The man looked completely serious.
"I'm sorry, I must've been possessed last night or something. I have no idea why I would do those things…" Joanna's cheeks were still flushed. She didn't dare to look directly at Ace. Her voice was soft.
"If you don't mind, we can just pretend nothing ever happened. I'll pay you compensation, and you delete that footage. What do you say?"
Ace retorted. "Do I look like I need any more money?"
"Nope!"
"So give up on that thought. You should think about how you can compensate me in other ways instead. Otherwise, I won't be deleting this any time soon," Ace said in a nonchalant tone.
"What else can I possibly compensate you with? Don't get greedy here!" Joanna sat up, warning Ace.
"I'll be honest with you. I have a video of your antics while you were drunk too! If you dare to leak that footage, don't blame me for doing the same! We'll just have to go down together then!"
Ace seemed to yield to her threats, and he didn't push her any further.
Hence, the two tidied themselves up, trying hard to forget about everything that happened last night.
"But, honestly, I'm pretty curious as to what happened to me. Why would I have done such ridiculous things?" Joanna scratched the back of her head, confused.
Ace raised an eyebrow and replied, "It's likely due to the soup."
"The soup?'
"I suspect that the soup contained a certain type of mushroom that could cause hallucinations if large amounts are consumed. Since you had so much last night, you were probably hallucinating all those little people… the weed… the jelly."
"That's not right. Didn't you have some too? You seemed fine, though?"
"I only took a few sips."
"Then why were you hallucinating with me by the end of the footage?"
"Why else?" Ace glanced at her coldly. "The kiss lasted too long."
'Uhm!" Joanna's face flushed red instantly, and she covered her face again. She really wished she had a way to disappear right there and then.
Ace then started the engine and drove off, the fleeting scenery visible on both sides of the windows.
He then observed the woman in the back through the rearview mirror, suddenly asking, "Hey, uh… What did you mean by that just now?"
"What?"
'You said something about your stomach, and how you couldn't believe I'd still do that to you…" Ace paused, as his gaze turned sharp.
"So what happened to your stomach?"
"Oh, that…" Joanna gulped, her eyes darting around as she came up with a bad excuse. "Don't you see how chubby I've become? How could you still be attracted to this?"
"So that's what you mean." Ace let out a sigh of relief. He thought something was growing within Joanna's belly, especially since paparazzi had once captured her and Liam meeting a gynecologist to prepare for pregnancy.
"You really have become quite chubby. You could lose a few pounds."
"Hey!" Joanna huffed, but couldn't retort in the slightest. All she could do was angrily glare out the window.
Noticing the unfamiliar scenery, she leaned back and anxiously asked the man, "Where… are you taking me?"
Ace remained silent; lips pursed as he focused on the road.
The car lumbered towards a ring road, with the vast blue sea surrounding both sides of the road. Everything seemed especially bright and cheery.
However, Joanna found this quite terrifying, not daring to move a single muscle. She wondered, "What is he doing bringing me to the seaside? Is he still holding a grudge against me for biting his lips last night? Is he trying to murder me and throw my corpse into the sea?"
"Hey, Ace, calm down! Don't resort to such extremes, okay?" Joanna said, sounding as if she was trying to manipulate her victim.
"I know I may have been inappropriate to you, but I didn't mean to! You're out here looking like a whole snack, and you were dressed so sexily!"
"You looked like an incubus, honestly! I just made a mistake that any other woman would make! So please just forgive me, just this once!"
"I promise I'll never make the same mistake ever again! I won't ever bite you even if you did everything to seduce me!"
Ace's handsome face was initially expressionless, but hearing her made him chuckle lightly. "So, according to your logic, I can bite you however I wish, as long as I view you as a snack? And I don't even have to take responsibility for it?"
"No way!" Joanna spoke in a justified tone. "I did it by accident! But if you did it, you would have been plotting it all along! So, in the face of the law, you'd be committing a crime, while I'd be innocent!"
Ace was speechless, realizing just how bizarre this woman was. She was clearly holding a double standard in this case and was starting a blind argument.
As the two continued with their banter, they soon arrived at the most famous church within the City. It was located in the middle of the ocean, with a blue roof and white walls. With that, it looked extremely beautiful and romantic from afar, with the sea complementing its colors.
Normally, the church wasn't open to the public, so newlyweds who were able to hold their wedding in such a place would naturally have to be of rich families.
It was rumored that if the couple exchanged rings before sunset, they would receive the blessing of the sea goddess. Their fates would then be bound forever, and they would be able to spend the rest of their married lives peacefully.
The luxurious car was pulled into the church's front parking lot, after which both Ace and Joanna got out.
"Christopher and Cecilia's wedding is today, isn't it? Didn't he invite you too? Let's go together then." Ace said, striding forward with his hands in his pockets.
After taking a few steps, he noticed that Joanna wasn't following behind. Instead, she was staring at the majestic building with a gloomy face.
"Why aren't you coming?" Ace turned back to ask the woman.
"You should head in first. We're divorced, remember? It would affect our reputations negatively if we showed up together." Joanna replied indifferently.
Only now did she realize how far apart she was from Ace. Their emotional void wasn't about to decrease in an instant just because they had spent one peaceful night together.
She had once naively imagined holding her wedding in this church with the man she loved back then. She wished to exchange rings right before sunset, receiving the blessings of the sea goddess.
However, despite being the bride, she had absolutely no say in her own wedding, as the Aces made all arrangements.
In the end, the wedding was held in a five-star banquet hall. It was indeed very luxurious and generous of them, but it was too plain. That wasn't her dream wedding at all.
Many viewed her as a rich little lady who had fallen from grace, an accessory that married itself into the Ace family. They thought she was just a soulless puppet, and what she would have wanted naturally never crossed their minds.
She never wanted to return to that life, to be ignored all over again. Thus, she made sure to stay clear- minded at all times and to distance herself from Ace.
"Reputation?" Ace raised a brow, his expression conflicted. I let out a cold scoff and said, "Fine, do what you want."
The church was amazingly decorated, with pink roses lined along both sides of the red carpet.
Christopher's family was rather renowned within the city, after all. Despite not being within the Great Eight, the Great Eight themselves would usually show quite some respect towards them regardless.
Undoubtedly, many rich and powerful guests were present. These were individuals who could even steal the spotlight away from famous celebrities.