Love at First Sight? Mr. Harrison Has Been Scheming All Along-Chapter 20: She Was Too Smart and Thoughtful
"Are you so sure I’m the one who’s renting this apartment to you?"
Faced with her accusation, Sean Harrison’s expression betrayed no hint of panic.
Instead, it was the real estate agent beside them who looked utterly shocked and flustered.
Rory Linden glanced back at the luxury apartment behind her.
It was dusk, and the warm glow of the setting sun poured through the massive, ultra-clear floor-to-ceiling windows, filling the entire room. In the living room, a set of well-maintained leather sofas gleamed faintly in the light.
The stylish, metallic coffee table in front of them was also bathed in a gentle hue.
Everything before her was what made her come up with that idea.
No one would rent out an apartment like this for such a low price.
For any reason whatsoever.
But Rory didn’t say any of this. She looked at Sean again and said seriously, "Because I know I’ve never been a particularly lucky person. I can’t believe a coincidence like this would just happen to me."
Sean sighed softly. "My people were careless."
It was a tacit admission of his involvement with this.
"Thank you for your help, Mr. Harrison." Rory turned to the agent. "Could you please ask the landlord of the first apartment if paying one month’s rent and a one-month deposit is acceptable? I can’t come up with more than that right now. But I’m a doctor at Elysian Hospital, right across the street, so my job is stable. Once I get paid next month, I’ll be able to pay the rent on time."
The agent glanced at Sean, then tried to persuade Rory again. "Miss Linden, you... you consider this apartment?"
"No, I won’t," Rory said resolutely. "I can’t just keep imposing on others for my own problems."
Sean lowered his gaze slightly without saying a word.
Only then did the agent contact the first landlord.
After receiving a confirmed response, the landlord hurried over, and they signed the contract without a hitch.
It was not until they moved back to the car when Sean finally asked, "You’re going to live there for now? It’s too dangerous for a woman to live alone in a complex that doesn’t even have a security guard."
Rory shook her head. "It’s fine. I spend most of my time at the hospital, and I won’t be living here for too long anyway. Once I get my year-end bonus, I’ll have enough money to move to a better place."
Sean’s expression remained grim.
He wanted to help Rory, but he didn’t know what ground she should use.
Rory noticed his expression and smiled. "Sean, the Harrington family doesn’t owe me anything, and you don’t need to do anything to make it up to me. The truth is, I’m just an ordinary person. I was never meant to live in a mansion like the one the Harringtons have. I was meant to live in an ordinary place like this."
"..."
"In my memory, the old country house where my mother and I used to live was in even worse shape than this one. When it poured outside, it drizzled inside. When the wind howled outside, a breeze blew inside." Rory broke into an even brighter smile. "So when my mother first brought me to the Harrington family’s home, I thought it was heaven."
These were all Rory’s genuine feelings.
The Harrington’s mansion had long been equipped with climate control to maintain a constant temperature and humidity, so it was always perfectly comfortable.
She still remembered the feeling of watching it snow outside while being able to wear a light dress indoors.
It really had been the best place in the whole world.
Sean realized he couldn’t find any more reasons to persuade Rory, so he turned to ask about something else. "Let’s have a dinner together. Consider it my apology for acting on my own."
"You don’t need to apologize. I should be the one thanking you. I just don’t want to be a bother," Rory explained, and then nodded. "But having dinner together sounds nice."
Sean breathed an inward sigh of relief.
The woman he liked was so smart, and thoughtful.
So much so that he wondered if she deserved someone better.
Sean took her to the restaurant that he had booked in the morning.
The restaurant was situated on the riverfront in Veridia.
Skyscrapers were lit up in a dazzling light show across the river.
Their table was right by the window, which was the best seat in the house for the view.
The waiter brought over the menu.
Sean Harrison said, "Their modern spicy cuisine is excellent. Order whatever you like."
Rory looked over the dishes on the menu.
Many were classic spicy dishes.
Some were clearly really spicy.
A while back when Rory was eating with Miles, and had tried to order the spicy food. But she had just spoken the name of a dish when Miles snatched the menu from her hands, and said with a look of disgust, "It’s obvious you don’t know how to order. These kinds of dishes have no class. No one orders this."
For a long time after that, Rory lost the courage to order from a menu.
Seeing that she hesitated, Sean asked, "Should we get the Poached Sliced Beef in Hot Chili Oil again?"
"But it feels like we eat it every time..."
"Finding a dish you love at every restaurant just means you’re lucky."
Sean Harrison’s tone was easygoing.
With just a few simple words like this, he had effortlessly given Rory Linden a sense of prase.
"Alright, let’s get the Poached Sliced Beef in Hot Chili Oil then."
Only as she said the words did Rory realize that she felt completely relaxed around Sean.
She felt no pressure, nor did she worry that he would deny what she said.
They only ordered three dishes in total.
Two meat dishes and one vegetable dish.
Sean took the initiative to say, "Any more would be too much to eat. It’d be a shame to waste it."
Rory was even a little touched when hearing this.
Neither Miles nor his friends seemed to understand the concept of waste.
The dishes arrived quickly.
The food was indeed fitting Rory’s taste.
She couldn’t help but eat another bowl of rice.
As dinner drew to a close, the waiter cleared their plates and served them a dessert.
Just as Rory picked up her small silver fork to taste the cream on the dessert, when...
"Wow! Quick, look!"
Someone at a nearby table cried out.
Rory instinctively looked out the window.
A drone show had appeared in the city sky.
The tiny drones first formed the image of Doraemon and a little girl. Doraemon seemed to rummage around in his pocket before finally pulling out a gadget called the [Weather Headband].
The little girl took the headband. When she was sad, dark clouds gathered, but when her mood brightened, the weather changed to a small sun.
The drones then transformed into sunshine, a rainbow, and sunflowers in the sky.
Finally, the drones formed a line of text, saying "May you always have good weather and a good mood."
Rory quietly watched the entire drone show to the end.
She didn’t know to whom the performance was customized for. But it affected her mood totally.
’My future,’ she thought, ’would also be like the sky after a storm, adorned with a rainbow—brilliant and boundless.’
When dinner was over, Rory asked Sean to drop her off at Sherry’s home.
As the car pulled up downstairs, Sherry was just finishing her bedtime yoga on the balcony.
When she saw Rory get out of a luxury sedan, her jaw nearly hit the floor.
It was too dark for her to make out the car’s brand.
She just assumed Rory had lost her mind and gotten back together with Miles again!
The moment Rory opened the door, Sherry was there to block her path. "Girl, what is wrong with you? How could you get back together with Miles?"
"I didn’t."
"You didn’t? Then who was the person that just dropped you off?"
"He... he’s Miles’ uncle, Sean Harrison," Rory confessed. "The owner of the Black Opal cufflinks."
"S-Sean Harrison?!" Sherry was stunned. "Do you have any idea what kind of status Sean Harrison has in Veridia—no, in all of Celestria? There’s no way he would be driving you home. You’re being scammed, aren’t you?!"
