Chapter 24: Chapter 24 Settle it for you
Before Alana could react, Fred swept his arms around her waist and pressed his lips
forward.
Alana’s face drained of colour as she frantically pushed him away. "No! Don’t.”
Fred chuckled, "Stop it, don’t refuse me.”
Alana looked utterly panicked. "This can’t happen! I’m just a waitress, I only serve tea and water to customers, I don’t sell myself!"
Fred chuckled, amused by her innocence.
“What do you mean, not selling yourself? Every waitress working here does it! Come on, let me touch you. That manager brought you here for us to play with, not just to dine and drink with us,
but to sleep with us too!!"
What?!
Not only accompany us eating and drinking, but also sleep with them? Alana couldn’t believe it. But Vera hadn’t said that.
“Vera, help me..."
Alana’s pleading gaze turned to Vera.
She tried to get Vera to lend a hand.
Yet Vera’s attention was entirely focused on Stephan, paying Alana’s pleas for help scant regard.
Seeing this, Alana’s heart sank. She was almost certain she’d been deceived by Vera! How foolish of her to have trusted Vera so completely, this woman had betrayed her! Realising she’d been deceived, Alana raised her hand without hesitation and delivered a sharp slap to Fred’s face.
Her eyes blazed with fury as she demanded, "Let go of me!"
The resounding smack stunned not only Fred but left everyone in the private room
utterly dumbfounded.
Fred stared in disbelief. "You dare hit me?"
From childhood onwards, aside from his parents, no one had ever laid a hand on him, let alone a woman.
And to strike him in front of all his mates? Did she have no shame?
Alana seized the moment as Fred released her and stepped back, forcing herself to
remain composed. "I’m sorry, but you were disrespectful first."
Fred retorted, "What disrespect? Aren’t you here to sell yourself?"
Alana retorted immediately, "No, I’m not here to sell myself!"
“Then come with me. I’ll pay you!"
“I don’t want it!"
Fred’s mates started jeering around him.
“Fred, you’re hopeless! Can’t even handle a woman!"
“Clearly you’re not offering enough!"
Fred gritted his teeth and said to Alana, "One hundred thousand. Spend the night with me. Deal?"
Alana’s expression turned cold. "Don’t try to buy me off with money. I said I’m not for sale!"
Vera, hearing this, thought Alana must have shit for brains, utterly idiotic.
“Alana, what are you being so coy about?! It’s a hundred dollars, for goodness’ sake! You wouldn’t earn that in a year, but here, you could make it in one night. Just agree already!"
Alana now harboured no goodwill towards Vera’s whatsoever. If it weren’t for Vera’s deceit, she wouldn’t have gotten herself into this mess.
“Vera, shut your mouth!"
Vera laughed bitterly, feeling utterly taken for granted. If not for her bringing Alana
here, how could she ever have met a young master willing to pay a hundred thousand for one night?!
How ungrateful!
Seeing Alana utterly unmoved, Fred lost his temper too. Without another word, he stormed over to her and grabbed her hand.
“Come with me. Today, I’ll make you see what happens when you refuse a gentleman!"
But Alana refused to budge, struggling wildly. "Let go!"
“If you don’t let go now, I’ll call the police!”
Fred sneered arrogantly, "Go ahead. When the police arrive, they’ll still have to address me respectfully as ’Young Master’. Let’s see if they listen to you or to me."
Another man clicked his tongue. "This Fred really is something. The girl clearly doesn’t want this. Why must he force himself on her?"
“Shouldn’t one show chivalry towards a lady?"
Stephan’s face darkened. His fists clenched and unclenched repeatedly until he could no longer contain himself. He rose decisively and strode purposefully towards the pair..
Fred was taken aback. "Hey, Stephan what are you up to?"
Stephan strode over to Alana and Fred.
He shot Fred a glance, his icy eyes shrouded in a layer of coldness. "Let go of her!"
Fred froze. "Eh?"
Alana couldn’t help but glance at Stephan before quickly averting her eyes.
She tried to pretend she didn’t know him.
Seeing Alana’s reaction, Stephan let out a bitter laugh.
So eager to distance herself from him, are we?!
He wouldn’t let her have her way.
He seized her wrist abruptly, his lowered gaze cold and fierce, commanding respect without a word.
“Say it again. Let go. I’ve taken a liking to her."
Fred froze, instinctively releasing Alana’s hand.
Stephan yanked Alana into his embrace.
Noticing the flicker of panic in her eyes, his tone darkened further. "Come with me!"
With that, his large hand clasped her slender waist, holding her close as if to restrain her, before striding away with her.
Alana bit her lip, passively following the man out of the private room.
The others in the private room exchanged bewildered glances.
What on earth was happening?
Has Young Master Stephan changed his ways?
