"Do you know, dear, I like this feeling," Adrian said as he caressed their rosy skin and took a deep breath, speaking in a contented tone.
"Did you hear that, Kate, he said he likes it, your plan failed," Julia murmured weakly after burying her face in the blankets for a mont.
"I never expected it to succeed," Zetajones said in a similarly soft and fluffy voice, equally prostrate on the bed, "Maybe... next ti we could try sothing more exciting, like... driving back and stopping halfway, hiding behind a rock, watching the cars go by on the interstate, and then... that kind of thrill."
"Like you and he used to do?" interrupted Julia. "Is that why this bastard brought you to Las Vegas? Don’t think for a second I’ll agree!"
"Clearly, you still don’t get it, Julia, Kate is on my side," Adrian laughed heartily, and Julia huffed disdainfully before burying her head in the blankets again.
"Ladies, care to join for a bath?" he said as he sat up and playfully smacked Julia and Zetajones’s pert buttocks.
"Let rest a bit longer."
"Sorry, I don’t want to."
The two won replied listlessly, and Adrian shrugged, then got out of bed, but stopped abruptly as his foot touched the floor, the hanging bedspread by the bed leg seed to tremble slightly. Adrian squinted his eyes and pricked up his ears, then after several seconds sat back down.
"You sure you don’t want to join for that bath?" he asked again and before they could reply, he covered their mouths.
"Think about it, how about it?" Adrian continued, then shook his head at Julia and Zetajones’s bewildered expressions, gesturing to them to keep quiet before leaning in to whisper sothing. Then he said in a joking tone, "Go on, let’s all go, it’s just a bath."
"Fine, let’s go then," Julia was the first to respond, struggling to get up.
"Clearly, if we don’t go, you’ll just keep nagging," Zetajones followed, dragging herself up as well. Both won, weak after their strenuous activities, took their ti getting dressed in pajamas and getting off the bed, but this helped to mask the slight quiver in their voices.
Supporting them to the living room, Adrian gestured for them to head to the bathroom, then quickly dressed and started making a phone call.
"Harper, it’s , bring Tony and co to my room imdiately, with guns, we have uninvited guests," he whispered by the door, then watched the bedroom for about half a minute until there was a knock.
The two bodyguards entered and then moved towards the bedroom with their guns drawn under Adrian’s direction; Adrian himself stood outside the entrance, waiting for the outco.
"I know you’re under the bed, I have a gun, co out slowly," one bodyguard called out from inside.
"Don’t think of running, we’ve got two people here," the other bodyguard added.
"Don’t shoot!" A sharp, frightened voice suddenly ca from under the bed, and Adrian outside arched an eyebrow; the voice sounded like a girl?
"I don’t have any weapons," the voice continued, with a hint of crying, "I can’t hurt anyone, I... I... I’m only fourteen!"
Adrian frowned deeper at the clear words, fourteen? What a joke! But his bodyguard Harper then ca out of the bedroom and said in a low voice, "Boss, you’d better co take a look."
"There’s really a fourteen-year-old girl under the bed?" Adrian asked with narrowed eyes. The bodyguard touched his nose and didn’t speak; Adrian inhaled deeply, then gestured to Julia and Zetajones, who were peeking out of the bathroom curious about the situation, and then entered the bedroom.
Inside the bedroom, aside from the ssy covers on the bed, a very petite girl was sitting uncomfortably on a chair, holding her arms, looking like a frightened bird. Although Tony standing beside her had already put away his gun, it didn’t do much to ease her distress. She had long brown hair and was mixed-race, but her facial features tended to be more Eastern, so her age should match what she previously claid.
"Should we call the police or inform the hotel?" Harper asked his boss.
"No!" the girl in the chair cried out in a panic, but quickly recovered her composure and pleaded, "Please, don’t, sir, I just... I just... accidentally stumbled in..."
"Accidentally stumbled in?" Adrian narrowed his eyes, his already foul mood worsening. She snuck in, watched him, Julia, and Zetajones altogether, and now claid it was an accident. Did she think everyone in the room was an idiot?
"What’s your na?" he asked coldly.
"I..." The girl hesitated.
"Fine, hand her over to hotel security," Adrian decided, about to walk out.
"Leah, my na is Leah, sir! Leah Donna Dizon, sir! Please don’t hand over to the hotel, please!" The girl beca panicked.
"How did you get in here?" Adrian stopped in his tracks.
"The room key, I used a room key to get in," the girl gasped, shrinking back into the chair timidly.
"Where did the room key co from?" Adrian followed up.
"The room key... I found it," the girl hesitated and stamred in her response.
