97. A FAMILY AFFAIR

She is very interested to see how our two businesses might work together. She

requested to meet you in person. Brent and Kaylee were excited to get the chance to

meet the famous Ms. Pierce, but they were also painfully aware of the impression they'd

just made on Aiden, who she seemed to greatly respect.

If only they'd known who he was! If the CEO of Snow Phoenix was willing to show up to a

meeting in person, it must mean that Aiden was a pretty big deal. Ms. Pierce was an

extremely busy person. She didn't just drive out to the middle of nowhere for a snack.

Brent and Kaylee thought about the things they'd said to Aiden and cringed. I'm such an

idiot, Brent thought. Why didn't I just keep my mouth shut? Aiden examined Ms. Pierce

from where he was standing.

He'd heard stories about her and wondered what she might be like, and now here she

was in the flesh. She was only a little older than Olivia, but something about her styling

and makeup made her look younger. If he didn't know who she was, he might have

guessed she was 18.

She had wavy, chestnut hair that fell just below her shoulders and framed her round face. She was wearing tight black jeans and a cream sweater under a light yellow blazer.

She had bright eyes and an easy smile.

As Aiden was taking note of Shannon's appearance, she was also taking note of him. At

first, nothing much stood out to her. His physique, his posture, his clothes, his haircut, it

was all fairly generic.

Nothing that would set him apart from any other teenage boy. But then she looked

closer, inspecting his face. There was something strange, she thought, about his eyes.

What was it about them that unsettled her? They were deep but not very forthcoming,

impenetrable. Hmm, she thought to herself. Yes, there's something different about this

one.

There's some mystery here. In all of her business meetings, Shannon would look closely

at people's eyes. She could tell a lot about a person by their eyes.

She could guess their emotions and desires and then use this information to gain their

trust. She'd become an expert in reading people. But Aiden was different.

She couldn't tell what he was thinking or feeling. She couldn't read him at all. She looked

closer.

She sensed that there was a fire behind his eyes. A power underneath the calm, opaque

surface.

It only took a few seconds for Shannon to realize

that this was no ordinary little boy she was dealing with.

He would be difficult to manipulate. SUBVERTING EXPECTATIONS CHARM PLUS ONE Miss

Pierce held out a delicate hand, and Aiden shook it. Mr. Dale, she said warmly, I've heard

so many great things about you from Mr. Sullivan.

I'm so glad we've finally gotten the chance to meet. Aiden smiled back at her. I must

say, I'm quite impressed by you.

When I was your age, I was hoping to make the cheerleading team and stressing over

algebra. She giggled demurely. And you're already the manager of a highly successful

restaurant.

She laughed again, this time more heartily. It's remarkable, it really is. This woman's

slick, Aiden thought.

A little praise here, some flirtatious laughing there. Did she really think he could be won

over so easily? He paused for a moment and then responded with a touch of irony in his

voice. That's kind of you to say.

Of course, we're nothing compared to your own company. After all, this place is just a hole in the wall in the middle of nowhere. Aiden didn't laugh or even smile.

Shannon furrowed her brows, unsure how to interpret this. Isn't that right? Aiden said,

turning to look at Brent and Kaylee. They both bowed their heads and stared at the floor.

Aiden was throwing Kaylee's words back in their faces. They were afraid to look up, not

wanting to meet the gaze of Brent's dad and Miss Pierce. But their strange behavior just

implicated them even further.

Brent Sullivan? Mr. Sullivan said sternly. What's going on here? Brent looked up but

didn't speak. Mr. Sullivan seemed to guess something of the situation by looking at

Brent's eyes.

He looked scared and ashamed. What had his son done? If Brent had lost this business

opportunity for Snow Phoenix, he'd pay for it. Still not knowing exactly what had

transpired, Mr. Sullivan turned to Aiden and asked.

I'm sorry, Mr. Dale. Has my son caused you any trouble? I think it's best if you ask him

directly, Aiden replied. Mr. Sullivan turned back to Brent and raised his eyebrows.

Son? He said finally. Brent didn't say anything at first, but Mr. Sullivan waited patiently.

As far as he was concerned, they could sit there in silence all day.

Brent felt humiliated. He was afraid that if he started to talk, he might cry. Kaylee also

felt ashamed.

It's funny, she thought. I finally thought I'd beaten Olivia at something, but it turns out

she's won again, like she always does. It didn't seem fair to Kaylee.

How had Olivia even met Aiden? Was it just total luck? Kaylee didn't seem to have any

luck at all. Brent would probably lose interest in her soon, and then where would she be?

Brent remained silent. Aiden finally shook his head and said, Miss Pierce, let's talk some

other time.

Let Mr. Sullivan work through this family matter first, and then you can get back to me.

Shannon was disappointed, but she hit it well. She smiled softly and said, Yes, of course,

Mr. Dale, we understand.

She looked over at Mr. Sullivan, who gave a curt nod of the head in agreement. I'll get in

contact with you later about rescheduling our meeting, she added. But seeing as I'm

already here, I wonder if I could stick around for a bit and get a feel for the place, as a

customer.

She smiled coyly. No business talk, I promise. This woman sure knows what she's doing,

Aiden thought to himself, but she might be laying it on a bit thick.

I've heard so many wonderful things about your tea and cakes, Shannon continued. She

pressed her hands together and squeezed her eyes shut. I'm just dying to try some.

What do you say? She tilted her head slightly and bit her lower lip. Pretty please? This

was becoming too much for Aiden. He couldn't stand watching her put on this little

schoolgirl act.

It was demeaning to both of them, but he could tell she wasn't going to take no for an

answer. Okay, yeah, Aiden said, shrugging his shoulders. You can stay if you want, but if

you'll excuse me, I have somewhere else to be.

He nodded goodbye to Mr. Sullivan and Olivia and then left the restaurant. Shannon

rubbed her chin as she watched Aiden walk out the door.

On the same day, David Sullivan, with a face like thunder, left the

restaurant, together with Brent and Kaylee. After this, Kaylee did not dare to ask Olivia

anything again. In the long years that followed, she was subsumed with regret.

If only she had listened to Olivia that day. If only she had not thrown away the