The next few days at L&X were busy.
Lia buried herself in meetings, designing late into the night, trying to drown the hollow ache inside her heart with work.
Ryan didn't call.
Ryan didn't care.
And Lia—she forced herself not to care either.
One morning, as she entered her office, Lia noticed a small package on her desk.
There was no name, no card—only a beautifully wrapped box tied with a silver ribbon.
Curious, she opened it.
Inside was a sketchbook—the kind artists and designers used—with her name "Lianxu" embossed delicately on the cover.
The paper was premium, perfect for her designs. Attached to it was a single note, handwritten in clean, elegant strokes:
> "For the dreams you will create even when life tries to break you."
For a long moment, Lia just stared at the words.
Her chest tightened painfully.
It was such a small gesture—but it felt like someone had seen her... really seen her.
"Who sent this?" she asked her assistant.
The assistant shrugged. "It was delivered anonymously this morning, ma'am."
Lia smiled faintly and placed the sketchbook carefully on her desk, feeling strangely warm inside.
She didn't know it yet, but from afar, through glass walls and passing corridors, Adrian Wei watched her.
He had seen her in that first meeting—not just her face, but the invisible scars she carried.
And he knew one thing:
He didn't want to heal her scars.
He just wanted to walk beside her, silently—until she smiled again.