Chapter 40: Chapter 40 So potent
Alana stepped outside the restaurant. The night breeze cleared her head a little.
But she still felt dizzy.
Her head felt heavy and her legs weak.
Had she known the drink was so potent, she would have taken smaller sips.
Alana shook her head, pulled out her phone, and tried to book a cab.
Before she could complete the process, several men on motorbikes, sporting brightly colored hairstyles, roared past.
They then turned back, pulling up beside Alana and whistling incessantly at her.
“Oi, lovely, where are you headed?"
“Fancy a lift, sweetheart?"
Alana frowned. Seeing these men dressed in non-mainstream styles, looking rowdy and thuggish, she knew at a glance they were no good.
“No thanks, I’ve already hailed a cab."
With that, she walked away, consciously distancing herself from the group.
The ruffians quickly hopped on their bikes to chase after her.
“A cab, eh? It’s rather unsafe for a lovely lady to take a cab at night. What if you encounter a pervert driver?"
“Come on then, come on! There’s plenty of us. We’ll make sure you get home safely."
The thugs dismounted and surrounded Alana completely.
Wherever Alana tried to go, they blocked her path.
Seeing their hostile intent, Alana clutched her phone tightly, her lips trembling slightly.
“Don’t come any closer. I... I’m calling the police..."
She made a move to dial 110.
But a yellow-haired thug reached out and knocked the phone right out of her hand.
Her phone hit the ground, the screen shattering instantly.
The thugs closed in on her.
With her phone shattered, Alana lost her means of deterrence and was instantly overcome with panic.
Compounded by her current dazed state and unsteady gait, escape seemed impossible. Helplessness overwhelmed her.
Suddenly, a piercing car horn blared.
A blinding beam of light swept over them.
Several thugs were blinded by the glare.
“Who’s there?"
“What’s with the blinding light?!”
“Mind your own business!"
Amidst the thugs’ curses, a cold, low-pitched voice cut through the air.
“Get lost!"
The group turned to look in the direction of the voice.
The man emerged slowly from the car, his movements deliberate and unhurried.
A sleek black shirt clung to his frame, accentuating his icy, aristocratic bearing.
A lit cigarette dangled between his fingers. After exhaling a faint smoke ring from his sensual, thin lips, his icy voice echoed once more.
“Get lost if you don’t have a death wish.”
The smoke veiled the man’s sharply chiselled features, yet failed to obscure the steely intensity in his dark, piercing eyes.
Dangerous and sharp.
Piercingly so.
The thugs instantly realised this man was not to be trifled with.
His attire and the innate aura emanating from his very being were not those of an ordinary man. Add to that an aura of authority that commanded respect without a word.
It was enough to make one’s heart sink after prolonged exposure.
The thugs exchanged glances, spared Alana, and scrambled back onto their motorbike to make their escape.
Alana’s taut nerves finally relaxed a little.
But her body had been held taut for too long; as the tension eased, her legs buckled involuntarily.
Just as she was about to collapse to the ground, an arm wrapped around her waist in the nick of time.
Pulling her into a solid, sturdy embrace.
She caught a whiff of that familiar, potent masculine scent.
Alana’s hands instinctively clung to the man’s powerful arms, her lips trembling slightly. "Thank you..."
She was too flustered to even meet his gaze.
Perhaps he was mocking her weakness.
Stephan lowered his gaze, observing the girl’s face, slightly pale with fright, her eyes
brimming with tearful glints. She appeared utterly shaken and pitifully vulnerable. His heart suddenly tightened.
He couldn’t help but gently pat her back, soothing her.
“There, there. Don’t be afraid. I’m here."
The bad man has run away."
The man’s gentle reassurance made Alana’s nose sting with unspeakable sorrow.
It felt as though it had been ages since she’d last experienced such tender care.
Perhaps captivated by this sensation of being cherished, she instinctively buried her face in his chest.
Stephan lowered his gaze, watching the girl nestled against his chest, a flutter stirring in his heart.
He couldn’t resist pinching out the cigarette butt between his fingers, flicking it lightly into the nearby bin.
Then, bending down, he kissed the girl’s head tenderly.
Only then did he lift her into his arms and walk slowly towards his car.
Alana remained immersed in the lingering fear of the danger she’d just faced, so when the man lifted her, she offered little resistance.
She merely clung tightly to the hem of his coat, clutching him like a lifeline,
drawing warmth from his body.
He carried her to the front passenger seat and buckled her in with a deft motion.
Then, he moved to close the door, intending to drive away with her.
Alana suddenly snapped out of her daze and seized one of his hands.
“My... my phone..."
Stephan lowered his gaze to see her pale, delicate fingers clutching his wrist tightly.
The touch was soft.
“It’s broken. You don’t need it anymore."
Alana lifted her damp eyes and insisted stubbornly, "I need it... I can still have it re...”
Stephan pressed his thin lips together, then raised a hand to ruffle her hair, as if to soothe her.
“Very well. I’ll retrieve it for you."
Only then did Alana release Stephan’s hand.
Stephan slammed the car door shut, walked back, and tossed Alana to the ground before picking up the phone with its shattered screen.
Glancing at the phone, it looked ancient. probably only worth a few hundred dollars.
The screen was shattered, who knows if it’d even work. Stephan felt a bit put off, but he took it back anyway.
Sitting in the driver’s seat, he handed the phone to Alana. Alana accepted it and offered another thank you.
She tried pressing the power button.
The screen lit up.
