When the Contract Marriage Ended, He Stayed

###Chapter 94: Who’s Seducing Whom?

The two remained locked in a stalemate until Hazel Hawthorne couldn’t take it anymore and looked away from Aiden Xavier. She was stunned. When his dark, bright eyes met hers, she felt as if he could see right through to the secrets of her heart.

Aiden Xavier, however, remained expressionless. She couldn’t see through him, and this feeling of being at his mercy made Hazel Hawthorne deeply uncomfortable. She couldn’t say she was a genius, especially not compared to him, but she wasn’t stupid, either. It was just that, when it came to sheer intellect, she probably couldn’t hold a candle to Aiden Xavier.

"I’m going to take a shower. Make yourself at home." In a fluster, Hazel Hawthorne grabbed her clothes from the side and rushed into the bathroom. Only by getting away from Aiden Xavier could she truly relax. She slipped out of her clothes and turned on the showerhead.

The sound of the rushing water isolated them from each other. Even while showering, Hazel Hawthorne didn’t forget to lock the bathroom door from the inside. It wasn’t that she was worried Aiden Xavier would suddenly burst in; it was a subconscious action born from her distrust of him.

Or rather, she didn’t trust men at all. After witnessing firsthand how her mother had given her heart to the wrong person, Hazel Hawthorne found it hard to believe true love even existed in this world. In her eyes, all men were heartbreakers and philanderers.

Wasting emotions on a man was the most foolish thing a woman could do. Not only would it not bring happiness, but it could very well destroy it. A person’s life was full of infinite possibilities, and Hazel Hawthorne believed that as long as she stayed away from men, her life would be peaceful and joyous.

At least she wouldn’t have to experience the betrayal, sorrow, and disappointment that came with love.

Hazel Hawthorne was so lost in her own world that she lost track of how long she’d been showering. It wasn’t until she heard a knock on the door that she was jolted back to reality. Outside, Aiden Xavier’s deep, husky voice rang out, startling Hazel so much that she shot up from the bathtub.

Her naked reflection in the mirror, illuminated by the light, revealed skin that seemed even fairer than usual. An uncontrollable blush spread across Hazel Hawthorne’s cheeks, as if she had applied blush. Her entire being radiated a rosy-white glow, looking utterly alluring.

"Hazel Hawthorne?" Aiden Xavier thought she hadn’t heard him, so he raised his voice and called her name again. When he still got no response, he continued, "If you don’t answer, I’m coming in. Did you pass out in there?"

Hearing that Aiden Xavier was about to come in, Hazel Hawthorne immediately splashed cold water on her cheeks and quickly replied, "I’m fine, I’m fine! I’ll be right out."

A moment later, the bathroom door cracked open, and a fair, slender arm reached out. Hazel Hawthorne said in a small, embarrassed voice, "I grabbed the wrong clothes. Can you get them for me?"

It wasn’t just the wrong clothes; she had even forgotten her bath towel outside. She couldn’t come out at all now because she had nothing to cover herself with.

Aiden Xavier frowned and moved closer to the door. "What did you say?"

"Help me get my clothes. I grabbed the wrong ones," Hazel Hawthorne said, forced to raise her voice.

Unexpectedly, Aiden Xavier asked again. Hazel Hawthorne knew then that he was messing with her on purpose. He had clearly heard everything but was pretending he hadn’t.

"You want me to help you get what?" Aiden Xavier asked with a perfectly straight face, showing no sign that he was teasing her. This left Hazel Hawthorne fuming with nowhere to vent her anger.

Hazel Hawthorne took several deep breaths, then said through gritted teeth, "Aiden Xavier, please get my clothes for me."

Aiden Xavier knew when to quit. After teasing her a few times, he obediently went to get her clothes. When he handed them to her, he saw her hand snatch back abruptly, as if she were afraid he’d try to take advantage of her.

Hazel Hawthorne’s reaction thoroughly amused Aiden Xavier. A hearty laugh echoed through the room, so clear that even Hazel, still in the bathroom, could hear it. But there was nothing she could do about him. She couldn’t possibly stay in the bathroom all night and leave the bed for him, could she?

No matter what, she couldn’t let herself be wronged. That was Hazel Hawthorne’s personal motto.

When Hazel Hawthorne came out dressed, Aiden Xavier had once again put on the facade of a perfect gentleman. It was an act that might fool a naive little girl, but a mature woman like Hazel would never believe he was actually a man of integrity.

"He’s clearly a wolf in sheep’s clothing, yet he insists on pretending to be a gentleman in front of women. It makes me want to puke," Hazel Hawthorne muttered under her breath.

A murderous glare suddenly shot toward Hazel Hawthorne, and she immediately clamped her mouth shut. "What did you say?"

Aiden Xavier, who had his back to her, now turned to face Hazel Hawthorne directly, his question cold. Hazel had just insulted him, so she felt a little guilty and tried to play dumb. "I didn’t say anything. I said I lost track of time in the shower."

And indeed, Hazel Hawthorne had been in the bathroom for nearly an hour. No wonder Aiden Xavier had been worried she might have passed out.

Hazel Hawthorne’s hair wasn’t dry yet and was still dripping. A drop of water from the tip of a strand trickled slowly down her long neck, seeming to linger deliberately at her collar for a few seconds before continuing its descent.

Hazel Hawthorne herself didn’t notice what a stunning visual impact this scene had on Aiden Xavier. Without makeup, Hazel looked even more pure and lovely. She was completely unaware of how seductive, how unbelievably beautiful, she was to him in that moment.

While drying her hair, Hazel Hawthorne walked over to the vanity. It was only through the mirror that she noticed Aiden Xavier’s gaze was fixed on her. She immediately looked down to check if her clothes were askew, worried she might be indecently exposed.

Finding that everything was in order and that she was quite modestly dressed, she breathed a sigh of relief.

She rolled her eyes at Aiden Xavier’s reflection in the mirror and went back to tending to her hair.

Aiden Xavier was still staring. His expression had changed into something Hazel Hawthorne didn’t quite recognize. His gaze was too intense, like the midday sun, burning hotly against her back. It made her feel uncomfortable all over, even sparking the impulse to kick him out.

She’d never been in a relationship, but she had seen it on TV—she knew what men were thinking when they stared at women with that kind of burning intensity.

Hazel Hawthorne turned off the hair dryer, clutching the collar of her shirt tightly. She spun around and stared warily at Aiden Xavier, her voice low as she said, "Do you have any idea what you look like right now?"

"What do I look like?"

"Like a lecher who, on a deserted night, stumbles upon a beautiful woman and wants to possess her. A filthy degenerate." Hazel Hawthorne spoke slowly, and with every word she uttered, Aiden Xavier’s expression shifted.

To think that a famously handsome man would be called a filthy degenerate by Hazel Hawthorne.

Aiden Xavier knew he had lost his composure for a moment, so he didn’t argue with her. But Hazel Hawthorne wasn’t about to let it go. "Your silence is an admission of guilt. And I wonder who it was that once swore up and down that even if a woman with my looks and body was delivered naked to his bed, he wouldn’t react at all."

Aiden Xavier’s mouth twitched violently. He never imagined Hazel Hawthorne would actually remember that.

"Sigh. It seems not a single word that comes out of a man’s mouth is true. They say women like to say one thing and mean another, but I think men are the same. You lie without even batting an eye, and so matter-of-factly, too. How does it feel to have your own words come back to bite you?"

*****