By the time Ann arrived at the car park outside her office, Tae-Joon was already there waiting for her. He opened the car door for her before turning to get into his own seat.
"I'm not a lesbian, and neither am I bisexual," Ann announced the moment the doors were shut.
"That was quite direct," Tae-Joon said with an awkward smile.
"I'm sorry I misunderstood your relationship with her. You just seemed so into her... so I just assumed.." He said, allowing his words to trail off with a shrug.
"You could have asked me," Ann pointed out. Since he was bent on marrying Grace because of both their family backgrounds, she was just going to act like Grace and not allow her emotions to get in the way.
"Yes, I should have done that. I'm sorry," Tae-Joon apologized remorsefully.
"It's fine. Let's just go have lunch," Ann said before looking out of the window.
"Alright. How are you feeling? You had hangover drugs or soup?" Tae-Joon asked, glancing at her briefly before driving off.
"I'm okay. Yes, I took drugs. Thanks for coming over last night," Ann said reluctantly.
The car was awfully quiet as he drove, making him suddenly regret talking to her father about her. Maybe if he hadn't done that, they would still be getting along really well.
"So, how's work going?" Tae-Joon asked, trying to break the silence.
"Not bad. I was finally able to help Gra... I mean, I was able to get some foreign investors to invest in our new line of lingerie," Ann said with a proud smile.
"Oh! That's great. Congratulations," Tae-Joon said, turning to smile at her.
"Thanks," She said, smiling genuinely at him.
"Grace, I really want to make this work... Especially since after your accident, I've come to really like you, and I think we might be able to get along just well," Tae-Joon said as he pulled up the car in front of a restaurant.
"Then let's make it work. But on one condition," Ann said.
"What?" Tae-Joon asked curiously.
"You can't run off to complain to my father or your grandfather over everything you don't like. You will have to talk to me first before doing something of that nature," Ann said with an unreadable expression.
"I promise not to do that again," Tae-Joon said, crossing his hand over his chest before getting out of the car to open her door.
"Okay then. We will get along just fine," Ann said, slipping her hands into his as they walked into the restaurant.
**************
Chairman Jiang's driver pulled up the car in front of Mrs. Shu's restaurant. "You're sure this is the place he told you?" Chairman Jiang asked his driver to be sure he had received the right address from Grace's driver.
"Yes, sir," The driver nodded in confirmation.
"Okay, I'll be out soon," Chairman Jiang said before stepping out of his car.
He briskly walked into the mini restaurant and sat in one of the empty seats nearest to the window.
Sara quickly walked up to him when he signaled her over. "Good day, sir. What can I get you?" She asked politely.
"Can I speak with you for a moment? That's if you don't mind," Chairman Jiang said.
"Is there a problem?" Mrs. Shu asked with a frown when she overheard Chairman Jiang's request.
"Not at all. It's about Ann. Ann Peters," Chairman Jiang quickly added, making Mrs. Shu walk over to his table.
"I'm her guardian. You should talk to me instead," Mrs. Shu said, dismissing Sara, who walked away to attend to others.
"Oh! You must be Mrs. Shu?" He asked, remembering the name Grace called during her phone call with Ann in his office.
"Yes, I am. And you are?" Mrs. Shu asked curiously.
"I'm Chairman Jiang, Grace's father. My daughter employed your ward," He told her and smiled when her eyes widened in recognition.
"Oh! You're welcome, sir. How is her health? Has she recovered fully?" Mrs. Shu asked with a concerned voice.
"Yes. She is fine," He assured her.
"So, to what do we owe this visit? I hope Ann isn't misbehaving?" Mrs. Shu asked with a worried frown. Why else would he come looking for her guardians? Or was that something he did to his other staff, too? She wondered.
"Relax, ma'am. Ann is a very good girl, and that is why I'm here. I just want to learn more about her without her knowledge," He explained.
"Oh! I see. For a moment there, I thought you were going to complain about the way she zones out or the way she talks about CEO Wang Tae-Joon. I hope she isn't causing trouble for your daughter and her fiancee?" She asked curiously, making Sara, who was eavesdropping, glare at her.
"She zones out? What is her business with CEO Wang Tae-Joon?" He asked curiously. Had she been telling the truth when she said she had always been in love with Wang Tae-Joon?
"Just a bad habit of hers. She sometimes daydreams about being with him and gets lost. See, I'm not trying to bad-mouth her or anything. Ann is a very lovely girl. I'm just telling you this, so you understand in case she does something like that," Mrs. Shu told him quickly.
"I see. What about her parents? She says she is an orphan?" He asked.
"Yes, they died some years ago. She has been under my care since then," Mrs. Shu said with a solemn expression on her face.
"What about her grandparents, uncles? Or aunties?" He asked again.
"Her father was a drifter until he met her mother. I know nothing about his family. While her mother was disowned by her family years ago when she married him. I doubt they know about Ann's existence or if they even care... at least, that was what Mag told me. I mean Ann's mother," Mrs. Shu said sadly.
"Can you tell me a bit about the accident Ann was involved in?" He asked and listened as she told him all about it and the strange way she had acted initially.
"Hmm, I see. I should allow you to get back to what you were doing. Thanks for the information... I will take good care of her," He promised before standing up.
"And if there is any way I can help, I would love to, so please do not hesitate to call me if you need something. You're Ann's family, and as of now, Ann's family is my family, too," Chairman Jiang said, handing her his complementary card before taking his leave.
He needed no further proof to know that Ann had been telling the truth about everything. Now he had to figure out how to help both girls. He wanted only the best for his daughter but not at the expense of anyone else.
He still did not understand what had happened nor why the swap had taken place, but he could tell a higher force was at play, and it probably had to do with Ann's feelings for Wang Tae-Joon since that was the only link between them.
He decided the best action to take would be no action. He would just watch from the side to see what was going to happen and then step in if things took an ugly turn. That would be the sane thing to do, he told himself.