Chapter 418 William and Hayden (19)
Watching her enter his bedroom, a deeply pleased smile painted itself across William's face. He immediately reached for his phone to make a call.
William's bathroom was immaculately clean; not even a single strand of hair could be found.
Following his instructions, Hayden took a fresh towel from the cabinet under the sink and stepped into the glass shower stall.
Shampoo, conditioner, and various washes were neatly placed on the shelf in the shower.
To her surprise, all the products were local brands.
She picked up a bottle of shower gel, pumped some into her palm, and took a gentle whiff. It was just the scent of William.
A small smile graced her lips as she worked the gel into a lather and began to wash herself.
Knock, knock.
Right after she finished and turned off the water, there came a knock at the door, followed by William's rich, smooth voice penetrating the door panel, "I've put your clothes out on the bed for you."
Before entering the bathroom, Hayden had purposefully left her soiled clothes outside, hoping William would toss them in the washer and dry them quickly.
Could it be done already?
With a hint of skepticism, she replied with an "Okay," then wrapped herself in a towel and stepped out.
The first night she had met—or, well, encountered William, she had nearly been caught in the buff by him.
So, Hayden was fine with the prospect of going out in just a towel and possibly being seen by William again.
However, when she emerged, William was not in the bedroom. At the foot of the large bed, there was a light pink hoodie and a pair of light-colored jeans laid out for her.
Hayden walked over and examined them; they were brand new, and the hoodie and jeans were exactly her size.
Puzzled and suspicious, Hayden set down the clothes she had been holding and stepped directly into William's walk-in closet.
The closet doors were made of clear glass, providing an unobstructed view of the clothing within as she walked in. It was all men's attire, not a single woman's item in sight.
So, it had been her imagination running wild after all.
She couldn't help but smile. Turning away from the closet, Hayden returned to the spacious bed and began changing her attire.
By the time she emerged, dressed and ready, a new steaming bowl of tomato soup had been placed on the dining table, the previous mess now nowhere to be seen.
"Just made it. Eat it while it's hot," William said with a satisfied grin, noting Hayden wearing the clothes he had instructed the apartment's housekeeper to buy for her.
"All right," she replied, took her seat at the table, and continued eating her pasta with her fork.
After watching her commence her meal, William then turned to leave the room.
"Where are you going?" Hayden called out with a tinge of urgency in her voice after he had only taken a few steps.
He paused, turning back with a smile, "I'm going to take a shower and change clothes, then we can head to class together."
Their gazes met—his eyes held a pleasurable warmth. Hayden's heart skipped a beat in that brief moment, and a flush of embarrassment rose to her cheeks.
She had never felt this way before.
"Oh, okay," she quickly replied, then diverted her eyes from his and lowered her gaze back to her meal.
With an amused smile, William watched her for a second longer, then turned and headed toward the bedroom.
...
"Speaking of which, isn't William coming to class today? Why aren't you two together?" Jasper asked. Despite his usual nonchalance and easy-going lifestyle, he was someone who honored his commitments.
So, before class, he went to pick up Michelle from the girls' dormitory. Coincidentally, they had classes in the same building that morning.
However, that particular building was quite old and had no elevator. With her crutches, Michelle had to rely on Jasper's support to navigate the stairs one step at a time.
After making it halfway through the second floor, they paused for a break on the landing between the second and third floors. It was then that Michelle casually brought up William.
Grinning at Michelle, Jasper chuckled, "I haven't seen William today. Would you like me to give him a call and check for you?"
"No need, I was just asking. Let's keep going," Michelle said, hiding her slight embarrassment behind a smile, then readied herself to continue up the stairs.
Just as she was about to turn around and walk away, she saw a familiar black Land Rover parked a few dozen meters away through the glass of the entrance foyer.
Wasn't that William's car?
A spark of joy lit up in Michelle's heart. She paused, about to head toward the window, but then she saw the passenger door being pushed open. Hayden stepped out from the passenger side while William got out of the car on the other side.
Why would Hayden be with William so early in the morning?
Noticing Michelle's stunned expression, Jasper followed her gaze. Seeing the two walking toward the academic building, he quirked his lips and said, "Whoa, William's with Hayden, huh? Going to wait for them?"
Snapping back to reality, Michelle shook her head. "No, let's go," she said.
With that, she turned and continued to climb the stairs, her face falling into a shadow of dismay.
"Sure," Jasper replied, reaching out to assist her.
As usual, Hayden headed for the back row when she arrived at the auditorium for class.
Michelle called out to her, but Hayden ignored her, not sure if she hadn't heard or didn't want to pay attention. She sat down in the last row.
Soon, the professor came in and began the lecture.
Throughout the class, Michelle was distracted, but Hayden was unusually attentive, casting aside the unpleasantness brought by Finn and Sophia that morning.
After class, as Hayden passed by her, Michelle finally stopped her.
"Are you heading back to the dorm? Let's go together," Michelle said with a smile.
Hayden shook her head. "I've got something else to do, so I'm not heading back just yet."
With those words, Hayden walked off.
It was at that moment Michelle distinctly smelled the same fresh, woody scent on Hayden that was on William.
"Hayden, wait!" Michelle blurted out, stopping Hayden again.
Hayden turned back, "Is there something else?"
"You..." Michelle's face slowly flushed angrily, "Why were you with William this morning?"
Facing her, Hayden suddenly laughed, "That's my business; I don't think I need to explain that to you."
"Hayden, I thought you weren't interested in William?" Michelle asked, trying to keep her irritation in check.
Hayden arched an eyebrow, his expression darkening slightly as he spoke with displeasure, "Michelle, aren't you overstepping a bit? Your crush on William is your business. Who I want to be with is mine, and it's got nothing to do with you."
With that, he didn't exchange another word with Michelle and strode away.
Michelle was fuming at Hayden's arrogant demeanor.
But then she had a realization.
No, she couldn't afford to be angry. Getting angry would mean losing.
What she needed to do now was try her best to win William over, to make him fall for her.
......
Hayden had found an internship at a company with headquarters in London that ranked in the top 100 of the Fortune Global 500.
Her interview was scheduled for 2 pm, but she decided to prepare thoroughly since she still had some time.
Indeed, The Smith Group had a branch in London, too, but she had no immediate plans to work for her family's company.
She was concerned that her identity, combined with any potential sabotage by Sophia in the background, would not only hinder her learning but might also lead to a lot of problems.
After heading to the library, Hayden pored over resources related to this top-100 global company until almost 1 pm. Then she grabbed a coffee and a sandwich, hastily ate them, went back to her dorm to change clothes, and went straight to the company for her interview.
The company she interviewed with was a venerable bank named Global Trust Bank, which had been in operation for over a century, and she was applying for an internship as a risk asset controller.
She hadn't expected to see William sitting among the interviewers when she entered the room.
Why was he here?
Hayden stopped dead in her tracks in astonishment.
Standing at the far end, William barely perceptibly curled the corner of his lips when he saw Hayden freeze at the doorway upon seeing him.
Fortunately, Hayden only faltered for a couple of seconds. Regaining her composure, she averted her gaze, approached the interviewers, and introduced herself in clear and fluent English, "Good afternoon, interviewers. My name is Hayden, and I'm here to apply for the Risk Investment Management internship position."
"Hayden, hello, please take a seat!" The interviewer in the middle of the panel, his hair graying slightly, smiled warmly at her and invited her to sit.
— Please take a seat!
Hayden noticed there needed to be somewhere for candidates to sit in the entire interview room.
She quickly found a folded chair in the corner behind the door, so with a slight smile, she walked to the corner, moved the chair over, unfolded it, and sat down.