It seemed the phone itself wasn’t damaged, only the screen was shattered. Once back, she could have the screen replaced and continue using it.
Alana slipped the phone into her pocket.
By now, her nerves had settled considerably, and she felt less frightened.
Perhaps it was because this man was by her side.
Somehow, she felt a little more secure.
Biting her lip, she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "Just now... weren’t you leaving with Jules? How come you’re still here..."
Stephan’s tone was cool. "I left something in the restaurant. Came back to fetch it."
Little did she know, the "something" he referred to were none other than her.
Alana, oblivious to the subtext, nodded and murmured, "Oh," before adding, "Thank you for earlier."
Had he not appeared in time, who knows what state those ruffians would have left her in.
She was feeling rather tipsy again, her body limp and weak, certainly no match for so many men.
She was profoundly grateful that Stephan had appeared to save her.
His thin lips twitched. "I don’t want your thanks."
Alana bit her lip and asked, "What do you want then?"
His turned his gaze back to her, his eyes fixed on her with intense focus. "I want to kiss you."
The moment she had buried her face in his chest, looking pitiful and utterly endearing, he had wanted to kiss her.
He’d wanted to kiss her until the world spun.
But in the end, he’d restrained himself, kissing her forehead instead.
Now she asked him what he wanted.
Naturally, he laid bare his heart without reservation.
Alana’s cheeks flushed. "You..."
Noting her reaction, Stephan averted his gaze and said with restrained composure,
“If you don’t want to, then don’t. I won’t force you."
Were it not for her recent fright, he would have kissed her until she was breathless.
Alana held her breath, her face flushing crimson.
Finally, she managed to utter,
“You saved me this time, so that should cover the two hundred dollars I owe you in
compensation."
Stephan sighed.
The little minx was still harbouring thoughts about those two hundred dollars?
He’d assumed her request to have it transferred back was merely a jest.
After all, it was only two hundred dollars , he didn’t even think it was worth mentioning.
Stephan’s glanced at her. The girl’s flushed cheeks, her soft and adorable expression, were utterly irresistible.
“So if I transfer two hundred dollars to you, you’ll give me a kiss?"
Alana didn’t even hesitate. "No way."
Stephan snorted with amusement. He knew it.
He said nothing, pressing the accelerator and driving away.
Seeing the car start moving, Alana felt an inexplicable surge of nervousness.
“Where are you taking me?"
“My place."
Her breath caught.
Had she just escaped the snake pit only to leap into the wolf’s den?
Her voice trembled as she demanded, "Let me out!"
“I’m getting out!"
Stephan couldn’t help but chuckle at her flustered reaction. "Just teasing you. We’re going to your place."
Alana exhaled in relief at his words.
Stephan shot her a sidelong glance. "Is that really how you see me? As some uncouth bloke?"
Alana pouted. "Yes."
“Not only are you uncouth, but you’re downright terrifying, you’d force a kiss on someone." She considered herself being quite polite, at least she hadn’t called him a filthy rogue outright.
Stephan’s gritted his teeth inwardly, feeling utterly chagrin-filled.
Why couldn’t this woman utter a single kind word?
After all, he had just saved her.
Yet she wouldn’t even offer him a single kind word.
He escorted the girl to the entrance of her residential compound.
Stephan, seeing her motionless for some time, turned his head, intending to say they’d arrived.
But what he saw was Alana already lying asleep in the front passenger seat. Her face was turned slightly towards him as she slept.
Her eyes were tightly shut, lashes fluttering occasionally.
Her sleepy expression was sweetly innocent, her breath shallow.
Her cheeks were still rosy, looking utterly adorable. Had she simply drifted off so peacefully in his car?
Was she not afraid that he might...
Take advantage of her while she slept?
After all, he wasn’t exactly a man of integrity...
Stephan stared at Alana’s sleeping face, his gaze darkening considerably.
He wanted to kiss her, but he wasn’t quite that beastly to take advantage of her vulnerability. If he were to kiss her, it would be when she was fully conscious.
He wanted to wake her, yet found himself strangely reluctant to do so.
It was rare for her to be so docile and quiet by his side, and he privately wished to prolong this moment.
Truth be told, he found his own feelings rather baffling.
Was his preoccupation with Alana merely a simple craving for her body, or was there something else.
But whatever it was, his desire for her body was undeniably real.
He had always been a man of few desires, with little need for women.
At times, he even found women troublesome, less important than his work.
In his high position, women threw themselves at him in droves.
Countless women had been sent directly to his bed by business associates.
Yet he felt not the slightest inclination towards them.
He found them utterly insincere, drawn only by his wealth and influence, with few genuine in their affections.
But since meeting Alana, she shattered some of his preconceptions about women.
His involvement with Alana, likely fuelled by his own intoxication that night, had clouded his judgement, leading to an indiscretion he’d never otherwise permitted.
Afterwards, she vanished without a trace. She didn’t discuss any arrangements with him, nor did she demand he take responsibility.
Even when they met again, she merely stated she wished to treat that night as though it had never happened, wanting nothing more to do with him, a clean break.
He assumed it was merely a ploy to play hard to get.
But over time, he realised she wasn’t what he’d initially thought.
She genuinely seemed repelled by him, unwilling to draw near.
Even when he asked her to be his girlfriend, she remained unmoved and flatly refused him. He admitted that her uniqueness had somewhat captivated him.
He wanted to possess her, to make her his own.
Even though she already had a boyfriend.
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