Adrian narrowed his eyes again, but he did not turn away or press further; instead, he changed the subject: "What are you doing in the suite?"
"I... I..." The girl was lost for words and after a long pause, she said, "I wanted to see what the suite was like. I’ve never seen a Caesar Palace suite, I’ve never even... been inside..."
She swallowed hard, trying to appear genuine, but Adrian just scoffed, "Wanted to see what the suite was like? That’s a clever excuse."
"I swear, sir," the girl beca frantic, "I... I... I really just wanted to look, honestly! I didn’t have any other thoughts, and I... I... please, sir, don’t hand over to security or the police."
Tears were on the verge of falling, her misty eyes coupled with her petite figure and an Eastern-looking face evoked pity. Under normal circumstances, Adrian would not hesitate to offer so comfort.
Adrian pursed his lips; it was almost certain why she was here in the suite, but based on her deanor, it seed like her first ti, and she had her secrets... Wait, Leah Donna Dizon? That na sounded familiar. Could it be? On closer inspection, although still youthful, she did indeed bear a resemblance. Was she that Leah?
"Do you have parents? What do they do?" Adrian asked, with several thoughts swirling in his mind.
"Yes..." Wiping away the Tear Drop, Leah cautiously answered, "They are both croupiers at a casino."
"Are they of Asian descent? You look..." Adrian gestured with his finger.
"My father is of Chinese-Filipino descent..." Leah stuttered with every reply.
Adrian pondered for a mont, then waved his hands at The Bodyguards, who then left the room, closing the door behind them. Then, Adrian himself took a seat, trying to appear casual: "Would you like sothing to drink? You must have been under the bed for quite a while."
Leah opened her mouth, but ultimately just shook her head, then, as if sothing dawned on her, her cheeks turned slightly red.
"Let introduce myself first. I’m Adrian Cowell, a film director, and also..." Adrian began to explain but was interrupted by the girl’s exclamation, "You’re the Miracle Director?!"
Her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Yes, I am," Adrian admitted generously.
"God," Leah exclaid, "no wonder Julia and Catherine would..."
She imdiately covered her mouth, looking into his eyes with a terrified expression once again.
"It seems you recognize them. That is exactly what I wanted to talk about, Miss Leah Donna Dizon. You have gotten yourself into quite a bit of trouble," Adrian spread his hands.
"I won’t tell anyone, Mr. Adrian, I promise!" As soone who grew up running around casinos, Leah made a quick response despite her still significant emotional turmoil.
"The problem is not about that, Miss Leah," Adrian said in a calm tone, "I think we should have an honest conversation. I have no ill intentions, though I do not like your behavior—you agree, don’t you?"
The girl took a deep breath and nodded.
"Good. So the first question is, are you very short of money? Don’t brush off," Adrian asked directly.
"...No." After biting her lip for a mont, Leah finally spit out a word, indirectly admitting the reason she sneaked into the suite.
"Then is there a problem with your family that continues to need money?" Adrian continued to ask.
"...No." Leah continued to deny.
"Then, why did you sneak into the suite?" Adrian looked at her scrutineeringly.
"My... my..." Leah struggled to speak, and perhaps influenced by Adrian’s calm deanor, she eventually admitted, "I lost my money. I had been saving for a long ti, almost two years, because I wanted to travel to Japan. I’ve been thinking about it for so long, but... but I lost it sohow while I was visiting Caesar Palace Hotel. I shouldn’t have carried it with all the ti... The guy who ca with was my mom’s friend’s boyfriend. He wouldn’t help and even told to leave... I had no choice, I couldn’t bear it, I lost my head, that’s why I took the room card which was originally in his possession..."
As she spoke, her voice wavered with sobs, and Tears rolled down her cheeks in large droplets. Her curled up figure on the chair looked even more pitiable, prompting Adrian to hand her a tissue.
"I regretted entering as soon as I did, Mr. Adrian. I’m not an idiot, but before I could leave, you all ca back. I had no choice..." she said in a low sob, "I’m truly very sorry, sir, very very sorry... Please don’t call the police or the security, otherwise... otherwise... I don’t know how I could face my family..."
"I believe you are sincere," Adrian said impassively, "I have so confidence in reading people. But the problem is, Miss Leah, this incident involves more than just you and . I must give an explanation to Julia and Kate, and you are aware, the Oscar nominations were just announced a few days ago."
"I won’t tell anyone, sir, I promise," Leah cried out imdiately.
"Quiet, Miss Leah," Adrian pressed his hand down in the air, "empty promises prove nothing. I believe your sincerity, but it does not an that I will let you go and forget this incident because of your promise."
"But... but... I also have leverage on you..." Leah racked her brain.
