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"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Just now, another hot guy was here staring at that painting again. Maybe that painting attracts hot guys," she said with a laugh.

"What did he look like? Was he tall with light blond hair and blue eyes?" I asked rapidly as I put my hand up above my head to indicate Hayden’s height.

"Yup, I think so…" she replied as she rubbed her chin in thought.

"Where is he now?" I asked immediately.

"Too bad you missed him. He left already; he should be out of the building by now…" she said.

I didn’t listen to her until the end once again. I knew that it was a long shot, but I decided to run after him. If he was headed to the exit of the building, then he must have gone this way…

At the end, after looking everywhere that I could think of, I couldn’t find Hayden. Deflated, I returned to the painting of my grandmother again. It wasn’t surprising that I couldn’t find him. That was simply because he didn’t want to be found. He came all the way to my exhibition, but he decided to avoid me completely.

If Ethan was right and Hayden’s men were watching me then he clearly chose the time when I was away with Ethan to come and see my work.

Why won’t he see me?

…

A few days later the exhibition came to an end without any further noteworthy incidents. The feedback that I received were positive enough and surprisingly, I had a few job offers for painting commissions.

Overall, it was the perfect way to wrap up my university career and open up a door for me to become a professional artist.

A day after the end of the exhibition, I got an unexpected call from my university professor. I was on my way back from teaching at the art school when my phone rang. Rumbling through the contents of my bag, I finally found my phone and quickly answered the call.

"Malissa, your professor here," the professor said in a friendly voice.

"Oh, hello…" I replied, unsure of what he wanted.

"You don’t have to sound so worried. I’m calling about some good news. You see, a bid came in for that painting of your grandmother that you displayed as the centerpiece for your exhibition," the professor said.

"Really? Someone wanted to buy it?" I asked in disbelief.

Of course, I was happy that someone wanted to buy my artwork; however, I had very mixed feeling about selling that painting in particular.

"Yes. The bid is also outrageously high. Like sky high…" the professor continued.

"How much is the offer?" I asked, not expecting very much.

"10 million dollars…" he stated.

"…What?!" I exclaimed so loudly that the passerby on the sidewalk gave me funny looks.

I nodded my head to signal that I was sorry before I clutched my phone tighter in my hand.

"That’s the reaction I first had too…not that I’m saying that your painting isn’t worth 10 million dollars though. It’s art, the value depends on the buyer…" the professor said, sounding impressed.

"Do you know who the bidder is?" I asked.

"Unfortunately, the one who submitted the bid is an agency acting on behalf of the bidder and they’re not willing to disclose the identity of the bidder…" the professor said.

"I see. Thank you for helping me out," I thanked him.

"Will you sell it, Malissa?" he asked.

"I’m sorry but I’m not sure. It is a painting of my grandmother and she’s…you know…" I said before trailing off. The professor knew about my grandmother being in the hospital because of her illness.

"I can understand," he said softly.

"I’ll think about it…" I said.

"No problem. Let me know when you’ve decided so that I can get back to the agency," the professor said understandingly.

"Thank you very much, Professor," I said.

"No problem. Have a great day," he said brightly before hanging up.

I stared at the phone in my hand for a long time after the line had disconnected. My mind was just too busy thinking that I couldn’t concentrate on anything else. I just stood there in a daze in the middle of the sidewalk. Although the professor didn’t know who the bidder was, I think I had a pretty good and accurate idea of who it might be.

Hayden…what are you trying to do?

It wasn’t money that I wanted or needed. Everything that he had given me has been left untouched. I was far from wealthy but with the job that I have, I can scrape by. His father is still paying for my grandmother’s hospital bills and that was more than I could ever ask for. It was then that I made up my mind not to sell the painting. I mean, 10 million dollars is just too much.

Plus, it wasn’t his money that I wanted…

…

**A Week Later**

It’s been raining quite often these days and on days when it didn’t, the sky seemed so gloomy and void of its usual rich blue color. The cloud in the sky looked grey and dirty instead of its usual puffy white. Overall, the weather made me feel very depressed. Looking back on it, perhaps I was already depressed and was blaming it illogically on the weather.

Ever since turning down the offer to buy the painting of my grandmother, I felt more relieved. I had expected Hayden to make some kind of move to get in contact with me, but he didn’t. Roughly a week went by with nothing from him, and I wondered if I was still being watched by his men. Then I realized that I probably was.

Lately, Hayden had been on my mind almost all the time and I was finding it hard to concentrate on other things.

--To be continued…