much she tries seducing you, don't give in, else you're going to lose everything," Grace said fiercely, making Tae-Joon drawback with a frown.

"That was a test?" Tae-Joon asked in disbelief.

"Yes, it was. Like she rightly told you, it is her soul that you should fall in love with. Get to know her on a deeper level and leave those physical emotions aside. On no condition must you touch her sensually," Grace warned in a harsh voice before her face transformed into a smile once more.

"So you think she is going to really fall for me hopelessly if I do that?" Tae-Joon asked uncertainly.

"Yes. And then you can take her out on expensive dates, shower her with expensive gifts, and.."

"She isn't that sort of person. Or maybe she was, but she is different now," Tae-Joon said, shaking his head. That sounded like the Grace he had thought he knew in the past until her accident.

"Ah! I see. Then I assume you know how to win her heart then. If that is the case, I would like to return to the office. I have work to catch up on before I travel," Grace said with a polite smile before rising from her seat.

"Thanks for your help. I will take your advice," Tae-Joon said with a smile as he dropped some bills on the table before following her out.

***************

"Thanks for your hospitality, ma'am," Zoe said, bowing slightly as she walked over to enter Zhang Wei's car.

Her clothes had been washed and dried up, so now she was dressed in her own male clothes.

"Do visit us more often," Madam Zhang said with a smile. She had called Mrs. Jiang, and she had been told Zoe was working at the company.

She intended to pay her a visit at the company the next day. That way, she could confirm whether or not her suspicions were true.

"Make sure to bring him around again. I like him," Madam Zhang told her son with a smile before the car left the driveway.

"I'll be going on my first date tomorrow," Zhang Wei told Zoe, who turned to give him a smile.

"I'm sure you will be fine," Zoe assured him.

"You have something on your hair," Zhang Wei pointed to Zoe's hair. It seemed like some feathers from their pillow fight were stuck in her hair.

"Hold on. I'll help you," Zhang Wei offered when she tried dusting it off her hair, but nothing came off.

Zhang Wei moved closer to her and reached out to take it off her hair, but the driver swerved the car suddenly in order to dodge a coming car and ended up throwing Zoe and Wei off guard.

Their lips brushed, making both their eyes widen in surprise as they sprang apart from each other.

"I'm sorry," They said in unison while trying not to meet each other's eyes.

Zhang Wei cleared his throat awkwardly before looking out of the window. Did he just have his first kiss with a guy? He wondered and quickly discarded the thought. It couldn't count as a first kiss. You needed to exchange saliva for it to be a kiss. He assured himself.

"I was wondering if you could come with me on my date," He said before turning to look at Zoe, whose eyes were still wide and whose face was still very heated up.

How was it possible that she had just gotten her first kiss from Zhang Wei? By mistake?

"It is supposed to be between just you and whoever you're going out with. Ever heard the phrase: 'Two is a number, Three is a crowd'?" Zoe asked without turning to look at him.

"That is why I want you there. You could just show up and act as a distraction if I get bored. Or you could just help keep me in check, tell me what to do or say," Zhang Wei pleaded.

"I can't do that in front of her," Zoe said, shaking her head.

"No, I'm not saying come with me exactly. I'm trying to say you could seat very close to us in a position she won't see you. That way, you'll be communicating with just me, and I can tell you when to step in to save me," He added, reaching out to poke her arm so she could look at him.

"Please?" He asked with puppy eyes making Zoe roll her eyes. So she was supposed to go on a date with the guy who had just given her her first kiss and his blind date?

"Fine. I will need a suit for that," Zoe told him.

"Then I'll get you one before dropping you off then," Zhang Wei said with a satisfied smile.