Suddenly, his deep magnetic voice fell into her ears, without any trace of waves. Ava Sterling paused, then turned her head to look at the person beside her. He was holding his phone, eyes fixed ahead, the light in the car was dim, she couldn’t see his expression. Was he... talking to her? Ava looked at the driver in front who showed no reaction, then at this person, and something quickly flashed through her mind, bringing sudden clarity. "Was that Sister Wei on the phone just now?" She had left her phone at home. If someone called her, Sister Wei, being meticulous, would naturally tell this person to inform her. Thinking of this, a smile immediately appeared on Ava’s face. Sister Wei was really great. Hearing the correct answer, Ava’s smile widened: "Who called?" In fact, she wasn’t curious at all about who called her. After all, she couldn’t work in her current situation, and if it wasn’t work-related, it was something private, which she needn’t care about. So she asked casually, not caring in the least. His thin lips clearly uttered these two words, and the atmosphere in the car seemed to quieten with them, even the temperature seemed to drop. Ava’s smile instantly froze. She looked at him as he kept his eyes fixed ahead, not looking at her at all. Just then, a light flickered across the car, and she clearly saw his face. Cold and devoid of any warmth. While in the Maldives, she had thought of properly explaining to him her relationship with Jace Kingsley to avoid any misunderstanding, but one thing after another happened, and she forgot. Now it seems, it’s just the right time. No matter what he thought at the moment, since he mentioned that name, she would seize this opportunity to clearly talk about her and Jace Kingsley’s relationship. With this in mind, Ava suddenly placed a firm, powerful hand on Poe Vaughn’s shoulder. Poe Vaughn froze, then turned his eyes to look at her. Ava’s expression was serious, solemn, and incredibly earnest: "Do you think there’s something going on between Jace Kingsley and me?" "Let me tell you, you’re mistaken!" "Jace and I are completely innocent, there’s nothing between us, we are just friends, good friends, don’t misunderstand us like some brainless men." "You’re so smart, I believe you definitely wouldn’t think that way!" Ava originally intended to clearly explain her friendship with Jace Kingsley, but somehow, what she said came out wrong. He really was incredibly smart, and with such an intelligent mind, logically, he wouldn’t mindlessly consider her and Jace Kingsley in that way. And frankly, for someone of his stature, investigating a person would be too easy. If she really had something with Jace, would he still be calmly sitting with her in a car? With that thought, Ava became more certain. However, some things still needed to be said and clarified. "Even though you’re very smart and capable and won’t misunderstand us, I still feel it’s necessary to explain, as a responsibility to you." "I met Jace Kingsley two months ago, coincidentally on the same day I rolled around with you at Crestwood Manor." "He was introduced to me by my mom as a potential partner, but after getting to know him, he wasn’t. According to him, he had known me before from when he was a teenager, I once helped him, he’s always remembered me, and it’s that kind of love at first sight thing." Ava didn’t hold back at all and just said it directly. But after saying it, she vaguely felt that something seemed off, that saying it might lead to misunderstanding. So she paused, watching him. Poe Vaughn’s finger lightly tapped, and the partition in the car slowly raised. Ava realized there was another person in the car, and what she had just said was indeed not good for a third person to hear. Clearing her throat a little awkwardly, Ava looked at his face. The lighting in the car was poor, and even if it had been better, she wouldn’t have been able to read his thoughts. So she simply didn’t look anymore and continued, "I have no romantic feelings for him, and I can’t recall what he mentioned either, so I told him my thoughts at the time, to let him..." Ava was about to continue, not expecting him to interrupt her, quite abruptly. Ava froze, taking a closer look at him. He had already turned his gaze forward, his face hidden in the dimness, becoming even more inscrutable. Uh, did he want to know specifically? That’s not impossible. So, Ava directly said, "I don’t get married, I am a non-marital person. I can date, but I won’t marry, so he shouldn’t set his sights on me." "Jace Kingsley is a particularly good person, he understands me well, saying we can be friends. And my mom is quite troublesome, she introduced Jace to me. If I don’t get acquainted with him, she’d surely cause trouble again." "I don’t want to be tangled by my mom, and Jace is indeed an excellent person, I thought we could be friends, so I asked him to help handle my mom, which he did, and she hasn’t bothered me since." "He truly considers me a friend, and I sincerely consider him a friend too, although at first, I hoped for his help." "But now, I genuinely see him as a good friend, very sincerely." "So, please don’t misunderstand us, and don’t overthink." "Even if you think Jace Kingsley has feelings for me, you can rest assured, Jace is a very gentle person and particularly considerate." "He told me his true feelings, he does want to be with me, but I clearly told him that it is impossible between us now, we can be friends, but not lovers." "He respects me, didn’t force me, nor did he make things difficult for me. He remains friends with me, not doing anything inappropriate, he truly is very good." "Even if you don’t believe it, you can certainly trust my contractual spirit." "We have signed a contract, I will definitely uphold it, and I won’t disgrace you by cuckolding you" "Even if I ever have something with Jace Kingsley, it will only be after our contract ends and we divorce." "You can be 100% assured of that!" Ava solemnly finished saying all these things, without a pause, and she wasn’t the least bit guilty. She wasn’t someone who hides her feelings, especially since she hadn’t done anything wrong, why should she feel guilty? Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn noᴠelfire.net Of course, she would never speak of these matters to others, but to this person, her partner, especially since he was suspicious, she had to clarify to him. This was a responsibility to both parties. Poe Vaughn listened to the words beside him, his finger tapping lightly on the phone. And when he heard Ava say those final words, his finger paused.