Don't Be a Tease, Mr. Blackwood

Ethan Austin stood there stubbornly, refusing to budge.

Since he refused to leave, Nina Halloway had no choice but to ignore him.

"This bodyguard of yours is quite devoted. I’m impressed."

Leon Grant remarked thoughtfully.

Nina Halloway forced a smile. "He’ll be leaving in a minute."

"It’s fine. I’ll just lose him in the car later. We can’t have him disturbing our private time."

Nina Halloway’s heart sank with a flicker of unease, but she stood by her decision.

’If I can confirm Leon Grant isn’t the Masked Man, I’ll at least have helped the police rule out a suspect. And if he *is* the Masked Man, with plainclothes officers following us, he won’t be able to do anything to me.’

’Either way, this trip wouldn’t be a waste of effort.’

Ethan Austin knew what was going through her mind, but it didn’t ease his worries.

He stood guard until the two of them finished their meal, and Leon Grant went downstairs first to pay the bill.

In the private room, Nina Halloway unhurriedly put on her overcoat, hat, and mask. While buttoning her coat, she said to him, "Don’t worry. You can head back first."

"Absolutely not."

"Ethan, the police suspect Leon Grant. With Jaden missing, they’ve definitely sent people to watch Leon, there’s no doubt about it. Don’t worry, there won’t be any danger."

"Maybe."

"Alright, go home. Don’t follow me."

Nina Halloway finished buttoning her coat and grabbed the handle of the private room’s door. Just as she was about to open it, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her from behind.

She froze for a moment, glancing down at the hands clasped around her waist.

Ethan Austin held her tightly from behind, his chin resting in the crook of her shoulder. His voice was softer than usual. "Can’t you just not go?"

"No."

"You just can’t let Jaden go, can you?"

"It’s not about letting him go. I’m afraid if this drags on any longer, Jaden might not survive."

After what happened with Sean Wright, she was terrified something would happen to Jaden.

"Investigating cases and catching criminals is the police’s job. You don’t have to put yourself in danger."

"I know, but Jaden... is different."

A sudden, sharp pang of jealousy pierced Ethan Austin’s heart. "He’s different, so what about me?"

’That night, she got drunk, pounced on me, and stole my first kiss, and then she just acted like nothing happened...’

"Heartbreaker."

Nina Halloway’s eyes widened. "Who are you talking about?"

"Give me back my first kiss."

"What are you talking about? What first kiss?"

’Weren’t they talking about Jaden? How did the conversation suddenly jump to first kisses?’

"I still have my first kiss, why are you asking me for one?"

Nina Halloway had no memory of that night at all and thought Ethan Austin was being completely baffling.

"Like hell you do."

"..."

"Did you forget what you said? That you wanted me to be your boyfriend?"

Nina Halloway’s cheeks flushed. "I didn’t forget, but it’s not like you said yes!"

"If I say yes now, will you not go with Leon Grant?"

"I can’t."

"Nina Halloway..."

"Don’t you use my full name."

"..."

"Let go."

"I’m not letting go. If you keep being this stubborn, believe me, I’ll knock you out and carry you home."

"You wouldn’t dare!"

Oh, but Ethan Austin would dare.

The worst that could happen was Nina Halloway waking up tomorrow and slapping him a couple of times to vent her anger.

"You’re coming back with me right now, or I’ll have to get rough."

He was trying to reason with Nina Halloway when the door to the private room was pushed open by Leon Grant, who had returned after paying the bill.

Seeing his arms around Nina Halloway’s waist in an intimate embrace, Leon Grant’s eyes darkened. He grabbed Nina Halloway’s arm and pulled her toward him.

Before Ethan Austin could pull her back, Nina Halloway said harshly, "Ethan, stop messing around."

"You go home right now, and don’t you dare follow me."

Her tone was grave, and her eyes held a cold finality that allowed for no argument.

After giving her orders, she followed Leon Grant out.

The corner of Leon Grant’s lips curled into a triumphant smile. He smoothly took Nina Halloway’s hand and linked her arm with his. "Your little bodyguard is interesting. Is he in love with you?"

"No. He’s just doing his job."

After leaving the restaurant and getting into the car with Leon Grant, Nina Halloway saw Ethan Austin standing at the entrance, glaring at the vehicle she was in.

She looked away and let Leon Grant drive off.

Through the rearview mirror, she saw a van that had been parked across from the restaurant start up and begin tailing them.

’That must be the plainclothes officers Leon mentioned.’

"You haven’t opened your gift yet. Open it now." Leon Grant handed her a gift box.

It was the gift Leon Grant had given her back in the private room.

Before going downstairs to pay, Leon Grant, afraid she would forget it, had tucked the box into his own coat pocket. He was now taking it out again, reminding her to open it.

Her attention was drawn back, so she went ahead and opened the gift box.

Inside was a pair of beautiful pearl earrings.

"Do you like them?"

She gave a perfunctory nod, uninterested in the earrings, her gaze drifting back to the rearview mirror.

The van was still following them. Besides that, Ethan Austin had also started his car and was now following them too.

Leon Grant had noticed Ethan Austin long ago but didn’t seem to care. He drove at a leisurely pace, making no effort to lose the cars behind him. Instead, he pulled up to a nearby villa that he owned.

The villa had been unoccupied for a long time. Piles of fallen leaves lay in the courtyard, and the heavy, fluttering snow had covered the ground in a layer of blinding white.

He parked the car, led Nina Halloway into the villa, and took her straight to the basement.

The iron door opened, revealing a completely empty room.

It was cold, damp, and utterly bare.

Nina Halloway confirmed it wasn’t the basement where she had been held captive and immediately turned to leave.

After leaving the basement, she checked all the rooms on the first and second floors. The place had clearly never been lived in. It had only basic renovations, and some rooms didn’t even have curtains installed.

"Do you want to keep looking?" Leon Grant asked.

"Yes."

"Let’s go, then."

Leon Grant was surprisingly patient. Through the swirling snow, he drove her to every single one of the detached villas he owned, but none of them had a basement that matched her memory.

None of them were a match.

"Besides these three villas, I also have apartments and luxury condos to my name. If you want to see them, I can take you right now."

Nina Halloway was a little disappointed. "That’s not necessary."

"Do you believe I’m not the Masked Man now?"

Nina Halloway didn’t answer.

’What if Leon Grant had other, hidden properties? Or what if the place she was held wasn’t his property at all, just some abandoned building?’

’She couldn’t completely rule out Leon Grant as a suspect. A strange intuition told her that he was, in fact, the Masked Man.’

"Can you let Jaden go?"

"It’s really over between him and me. We have no relationship anymore."

"If you let him go, I can agree to date you."

Hearing Nina Halloway’s pleading voice, Leon Grant stuffed his hands into his coat pockets, his lips pressed into a tight line. He said nothing.

He realized that even after taking her on this grand tour, he still hadn’t dispelled her suspicions. He was furious, especially because she was begging him for Jaden’s sake, using ’dating’ him as a bargaining chip.

’He wanted her, wanted to date her, but he didn’t want it as a handout.’

"Nina, I hope you can fall in love with me for real, not bargain with me for the sake of someone who isn’t worth it. Besides, I’m not the Masked Man. I don’t know where Jaden is, so I can’t ’let him go’ as you say. And I’m not one to take advantage of a crisis."