Ariana Looked at it without thinking when she heard the sound and saw that it was from Adrian.

Ariana, with a heart of respect for Theodore's privacy, decided not to answer the phone, leaving it for him to answer when he returned. The incessant ringing ceased after a while, leading her to believe that whatever it was could not be that urgent.

Just as she was about to leave, the phone sprung to life again, this time as a persistent video call from Adrian.

Anxiety seemed to be gripping Adrian, evident from his relentless calling. Ariana hesitated before finally succumbing to answer, switching to a voice call.

Before she could utter a word, Adrian's voice boomed, “At last, you answered!"

Ariana, quick to intervene, coughed twice and said, "My apologies, Mr. Perkins, but Theodore isn't here at the moment. I can certainly pass on any message you have."

The other end of the Line fell into a peculiar silence.

Curiously, Ariana stared at the phone screen and murmured, “Is the connection poor?”

Adrian, appearing to snap out of his thoughts, coughed awkwardly and said, "Oh, it's nothing urgent. I just wanted to discuss a project with him. I'LL call him later. Oh, by the way, how are you feeling now? Take good care of yourself. I need to get to something right now. I must go now, but I'll talk to him later."

With those words, Adrian abruptly hung up the phone.

“Huh?" Ariana wanted to say more, but the screen locked automatically, preventing her from accessing the phone without the password.

In the meantime, Theodore returned and found Ariana holding his phone, which he usually used to handle BRD Group's affairs. His heart skipped a beat, but he maintained a facade of calmness and approached her.

Ariana quickly explained, “Adrian called you twice in a row. I thought it might be something urgent, so I answered it. I hope you don't mind."

“That's fine!" Theodore replied with a slight nod, taking the phone from her. Ariana saw this as an opportunity to ask him about Adrian.

“Why are you so closely involved with Adrian? I remember meeting him at the Anderson Group too," she inquired.

Theodore paused for a moment, torn between telling the truth or not.

Considering her upcoming surgery, he decided to wait until after the surgery, as the doctor had advised him to protect her from any form of stress if he wanted everything to go smoothly.

He would then reveal everything to her and introduce her to the Fredrick family and his grandfather, aiming for a relationship free of secrets from then onward.

For now, he answered, "It's just some business dealings with him. We're not as close."

“By the way, do you know Holden Fredrick?" Ariana held Theodore's arm and, undeterred, asked.