Chapter 134 Beyond Down-to-earth, Close to Ground
Ignoring the message alert, Ashley pretended not to see it.
At the dinner table, Kevin openly and covertly mentioned that Damian's arrangement for tonight was to attend Edward's birthday party, emphasizing, "When has our CEO ever shown such great respect to anyone? He rarely attends private parties."
The implied meaning was that the Hearst family's relationship with the Bezos family was extraordinary. Kevin said those words to Ashley, but she only smiled.
Kevin may have intended to frustrate Ashley, but Ashley's lack of response made him lose interest, and he did not mention it again.
Ashley thought that it seemed that Damian's good fortune was near.
Honk! The sound of a car horn suddenly interrupted her thoughts. Ashley looked to the side of the road and immediately frowned.
Hendrix rolled down the car window, leaning halfway out with his elbow resting on the window, and smiled at her. "What a coincidence," he said, nonchalantly.
In the dimly lit night with few onlookers around, a person could minimize their presence.
Ashley walked deep into the shade of the trees as if she could hide herself this way. Darkness gave a sense of safety and bravery.
"It's such a shame Deputy Director Hendrix didn't become a tabloid reporter. You're great at taking secret photos and stalking them!" Ashley teased.
Hendrix drove slowly, keeping a row of trees between him and Ashley. "Why didn't you reply when you saw the message? It's impolite of you to do so," he implied.
It was hard for Ashley to connect the shameless Hendrix with the Hendrix who earnestly led defense meetings at the law firm during the day. Was he experiencing a split personality?
"What does Deputy Director Hendrix want me to reply? To seek life and death and throw myself into your arms for comfort? I advise you not to have so many thoughts," Ashley said calmly.
"Haha!" Hendrix was amused by her words, "Ashley, you're quite interesting. You're humorous, but you pretend to be cold. I heard some lawyers talking in the office today, saying you're very indifferent."
Ashley responded, "Is Deputy Director Hendrix's idea of entertainment stalking women who are going home late at night? According to the law, your behavior can be considered harassment."
Hendrix smiled, undeterred, "I didn't even eat just to run into you. Let's grab a bite together. Don't tell me you've already eaten. Eating with a bunch of self-righteous people won't be enjoyable."
Hendrix hit the nail on the head, resonating with Ashley's thoughts.
"No, I had a great meal. Delicious food and enjoyable conversations with everyone!" Ashley retorted.
Seeing that Ashley refused to stop, Hendrix had to park the car and catch up with her temporarily, and remarked, "Harold was right. You're great in every way except for your stubbornness!"
Ashley tried to shake him off, and reminded, "Deputy Director Hendrix, please show some respect. Don't forget about the case our law firm recently handled. The man who pursued a woman, but he forced that woman, and resulted in imprisonment!"
Hendrix tilted his head, raised his hands in surrender, and said, "Okay, let's have a good talk. Look at you. You are always talking about law and cases. You're so boring."
Ashley folded her arms, maintaining a defensive posture, and began to speak, "Deputy Director Hendrix..."
Hendrix complained deeply, "Can you stop calling me that after work? It makes it sound like I'm still working overtime. Do you think I'm not aging fast enough for you?"
Unable to hold it in, Ashley laughed, and remarked, "Not only are you old, but you're also not serious."
Finally seeing her smile, Hendrix felt that it wasn't easy, "Have you been to Rochester City's food street?"
Ashley replied, "I don't eat junk food."
Hendrix grabbed her arm, and said, "Come on, I know you're from a wealthy family. Occasionally indulge in some cheap food to enrich your life!"
Hendrix dragged Ashley to the food street near Rochester City University.
After graduating, Ashley never returned to her alma mater.
The memories provoked mixed emotions.
In the first year of Ashley's marriage to Damian, Ashley excitedly took Damian here, introducing him to various specialty foods, only to receive a cold glare in return.
Damian said, "Ashley, I married you with no other purpose."
Since then, Ashley has never returned to her alma.
Hendrix walked confidently, holding her wrist as they strolled down the snack street. "This is deep-fried chicken eggs, you know eggs, right? It's fried in oil..." he blabbered.
Ashley widened her eyes. "Stop talking!" she scolded.
Hendrix touched his nose and smiled. "Are you scared?" he asked.
It wasn't fear. It was disgust that she felt.
"What about this? Tomato sauce duck. It tastes different from others, with the boss's exclusive recipe," Hendrix added.
Ashley didn't like tomato sauce and felt queasy just looking at it. "How do you know?" she asked.
"I've tried it. Want one?" Hendrix asked.
Ashley shook her head.
Hendrix said, "All right, I guess fried foods might be a bit challenging for you. Let's go. I'll find something delicious for you to eat."
Looking at the bowl of corn gruel on the table, Ashley furrowed her brows. "Is this considered delicious food?" she asked, doubtfully.
Hendrix used utensils to stir the corn gruel in the big bowl, giving the impression that he had eaten it many times before. "Authentic corn gruel, give it a try," he urged.
Ashley frowned and pushed her bowl away. "Deputy Director Hendrix. You go first," she insisted.
Ashley didn't expect that Hendrix, who was born into a wealthy family, liked this. It was quite surprising.
Hendrix looked at her rejection and asked, furrowing his brows, "Didn't you love eating it before?"
Ashley was suspicious. "Before? How do you know what I ate before?" she inquired.
Ashley thought that there indeed wasn't any connection between her and Hendrix.
Hendrix said mysteriously, "I'll tell you after you take three bites."
When Ashley was in college, there was a period when she loved eating corn gruel. She often went to eat with Amelia, but that shop had closed down.
After meeting Damian, Ashley gradually gave up all heavily flavored foods. Perhaps she had been numb for too long, she even convinced herself.
As she picked up the utensils, she felt a bit hesitant to eat, but she took a bite and savored it slowly. The taste was refreshing and delicious.
After taking three bites, Ashley put down her utensils. "Tell me," she demanded.
As she ate, Hendrix stared at her without blinking, as if he saw the girl from his memories again. However, she wasn't as lively, cute, and carefree as before.
"Ashley, what happened that made you so different from yourself?" Hendrix evaded her question and threw out a new one.
Ashley became even more puzzled and responded to his gaze, questioning, "Did you know me before?"
Hendrix said, "On the first day of freshman, you were dragging a purple suitcase, wearing a beige dress with white sneakers. You had long hair with a side bang and a white crossbody bag. It seemed like your dad brought you here in a black Audi, quite low-key."
Ashley didn't have any impression of her appearance that day, but as he said it, it seemed to align with her past preferences. She was dumbfounded. "Did we go to the same university?" she asked, curiously.
Hendrix said, "No, I graduated from law school and just came to visit that day."
Ashley forcefully erased the idea of love at first sight from her mind and casually replied, "Okay."
Hendrix continued eating and said, "Do you know there's a legend about your school from back then?"
Ashley scooped corn porridge into her bowl and asked, "What is it?"
"I came to your school because I heard that legend. I can't remember the exact words, but it says that among the new students, there was a beauty even more stunning than the girls from the art department, and she was also very talented, studying law."
Ashley finished her corn porridge and looked up at him, saying, "Huh?"
Hendrix took a sip of corn porridge and swallowed it, saying, "You don't have to look. I'm talking about you."
