Chapter 52 - The Real Sean

"Can you do it in 4 days?" Jackson reconfirmed with Halia after they wandered a fair distance from the coffee shop.

Halia nodded her head in confidence.

Jackson looked at the woman opposite him with curiosity. "How do you know so much about bombs?" he asked. It was almost like Halia had decades of experience when she was simply a university graduate.

"You could say it's a bit of an obsession," Halia lied. "I've been fascinated by weaponry and explosives all my life."

Jackson knew it was too much of a coincidence that someone with such skills had entered his life. Especially since he saw Halia searching through his things. But, no matter what the truth was, it was a good thing, because now he finally got the chance to meet with Remy Durand.

"Call the club and tell them that you quit," Jackson said. "I am officially hiring you."

...

The next morning, just before meeting with Jackson, Halia went to see Sean again.

This time, they met in the park again.

When Halia arrived, Sean had already cast her fishing line for her. "You left before you caught anything last time. Maybe you'll be lucky today," he said.

Halia smiled. Although they had only known each other for a couple of weeks, they were no longer strangers. Probably, because of Sara's memories, Halia felt a close connection to this man.

Halia sat down beside her handler. She had two cups of coffee in her hands and she handed one to Sean.

"I wasn't sure what you'd like, so I asked the barista for a recommendation," she said.

Sean held the coffee in his hands. He recognized the label on the cup.

It was Sara's favorite coffee.

People often said that opposites attract, and when it came to Sara and Sean, this was certainly the case. Sean loved his tea and Sara loved her coffee. But, it was differences like this that made their lives so much more interesting and fulfilling. After all, who wanted to date someone that was exactly the same as themselves?

That would be boring.

Because of Sara, Sean had visited a coffee plantation a few years back and learned about the process of creating coffee as well as how to differentiate between good and bad beans. For him, it was fascinating how similar, yet different it was to tea and it opened his mind to a different world.

Sara liked the coffee shop that Halia visited because it imported their coffee beans straight from the coffee plantation that he and Sara visited. There were only a couple of stores in Beijing, so not many people knew about it. Sara drank one cup from that store every single day and she often smelled like coffee when Sean met her in the mornings.

So, for Sean, the fragrance was familiar and heartwarming. What a coincidence that Halia bought this coffee from there! Sean took a sip and felt goosebumps all over his body. The coffee was exactly the way he liked it. A latte with one teaspoon of sugar. How did Halia know?

Last time, she brought him roasted chestnuts, and this time she brought him coffee. It was odd, but she made him feel like Sara had never left.

Actually, Halia had experienced a flashback when she walked into the coffee shop the previous night and she saw Sara and Sean visiting a coffee plantation, so she thought it would be a nice gesture to get Sean some coffee.

But, was it really the right thing to do?

At that moment, something started tugging on Halia's fishing rod.

"I think I caught something," Halia squealed excitedly as she grabbed onto the rod.

Sean quickly put down his coffee and squatted down behind Halia. He then held onto the fishing rod, his hand overlapping Halia's, and began to show her how to reel in the fish. For a moment, Sean forgot he was Halia's handler. His actions were carefree and his smile was genuine. He hadn't been like this since Sara's death.

Halia could feel the warmth of the man behind her. From the day she first met him, he was always serious and proper. Even the way he dressed was always so refined.

But today, she finally felt like she saw the real Sean; the Sean that Sara knew.

After the fish was finally reeled up, Halia quickly grabbed it with her bare hands. Sean was quite surprised. Not many girls did that because they hated the fishy smell and the slime from the fish's body. He quickly pulled out the hook and marked a one on a piece of paper next to Halia's name.

The fish in the park weren't bred for eating, it was just a past time for locals, so they were expected to throw the fish back in. Halia held onto the fish and released it back into the water. She then looked at Sean and smiled. "That was the first fish I've ever caught!"

Sean looked at the excited smile on Halia's face. Although she reminded him of Sara, he knew they were two very different people. For example...Sara hated fishing. It was something Sean used to do on his own when he needed some time to himself. But, it seemed, he had now found a fishing partner...