To actually snatch a woman in public like that, could it be he’d genuinely taken a fancy to this beauty?
Wasn’t he always indifferent to women?
Fred felt a pang of regret, the beauty he’d had within his grasp had been snatched away by Young Master Stephan.
But what could he do? He simply lacked the means to compete with Young Master Stephan.
Gary raised an eyebrow and tutted.
Truth be told, he recognised her. That girl from earlier seemed to be the same one in the white dress who’d been bantering with Stephan in the restaurant not long ago.
Judging by Stephan’s expression, he appeared quite familiar with this girl.
Well, this should be entertaining.
Vera was seething with rage. Damn it! It was all that vixen Alana’s fault for snatching the man she’d set her sights on.
How utterly despicable that vixen was!
Alana followed Stephan out of the private room, leaving the bar without a single obstacle in their path.
Once outside the bar entrance, Alana impatiently declared, "That’s enough. Let go of me." Noticing her subtle resistance, Stephan promptly released his grip.
With her release vanished the soft warmth in his palm.
Suppressing a flicker of reluctance, Stephan turned to Alana, his brow furrowed as he demanded, "Why were you in such a place?"
His gaze drifted to her attire, which appeared scantily clad, deepening his frown. "Do you work in a place like this?"
Alana pressed her lips together, momentarily at a loss for words.
She couldn’t very well tell him she’d been tricked here by a colleague, could she?
But they weren’t close, why should she explain herself to him?
So, ignoring his questions, she said;
“Thank you for rescuing me earlier. I’m heading home now." Watching her turn to leave, Stephan was amused to the point of exasperation.
Without a second thought, he seized her wrist, gripping it firmly as if afraid she might vanish.
“What’s the rush? Can’t you spare me a moment to properly explain?"
He seemed utterly unaware that his actions had overstepped boundaries, asking her questions purely on instinct.
Alana truly found this man baffling. They were merely a two-night fling, and given that he was her creditor, why on earth was he asking her so many personal questions?
Though utterly perplexed, she still found herself explaining.
After all, he was still holding her hand firmly.
“I’m not actually employed here."
After all, it was her first day. She hadn’t even clocked in for a full hour, nor had she signed a proper contract.
Stephan pressed, "Then why are you wearing the uniform?"
Alana paused briefly before sighing helplessly, "A colleague tricked me into it."
Stephan was baffled. "What do you mean?"
Alana explained, "It means a colleague tricked me into thinking this bar offered high-paying work. All I had to do was serve tea, tidy up, and I’d earn a hefty wage."
“I believed her, so I followed her here."
Stephan felt an inexplicable surge of irritation. "You’re surprisingly gullible. Such an obvious scam, and you didn’t even question it? You just jumped in headfirst?"
Alana didn’t argue. This time, she admitted she had been rather foolish, trusting others so easily.
She’d assumed that as colleagues within the same company, seeing each other daily, they wouldn’t resort to deceitful schemes.
But she never imagined...
Human nature is unfathomable.
This foolishness had taught her a lesson. She wouldn’t trust strangers so readily again.
Noticing her silence, Stephan pursed his lips before asking impatiently, "Are you that short of money? Why give up a decent job to work in a place like this?"
“Yes. I am short of money. Owing you thirty thousand, doesn’t that count as being short?"
Back then, when he’d said the clothes were a gift, she’d insisted on paying. Now she couldn’t repay him, whom could she blame?
He drew a deep breath and pressed, "What about your boyfriend?"
“He knows you owe me thirty thousand, hasn’t he offered to settle it for you?"
A proper boyfriend should settle his girlfriend’s debts.
Alana found this baffling. "I’ve got my own two hands and feet, I can earn money. Why
should someone else pay off my debts?!"
Stephan frowned, finding her stubbornness rather striking for the first time.
Not only stubborn, but also prone to putting on airs.
Why wouldn’t she let her boyfriend handle matters he could resolve, insisting instead on earning quick money in such a mixed bag of places?
Even if she didn’t consider her own safety, couldn’t she at least think of her boyfriend?
No one could stand by and watch their girlfriend work in such a dangerous place, could they? No, why was he even fretting over her relationship with her boyfriend?
Stephan truly felt utterly baffled. It seemed whenever he encountered this woman before him, he... became... rather unhinged...
Alana couldn’t help asking, "Is there anything else?"
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll be taking my leave."
He still had her wrist in his grasp, making it impossible for her to leave.
Stephan paused. "Don’t work in places like this anymore. There’s hardly any safety
guarantees for those employed there."
“Oh, I see."
She thought, Can you let go of my hand and let me go now?!
Stephan stared at her for a long moment before finally managing, "It’s getting dark. Shall I see you home?"
Alana shook her head. "No need. I can hail a cab myself."
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