182 Wang Wei???

Jia Li assured Karim that she would visit them soon and disconnected the call after a couple of minutes of conversation.

Her traitorous heart decided to act up right then and reminded her about the loneliness surrounding her. She argued with it and told herself that she was happier this way but the heart kept mocking her the entire time she took, to get ready for work.

She had found a place to live in one of the tiny one room studios at Covent Garden. Though it was terribly cramped, with no place to even cook, she was happy with the location. It was not overly expensive and was close enough to the workplace. Like every day, she got onto the Tube to go to the Hyde Park station. By now, she was familiar with the local transport and its rush hours.

Due to the delay caused by her wandering thoughts, she found herself in one of the crowded trains this morning. As she struggled to hold onto the hanging rails for balance, someone brushed past her almost knocking her down. The man turned to apologise but didn't make eye contact. After a hurried apology, he got off at the Piccadilly Circus station.

Jia Li stared at his retreating back, badly tempted to call out his name. She had been so shocked to see him there that she couldn't react for the first few seconds and then it was too late.

What was Wang Wei doing here???

Wei was terribly late for his appointment. Behaving like a local tourist had nearly jeopardised it. He had been trying to get an appointment with this particular doctor for nearly a month now. Why the hell had he decided to hop onto the Tube instead of hailing a cab at the last minute?

His father's complex heart condition had surfaced only recently and after the initial research and consultations, everyone had recommended this particular doctor. He had chased the doctor's secretary constantly through mails and phones. She had eventually asked him to fly down for a quick meeting with the specialist. He had carried all test reports of his father. She had told him that doctor would review the case first. If the doctor felt that he could make a difference, only then would he ask Wei to fly down his father for a check-up.

In his rush to get off at the station, he had nearly knocked off a poor woman in the process. But he had no time to feel guilty about it now. He almost ran towards the private clinic, located at one of the buildings in Piccadilly Circus.

Jia Li almost missed her station. By the time she recovered her wits, the train's doors were about to shut. She quickly disembarked and walked swiftly towards her office.

Running into Wei had just been a crazy coincidence. But Fate had given her the indication that she was on the right path. That's why he hadn't ended up discovering her presence despite walking right past her. Wei belonged to her past and inspite of the urge to turn around and go back to look for him, she walked ahead.

She had left the hair open today post a wash and made a pretty picture under the weak London sun this particular morning. Hair swinging, clear luminous skin, startling green eyes…she didn't know how bewitching that tableau was. She concentrated upon the upcoming meet with the clients today. She had done a thorough research on them, their behavior pattern, likes and dislikes. She was going to do her best to ensure that the meetings lined up for the next couple of days, went smoothly.

"Wow, Jia Li! You plan to mesmerise the clients with simply your looks today?" Camilla remarked as Jia Li punched in her entry time near the reception desk. Jia Li laughed at the receptionist's words.

"Only if it were that easy!" she replied tongue in-cheek.

She had been assigned a desk outside Hui's rarely used cabin. When she had first joined the company, she had dared not go inside the room. But as time passed and her boss hardly made an appearance here, she started using the resources available in the room. In her free time, she read up on Rare Earth elements extensively. The best books on the topic had either been written or collected, by Ying Hui. She borrowed them freely now, without any compunction.

She had chosen one such book few days ago and had carried it home. She placed her bag at her desk and pulled out the book. Swinging the door to Hui's cabin, she walked in without a thought.

And halted!

Hui looked up from the reports that he was reading while Eric lounged in the opposite seat.

"I…uh, I wasn't aware that you were in office. My apologies. I'll…just come back in later," she said haltingly.