"Compared to the inco you could make, it’s nothing significant. Tabloid journalists would pay millions for such information, even without pictures," Adrian spoke lightly, "As for your reputation, oh, after getting the money, you can simply move away with your family, to sowhere like Canada."
"I... I won’t..." the girl argued feebly and finally, biting her lip, she looked at Adrian with a sowhat desperate expression, "Then what should I do?"
"It’s simple, work for ," Adrian was unapologetic.
"Work for you?" Leah couldn’t help but shrink back upon hearing this.
"Yes, work for ," Adrian sat up straight, "you know, I have a big company. I need a lot of talented people, but also so who may not be outstanding yet can adapt to the environnt—clerical workers, in a sense, are the foundation of the company. Though there are many such clerical workers, if one starts training from a young age, they tend to be more handy and can also act as eyes and ears. This way, all about you will be in my hands, and I can stop any problems as they erge. I won’t make things too difficult for you, and perhaps I’ll soon forget about you as so matters are best not brought up too often. Besides, after proper training, you could quickly have a decent job, which would allow you to better save for your trip to Japan."
Leah was clearly confused by his words and asked with so skepticism, "You wouldn’t... you wouldn’t make do..."
"Of course not," Adrian laughed, "If you agree, I’ll have my lawyer contact your parents imdiately. Do you think I’d let the lawyer discuss such things with your parents? Or to put it more clearly, Miss Leah, my intention is to keep a close watch over you to prevent you from doing anything foolish. If you behave, I don’t mind offering so compensation, but if you co up with any bad ideas, I won’t be polite. Understand?"
His forceful attitude imdiately subdued Leah, and after a long while, she finally nodded.
"Well then, let’s get on with what needs to be done. It’s getting late, and your parents will be worried if you don’t return soon." Adrian stood up as he spoke.
The girl also attempted to stand up, but only managed halfway before sitting back down; her cheeks turning crimson and she shyly looked away. Adrian was puzzled at first but soon burst into laughter, "Stay here for now, I’ll find soone who can help you."
Leah had been a witness to his voracious encounters from the couch to the bed with Julia and Zetajones, so her reaction, even a severe one, was to be expected.
"You just let her go like that?" After the room finally cald down to just the three of them, Julia, dressed in her pajamas, asked Adrian indignantly, "What a terrible night. Just thinking about that girl on the bed makes ..."
"Don’t overthink it, Julia. It’s in the past," Zetajones said, comforting her, holding her hand.
"Yes, it’s in the past, Julia," observed Adrian with a smile, repeating in the sa tone, "Don’t worry too much. She left her detailed information, and Harper is escorting her ho and collecting her family’s information. If she changes her mind, I’ll give her and her family a lesson they’ll never forget."
"Really? So, what’s this job you supposedly offered her?" Julia seed to want to vent her frustration on him, "Don’t tell , Ed, that you’re interested in that girl!"
Faced with her skeptical gaze, Adrian spread his hands, "How so, do I really look like that kind of person?"
"Don’t you?" Zetajones imdiately retorted.
"Alright, the truth is, to a degree," Adrian candidly raised his hands, "but not entirely."
"What’s the ’entirely’ part?" Julia pressed.
"Do you really want to know, Julia?" Adrian asked in earnest.
Julia hesitated for a mont but then gave a nod, "Yes."
"It’s simple. It’s an investnt, a rather long-term investnt. The profits will entirely depend on how the other party performs..." Adrian had barely started speaking when he was interrupted.
"Ok, I get it," Julia, understanding the gist, made a stopping gesture.
"She made a wrong decision, so naturally, she has to pay the price," Adrian stated summarily, without further ado.
Julia sighed, stood up, and walked into the bedroom. She had an innate aversion to such blatant exploitation since her enlightennt in Australia, but regrettably, she was powerless to stop it and couldn’t bring herself to leave definitively, so she chose to look the other way.
"Sotis I wonder, Ed, if I too have made a wrong decision," Zetajones said with a sigh to him afterward.
"That’s up to you to decide, Kate," Adrian shrugged.
"It was a wrong decision, but one I’m willing to pay for," Zetajones said with a light laugh, then she too retreated to the bedroom.
Willingly? Oh, of course; another nomination for Best Supporting Actress, but would she win? Adrian shrugged again, his thoughts drifting back to Leah, who had left earlier.
Encountering her in such a manner, he wasn’t sure whether to laugh heartily or bitterly, but the arrangent for her was neither as exaggerated as a promise nor as serious as Julia had imagined. He had already planned this right at the mont of blackmail. (To be continued. If you like this work, please co to Qidian (qidian) to vote for it and cast your monthly vote. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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