Chapter 190: Chapter 190: Jealousy
"Did I ask for your autograph?"
"I forgot."
"I don’t remember that happening."
"Mr. Yates must be mistaken."
Sophie rattled off a triple denial.
She wasn’t good at lying, especially when Yuri was staring right at her with those deep, dark eyes. His gaze was as sharp as a laser, as if it could pierce right through her.
She instinctively took half a step back, putting some distance between herself and the man.
"Weren’t we going to the lounge?" she asked, trying to change the subject.
"It seems Miss Shaw’s memory isn’t very good."
Yuri tossed out a light jab, not pressing the issue of whether she admired him. He tilted his head, signaling for her to follow, and strode out of the private room.
The lounge was located on the dining and entertainment floor. The elevators divided the space in two: a bistro offering food on the left, and the lounge, serving drinks and entertainment, on the right.
The lounge was spacious. In addition to booths and individual tables, a row of high stools lined the curved bar, where three bartenders in white shirts and red vests served the customers.
He scanned the room but didn’t see Anne or Shayla Zane. Worried that Sophie might leave, Yuri gestured to an empty booth by the window. "There’s a spot over there. Shall we sit and have a drink?"
"Let’s just sit here."
Sophie sat on a high stool at the bar. From there, she could get a close look at the bartenders mixing and pouring. When it came to anything she consumed, she felt safer seeing it prepared with her own eyes.
Since Anne and Shayla Zane weren’t here, she suspected they might have finished watching the show and gone for massages.
On the circular stage in the center of the bar, no one was performing. There was only an empty chair and a microphone stand. Melodious piano music filled the lounge, creating a very classy atmosphere.
Most of the customers were dressed in the hotel’s standard bathrobes for the hot springs. For registered guests, all food and drink expenses could be charged to their room bill.
She remembered the last time Yuri and Shayla Zane had invited her to a meal, an offer she’d declined in favor of the lunch Alaric Blackwood had sent to her office. She said to Yuri, "What would you like to drink, Mr. Yates? It’s on me."
The man sat down on the high stool next to her and ordered a whiskey on the rocks from the bartender.
"Miss, what are you having?"
Seeing that the two had arrived together, the bartender offered a standard-issue professional smile and asked.
"A glass of still water."
The hot spring had left her feeling flushed and overheated, and the blush on Sophie’s cheeks hadn’t completely faded.
But here in the lounge, the air and the temperature were certainly better than in the hot spring suite, at least allowing her to breathe freely.
She gulped down a glass of water but was still thirsty, so she asked the bartender for another.
"Coming to a bar just to drink water?" Yuri said with a half-smile, his tone laced with a hint of teasing.
Sophie gave a thoughtful smile. "I’m a lightweight. I’d rather not make a fool of myself in front of Mr. Yates."
"If Miss Shaw doesn’t want to drink, I won’t force her."
Yuri picked up his whiskey, took a small sip, and asked with feigned calmness, "Did you know that my cousin and Mr. Blackwood know each other?"
Sophie was a bit surprised. "They know each other?"
"They knew each other before he went abroad. Mr. Blackwood once saved my cousin’s life."
Sophie was completely stunned.
Yuri watched her dumbfounded expression and continued in a low voice, "My cousin had a foreign boyfriend in college. He was an exchange student, and he went back to his own country after graduation, breaking up with her. That was about three years ago. My cousin was devastated at the time and often drank herself into a stupor at bars. One night, she was harassed by a few drunks, and it was Mr. Blackwood who came to her rescue. He taught those guys a serious lesson—they had at least seven or eight broken ribs among them. The Blackwood Family had to pay a huge sum in compensation for that, and Mr. Blackwood left the country soon after."
"Coincidentally, both he and my cousin went to Unisia and even ended up in the same city. Shayla told me that Mr. Blackwood took very good care of her in Unisia."
Sophie listened quietly, an inexplicable sense of discomfort welling up inside her.
She gripped the empty glass in her hand, her expression dark and unreadable.
After a moment, she pushed the glass toward the bartender. "A Long Island Iced Tea, please."
A nearly imperceptible smile flashed across Yuri’s cool face. He then ’kindly’ reminded Sophie, "Miss Shaw, a Long Island Iced Tea isn’t actually tea. It’s liquor, and it’s quite strong."
"I know. I’ll just have one."
Yuri said no more, letting the bartender proceed with mixing the strong drink.
A Long Island Iced Tea was mixed and pushed in front of Sophie. She drank it silently, her mind filled with what Yuri had just said, as well as the rumors she had once heard about Alaric Blackwood.
It was said that during his studies in Unisia, he was often seen with a young lady from a wealthy family.
That young lady had even been pregnant with Alaric Blackwood’s child...
"Is your cousin single now?"
She forced a smile and asked Yuri.
"Yes, Shayla is single."
As soon as he finished, Yuri dropped another huge bombshell. "But she does have a three-year-old son. His name is Daniel. Daniel Zane."
’Zane?’
’He took his mother’s last name?’
Sophie’s heart sank, and her eyes instantly turned red.
’Three years ago, Alaric Blackwood saved a heartbroken Shayla Zane in a bar. Then they both went abroad and met again...’
She picked up her Long Island Iced Tea and downed it in one go.
"Easy there. That drink is strong and has a real kick. It’s one of those infamous drinks that guarantee you’re not going home tonight."
Sophie scoffed. "I wasn’t planning on going home tonight anyway."
’I’m staying at the hotel!’
"In that case... would you like another?"
Sophie pushed her glass toward the bartender. "Another one."
Another Long Island Iced Tea went down. Before long, Sophie’s temples began to throb with pain.
The alcohol was hitting her. She suddenly felt dizzy and light-headed.
A warm trickle suddenly flowed from her nose. She subconsciously thought it was just a runny nose and wiped it with the corner of her bathrobe sleeve. However, what smeared onto the fabric was a patch of bright red.
"Miss Shaw, you have a nosebleed."
Yuri said, extending a hand toward the bartender. "Tissues."
Sophie looked at the blood on her sleeve, shook her woozy head, and muttered, "It must be from the hot spring."
Yuri took a few tissues from the bartender. He didn’t try to wipe her nose for her, but instead gentlemanly pressed the tissues into her hand.
"Thank you."
Sophie kept her head down, using the tissues to clean up the blood.
Fortunately, the bleeding stopped quickly and didn’t continue.
"It seems your body really isn’t suited for hot springs, Miss Shaw."
"I won’t do it again," Sophie mumbled, then asked Yuri, "What time is it?"
"A little after ten."
"It’s late. I should get back to my room."
She was afraid she might pass out right there and wanted to get back to her suite upstairs as quickly as possible.
"Charge the bill to Room 1202."
After saying this to the bartender, she hopped off the high stool and added, "And put this gentleman’s drink on Room 1202 as well."
"Of course, miss."
Sophie nodded. While she was still lucid, she gave Yuri a polite little smile. "Please, enjoy the rest of your evening, Mr. Yates. I’ll be going now."
She fled in the direction of the elevators.
Yuri watched her unsteady figure retreat, hesitated for a few seconds, then put down his glass and got up to follow her.
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