“What?” Vinson was put in utter shock by Arielle’s words and instantly sobered up. He asked frantically.
“Where are you now? Are you all right?”
Arielle gripped the phone tighter in her hand and replied, “I’m doing fine at home. He only hacked my
computer this time and didn’t harm me.”
“I’m glad to know you’re okay.” Vinson let out a relieved sigh and asked, “So, why did he hack your
computer?”
Fearing the hacker was listening in on the phone call as well, Arielle did not answer him immediately.
She paused for a moment before saying, “When are you free to meet up? I’ll tell you when we see each
other in person.”
“I’m going to your place right now.”
“Don’t. Our house is quite messy today. How about visit you instead? Where are you now?”
“I’m at Maplelake Manor. You were here yesterday, remember?”
“All right. I’ll meet you there.” as she stepped into the mansion.
Vinson led Arielle toward the dining hall and suggested, “Let’s have our meal before we discuss what
happened. Health is the most important after all.”
Arielle was moved and wanted to thank him for his thoughtfulness, but before she could show her
appreciation, Vinson continued, “I’m just concerned about falling sick myself. I didn’t cook this for you
on purpose, got it?”
After hearing Vinson’s forced explanation, Arielle swallowed her words instantaneously and kept quiet.
She realized he was simply too embarrassed to admit his concern for others, so she didn’t say much as
she slowly finished the ravioli he had prepared.
Arielle was a fast eater and finished her plate of food quickly. She then diverted her attention to Vinson,
who was still eating his food.
This was the first time she had observed Vinson’s eating style with no distractions, and she was
pleasantly surprised by how gracefully he exhibited his proper table
Maplelake Manor was even more beautiful during the day than it had been when Arielle first visited last
night. Lush maple trees surrounded the compound, creating a splendid city jungle.
Yet, Arielle was too engaged in her thoughts to admire the scenery and entered the mansion as soon
as she saw Vinson.
Vinson greeted Arielle while still in his pajamas, his hair unkempt.
He had stayed up late working the night before, so he had planned to sleep in the next day. However,
Arielle’s call that informed him she had become the mysterious man’s target jolted Vinson awake. Not
only did his drowsiness vanish in the blink of an eye, but he was also too worried about Arielle’s
wellbeing to take care of his appearance.
Although Vinson wasn’t in the mood to tidy up, he still got a hold of himself and cooked Arielle some
ravioli before her arrival.
Hence, Arielle was welcomed by two warm plates of ravioli on the dining table as soon
Arielle nodded and elaborated on the security measures she had put in place to prevent the hackers
from hijacking her system again.
“Good job, Arielle!” Vinson praised her quick-wittedness and continued, “This time, I will surely find this
man and punish him for what he did!”
“I hope so too.” Honestly, she was more worried that the man would track her down in real life rather
than try to hack into her computer again.
Apparently, Vinson shared the same concern as her as he offered, “I’ll hire a bodyguard to protect you.
I won’t let that man hurt you.”
“I’ve found myself a bodyguard. You don’t have to worry about my safety.” Arielle paused briefly before
continuing, “There’s something else I have to tell you.”
Vinson recalled Arielle’s reason for not meeting at her house and soon realized there might be another
truth behind it, so he asked, “What happened back home?”
With her lips pursed, Arielle mumbled manners. It was as if Arielle was watching a duke enjoying a
delectable full-course meal.
Vinson sensed Arielle’s gaze and lifted his eyes to glance at her, which caused the latter to look away
awkwardly.
Luckily, Vinson didn’t tease her like how he did last night. He merely increased his speed of eating,
then began the discussion with Arielle about the serious matters on his mind.
“So, what happened to your family? Also, what did that man do after hacking into your
computer?” Vinson inquired.
Arielle answered truthfully, “That man wants me to join his team and promised to contact me in three
days.”
Somewhat startled by the response, Vinson lifted one brow and commented, “He appears to be
interested in your hacking abilities.”
“I’ve set up a customized firewall on my computer. It can perform reverse tracking on the attackers’ IP
addresses if they try to invade my computer system in the future.” softly, “Shandie is dead.”
“What?” Vinson’s eyes widened in surprise, then he frowned. “Is this case related to that man?”
Arielle was momentarily stunned by his response and chuckled. “I assumed you’d immediately suspect
me in causing Shandie’s death.”
Vinson shook his head in disagreement and instinctively replied, “I know you’re not that kind of person.”
At that moment, Arielle’s heart was filled with a warm and fuzzy feeling.
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