When Owen Rhodes walked into the private room, the first thing he saw was Stella Sterling. She had one foot coolly planted on the marble tabletop, one hand grabbing Felix Hollis by the hair, and the other gripping a broken bottle—and she was smiling.
The sight inexplicably reminded him of how she’d looked in Lumina, right when she’d decisively fired that gun.
It was just that the tabletop was also littered with shards of glass. Owen Rhodes’s brow furrowed, and he said in a low voice, "Julian."
Julian Chandler turned around. "Owen."
Following his gaze, Julian imdiately understood.
He hurried over to Stella’s side and took the broken bottle from her. "Let get that. Don’t get your hands dirty."
Everyone in the private room had heard Owen Rhodes call out Julian’s na.
Stella looked up at him, surprised at first, then flustered like a kid caught misbehaving.
’I’m screwed. I only told him I was having dinner with Ariana. I never ntioned coming to the Qillian Club afterward...’
She obediently let Julian take the weapon from her hand. In that brief mont, Owen Rhodes had reached her side.
Owen extended his hand to her. "Be careful. It’s all broken glass. Don’t cut yourself."
"Oh," Stella murmured, obediently taking his hand and pulling back the leg she’d so imperiously propped on the table.
Stella was wearing a long white dress, and as she drew her leg back, the hem swept across the debris on the tabletop.
Once she was standing ekly before him, Owen even bent down to dust off the hem of her dress, worried that shards of glass might have clung to it.
With one thing happening after another at this gathering, the sight of Owen Rhodes made Chase Sterling’s head spin.
He greeted him reflexively. "President Rhodes."
But Owen Rhodes ignored him completely, his gaze fixed on Stella. "Didn’t you say you were having dinner with Ariana?"
Julian, standing to the side, heard this and thought, ’Here we go. Owen’s about to settle the score.’
His hands were steadier than Stella’s, and he was taller. Plus, he wasn’t about to do sothing as petty as just grabbing the guy’s hair.
Julian planted a foot directly on Felix Hollis’s pudgy chest. His left hand, adorned with a Praying Bead Bracelet, pressed the broken bottle against Felix’s neck.
He glanced back at the stunned n and won nearby with a smile. "What, you planning on staying for the show? Now, scram!"
None of them knew where this re waiter got such nerve, but seeing the drastic turn of events, they scrambled to their feet and scattered to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.
The man who’d been guarding the door tried to slip away in the chaos, but Julian’s eyes were sharp. "You at the door. You’re staying."
The man pretended not to hear, but the mont his foot crossed the threshold, he was shoved back into the room by security guards in white shirts and black slacks.
With a woeful expression, the man finally understood. This "young gentleman" was clearly no "new hire."
Not just not a new hire, but likely soone with a high-ranking position.
Once the room was finally clear, Julian moved the broken bottle from Felix’s neck and patted his greasy cheek with its jagged edge.
"Hey, Mr. Hollis. Sober yet?"
Felix’s face was slick with sothing—grease, sweat, maybe tears—and he nodded frantically.
But Julian shook his head. "Doesn’t look like it. Still not sober enough."
He tossed the bottle aside, grabbed Felix by the collar, and dragged him into the room’s private restroom.
The door shut, and soon, sounds of begging and wailing drifted out, followed by the gut-wrenching sound of Felix retching his insides out.
The sounds were so disgusting they snapped Stella out of her daze. She began to explain in a small voice, "We were just supposed to be having dinner, but Ariana Grant is going back to Sudleigh tomorrow, and she wanted to have a drink with her..."
Owen’s face was expressionless, and Stella couldn’t tell if he was angry.
She only heard his low voice ask, "Did you drink?"
Stella quickly shook her head. "No! You told not to drink when I’m out, so I just had juice..."
As she spoke, she warily watched his expression, only to see the corners of his mouth twitch upward almost imperceptibly.
Stella felt her racing heart finally settle, and she quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Perhaps sensing her relief, Owen imdiately flattened his lips back into a stern line, resuming his interrogator’s expression.
"Did Ariana invite all these people for her farewell party?"
Just then, Julian dragged Felix—who looked completely wrecked from vomiting—out of the restroom like a limp ragdoll.
Julian tossed him carelessly, and Felix landed in a pathetic heap on the marble table in front of Chase and the others.
Seeing Owen’s expression darken, Stella quickly spilled the beans. "I ran into Felix Hollis on my way to the restroom. He’s the one who dragged in here."
She tugged pitifully at Owen’s sleeve. "He said I embarrassed him at the engagent party and that he’d only forgive if I... kept him company until he was happy. He threatened to cause trouble for the Sterling Family’s business otherwise. I refused, but then Young President Sterling said I had to drink tonight. I was outnumbered, so I had no choice but to play along for the mont..."
Chase Sterling’s headache intensified when he heard this.
’Unbelievable. Why doesn’t she ntion the part where she wasn’t at a disadvantage at all!’
Owen led Stella to a seat on the side and said to Julian, "Have soone bring two glasses of hot water."
Julian’s waiter vest had a built-in communication device. He spoke a command into his collar, and monts later, soone brought the hot water.
Owen placed one of the glasses in front of Stella before speaking. "Felix Hollis, is your father Walter Hollis of the Hollis Group?"
For so reason, Felix was clutching his stomach and rolling back and forth on the wide marble tabletop, letting out faint groans.
Seeing him still rolling around, Julian kicked him. "He asked you a question."
Startled, Felix imdiately dragged his aching body into a sitting position. His once-flushed face was now tinged with green, making him look even more hideous.
"Y-yes... Yes, President Rhodes."
Having just been dragged into the restroom and beaten by Julian, he’d thrown up most of the alcohol he’d drunk. Now, a bit more sober, he naturally recognized Owen Rhodes’s face.
"How exactly did Stella embarrass you at the engagent party?"
Felix, unaware of the relationship between Owen and Stella, began to stamr out a defense. "President Rhodes, you don’t understand. This woman, Stella, was supposed to be my fiancée. On the day of our engagent party, President Sterling brought her to et my father and . Not only did she not greet us, but she insisted she was already married! Everyone heard her. The Hollis Family’s reputation..."
Owen cut him off. "You knew she was married, yet you still dared to harass her?"
Felix had sobered up a little, but not by much.
"For all I know, she was just saying that to embarrass and my father in public! Who knows who her good-for-nothing husband even is? President Rhodes, I swear, I didn’t know! Besides, if she’s married, what’s she doing in a place like this? She’s obviously just out looking for so fun—Ah!"
Julian didn’t appreciate that comnt. He smiled and kicked Felix again.
"What are you talking about, Mr. Hollis? Qillian is a respectable establishnt. But since you seem to look down on it so much, fine. From now on, my Qillian has a new rule: No dogs or Felix Hollis allowed."
Owen’s voice was low. "The Qillian Club is a legitimate place of entertainnt where anyone is free to be a patron. You, on the other hand, are publicly harassing a married woman. That’s sexual harassnt, you know."
With Owen laying it out like that, Felix, who wasn’t a complete idiot, understood the underlying threat: if Stella decided to press the issue, Owen would help make the sexual harassnt charge stick.
Not wanting to go down without a fight, Felix stiffened his neck in a desperate last stand. "President Rhodes! You need evidence to make accusations like that! Do you have any evidence?!"
Julian laughed. "Of course we do." He tapped a tiny, inconspicuous black dot on his vest. "This has been recording the whole ti."
Reviews
All reviews (0)