Alexander's POV
The study was silent.
Several documents lay spread across my desk.
Reports.
Investment proposals.
Business updates.
Normally, I could finish reviewing them in less than an hour.
Today, I couldn't focus on a single word.
My thoughts kept drifting back to the scene downstairs.
Aiden sitting beside Alicia.
Peeling an apple for her.
Making her laugh.
Making her smile.
A genuine smile.
The kind I hadn't seen in days.
The lifelessness that had haunted her eyes ever since Nana's death had eased, if only slightly.
I had spent days trying to pull her out of that darkness.
Days trying to make her eat.
Trying to talk to her.
Trying to comfort her.
Yet none of it had worked.
Aiden had managed to do it in less than an hour.
I leaned back against the chair and closed my eyes.
A bitter feeling settled in my chest.
It wasn't that I disliked Aiden.
And it's not like I liked him too.
But I was grateful he had helped Alicia.
