He let out a low laugh. "Terrified? That's a pretty heavy word. Terrified of what? That my love for you is this deep?" Sophie fell silent.
"Don't overthink it. No need to feel terrified—just accept it." He grasped her stiff shoulders, his gaze locking onto hers.
"Accept… but I don't know how." She answered softly, her heart still flooded with unease.
Ned chuckled. "Simple. Smile. Give me a smile, and that means you accept."
Sophie forced the corners of her mouth upward into a smile.
"No, that looks worse than crying. You're really not giving me any face!" He laughed under his breath, muttering to himself.
"Covering the entire restaurant with Winnie the Pooh bears must have cost a fortune. To an ordinary person like me, it feels unreal." She spoke her true thoughts.
"Unreal?" Smiling, he took her hand, brought it to his lips, and kissed it again and again. "I want to spoil you, Sophie. As long as you know my feelings are real, that's enough." His deep voice softened as he whispered to her.
Sophie's chest tightened. Spoil—what did being spoiled even feel like? This kind of "spoiling" wasn't real at all. This "love" had no sense of reality; it was like a dream, making her deeply uneasy.
"I admit I'm touched, but I'm just an ordinary person. Things that are too fantastical feel unreal to me—instead, they make me feel insecure." She said.
"Have some confidence, Sophie. The lack of security comes from your lack of confidence in yourself." Ned gently stroked her hair. "When a man falls for a woman, everything he does seems crazy, but that's actually the most normal reaction."
Sophie lowered her eyes and said nothing.
"Why so quiet?" he asked.
"I don't know what to say." She replied.
"Um? What do you mean?" A low laugh sounded.
"Your words make a lot of sense. I can't find anything to refute."
"If it makes sense, that proves you agree too. So why aren't you happier?" She lifted her melancholy eyes and gazed at Ned.
"Alright, I've used every dating trick I can think of. This time, for my sake—and in front of all these restaurant staff—cheer up a little, okay?" He gave Sophie a low, teasing smile.
Sophie pressed her lips together. "I never knew you could be this slick. You've always been so cold. What changed today?" A real smile finally broke across her face.
"Is it wrong for me to talk like this?"
"Mm, it feels off." She nodded.
"What's off about it?"
Her smile deepened as she deliberately said, "You sound like a rogue."
"Really? I thought I came across as sincere." He teased her on purpose.
Sophie's eyes widened. Then he stepped forward, pulled her into his arms. "Trust me, I've always been patient."
Holding her slender shoulders tightly, he smiled and said, "I'll keep spoiling you. I'll make sure that smile never leaves your face."
At those words, Sophie's chest suddenly felt blocked, then filled with a stinging ache... She looked up at him, speechless for a long time.
"Is Lara your fiancée?" she asked seriously.
"Hm? What do you mean? Why bring that up all of a sudden?" He lowered his gaze, a faint smile on his lips. "As for those arranged family marriages, if I don't agree, they wouldn't dare push it. It's just family business, sigh..."
Sophie waited for him to continue, but Ned stopped there. He took her hand and led her to the table, where tall candles were already lit. She was surprised there were no flowers—just Winnie the Pooh bears—but she didn't ask. The romance of the moment made everything feel even more like a dream.
"I know girls worry about gaining weight. Japanese cuisine is naturally light, so I specially instructed the kitchen to prepare delicious dishes that are absolutely low in calories."
"I'm not afraid of getting fat," Sophie said.
He smiled with his lips pressed together. "Don't think you can say that just because you're skinny. After we get married, we'll definitely have a few kids. Once you've given birth, your figure will change. And the moment your figure changes—"
"James Harrington!" Sophie's eyes widened in shock and embarrassment. For the first time, she shouted his full name. "What on earth are you talking about? Who said I'm marrying you? Who said I'm having your kids?"
"Of course it's you!" he declared with absolute certainty.
Sophie's eyes grew even wider, her cheeks burning, even the tips of her ears turning crimson. Just as she was about to retort, Ned's phone on the table suddenly rang.
He picked it up. The person on the other end started speaking. He glanced at Sophie, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. "Got it."
"My mother called. She wants me to come home early today," he volunteered.
"Then it must be something urgent. You should go back soon. You're usually so busy with work and rarely spend time with your mom. If she's asking you to come home, you really should," Sophie nodded understandingly.
He looked at her, his voice low and gentle. "But tonight, I had planned to spend the whole evening with you."
"I'm fine. You don't need to stay with me." After a moment's hesitation, Sophie added, "Tonight, I've already received your thoughtfulness."
His gaze suddenly blazed. "You understand my feelings now?"
Sophie hesitated, then nodded. For the first time, she openly acknowledged her own heart—it felt unfamiliar.
Ned reached out with both hands and grasped hers before she could pull away. "I'll take you home," he said.
"No need. I can get back on my own. You should hurry and be with your mother." Sophie met his eyes bravely.
"Then I'll have someone else take you." He pulled out his phone and dialed immediately. Sophie wanted to refuse, but he was too quick—she had no choice but to let him arrange it.
Twenty minutes later, Archibald's sports car pulled up in front of the restaurant…
"You got here fast!" Ned said awkwardly.
Archibald raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you say it was an emergency and to come right away?" Seeing Sophie there, he looked mildly surprised. But after scanning the room—filled to the brim with Winnie the Pooh bears—he seemed to put it all together, then flashed a roguish grin and flicked his hair.
"What's this? Instead of running your five-star hotel empire, you've switched to opening a plush toy shop?" He deliberately avoided Sophie's eyes, teasing his friend.
Ned grinned. "Plush toy shop? Hardly. This is my first-date gift for Sophie," he said lazily.
"Ha! I was only in the States for seven days! The world's turned upside down! You two are dating now? Where am I supposed to get another Sophie? I confessed first, remember!" Archibald quipped with a cheeky smile.