Ned watched her without speaking.
"The truth I haven't told you is this—before we even met, I already admired you tremendously!"
"Admired?"
"Yes. Because you're so well-known in the hotel industry. Even in Japan, I often heard the elders mention your name. Back then, I really wanted to meet you. And when I found out the person I was being matched with was you, I was genuinely overjoyed! But although I knew how outstanding you were, I never imagined that from the very first day we met, I would start to feel such deep admiration for you in my heart!"
Ned listened quietly to her frank and honest confession, his expression grave and unreadable.
"Just now you asked why I came here to pick you up," Yui said very seriously. "That's my entire reason—my whole explanation."
"Admiration isn't the same as love," Ned said after a long silence.
"But for me, love has to begin with admiration!" Yui gazed up at him with eyes full of near-reverent worship.
