Chapter 42
Seeing that Gabrielle was being given a hard time, I stepped forward and held out the gift I had prepared
I’m here to apologize to your boss. This box contains his favorite wine. Are you sure you don’t want to let
us in?”
The woman let out a cold short.
A waiter leaned in and whispered to her, “Velvet, maybe you should tell Mr. Guzman? He loves collecting these kinds of things, and it looks like the wine she brought might be something special…”
The woman called Velvet scoffed and looked down at me. “If this were someone else’s gift, I might
consider it. But coming from her? We don’t want anything from this woman.”
Gabrielle and I exchanged a look.
As expected, our gut feeling was right. Velvet clearly knew me, and she definitely didn’t like me.
“You’re not Mr. Guzman here, which means you don’t make the decisions,” I said coolly. “Whether I’m allowed in or not is up to him, not you.”
Velvet clearly wasn’t expecting me to talk back. Her face turned sour just as the door to the private room
opened and a tall man stepped out.
“Velvet, Mr. Guzman said to let her in.”
“Spade!” she muttered through gritted teeth, stomping her foot in frustration.
I couldn’t help but laugh–Velvet and Spade? What kind of names were those?
Velvet shot me a glare and snorted before storming off in a huff.
On the other hand, Spade remained expressionless. “This way, Ms. Sawyer.”
I nodded and walked in with Gabrielle.
La Doghouse was just as noisy and chaotic as its name suggested, but inside the private room, it was
quiet.
As soon as I stepped in, a faint scent caught my attention. I couldn’t help but smile. Frederick might look
flashy, but his taste was pretty flashy too.
What kind of man liked burning smoky scented candles?
Just then, Frederick’s hoarse voice interrupted my thoughts. “What do you want from me?”
I looked up to see Frederick lounging on the sofa, wearing a black silk shirt with the top buttons undone,
giving him a roguish charm.
I stepped forward and handed him the gift box. “I heard you collect rare wine. This is for you.”
Frederick raised an eyebrow. “If you know I collect wine, then you should also know I don’t waste my time
Chach
on the cheap stuff.
I smiled. “Just take a look. You’ll see.”
Seeing my confident expression, Frederick let out a cold laugh, set down his wine glass, and casually opened the box. The moment his eyes landed on the bottle inside, his expression shifted.
He raised an eyebrow. “First Love?”
“You know this one?” I asked, feeling a little surprised.
He snorted. “How could I not? I asked you to give me this bottle years ago. You called me delusional and cursed me out like I owed you money.”
“That happened?”
I honestly didn’t remember. I felt a little embarrassed, but I didn’t let it show. “Well, you did save my life. I figured it’s only right I make it up to you.”
“First, you said it was a thank–you gift, and now it’s an apology? Are you trying to get two favors from one present?” he sneered. “No wonder–you’ve been with Jonathan too long. You’ve picked up all his calculating tricks.”
His sarcasm was biting, but I didn’t take it personally. In fact, I smiled. “What do you think? Either way, I came bearing sincerity.”
I tapped the box lightly. “The question is, does this wine pass your standards?”
Frederick gave another dismissive snort, but he seemed less cold now, though he still wore that devil–may
-care look.
“Took you long enough,” he muttered. “If you’d tried buttering me up earlier, maybe you wouldn’t be in
such a mess now.”
He took the bottle and handed it off to Spade, who nodded and carried it away.
“What do you really want?” he asked.
I smiled again. “Didn’t I already say? It’s a gift.”
Frederick saw right through me. “Don’t treat me like a fool. You’re way too clever to just show up here for no reason. Just say what you want.”
