An hour later, Cierra and Darnell arrived at a high-end department store in T city. Darnell, familiar with the place, led her to a seemingly expensive boutique. After chatting with the sales associate, he started looking around on his own.
Cierra stood alone, feeling isolated. Seeing no sales associate coming to greet her, she found a sofa and sat down by herself.
The clothes on the racks didn't look cheap. Judging by their arrogant and flamboyant display on the mannequins, she could guess their hefty price tags.
"Cierra, look." Cierra came over quickly. He was very easy to get along with, and even though they hadn't known each other for long, Cierra already had a good impression of him.
He was holding a white silk blouse with lace puff sleeves, paired with a fitted black skirt that reached the calves. He wanted Cierra to try it on.
"This outfit doesn't suit me!" The ensemble felt very theatrical to her. She couldn't handle such a strong stage style.
"Just try it on. It's not every day you can charge it to Mr. Logan. Feel free to try it."
"No way?" Cierra was pushed into the fitting room. As she hesitated, Darnell stuffed another designer short dress into her arms. Looking at the scanty fabric on the chest, she wondered if it was meant for a red carpet event. Cierra's face fell.
However, just an hour later, they were already sitting in a café with large and small shopping bags.
"Do you drink beer?" Darnell asked, taking the two beers from the waiter.
Cierra shook her head. Deep down, she was under eighteen and remembered the ads clearly stating that minors should not drink alcohol.
"Then I'll help myself." Darnell smiled innocently again.
After spending the afternoon together, Cierra learned from their conversation that Darnell's full name was Darnell Charles. Despite his baby-faced appearance, he was actually high school classmates with Basil. No wonder his tone was always so light and cheerful when mentioning Basil, without a hint of the fear that the formidable Mr. Logan typically inspired.Throughout, she couldn't shake the feeling that Basil and Darnell were fundamentally different. While Basil embodied the traits of a leader Cynthia would craft with care – experienced, steady, and unperturbed even as the heavens fell – Darnell was the embodiment of a spirited, open-hearted minor character. Through Darnell's hopeful eyes, the world would surely present itself as a vibrant tapestry of colors and blooms.
It was shocking that two such different people could become friends and even work partners. It was truly thanks to Cynthia's whimsical imagination.
"After spending so much, do you think we can actually charge it to the account?" Even though Basil was paying, Cierra still felt worried. Her past experience was useless here because she had no work experience at all!
Today, she had taken on the role of a love manager with determination, ready to face the worst. If things went south, she'd pack up and go home and live off Cynthia. After all, Cynthia is precisely the author who landed her in this situation..
"Don't worry! Basil is a good person!" Darnell patted his chest, his cheeks flushed with a faint blush from the alcohol.
No way? Drunk already?
Cierra's delicate brows furrowed slightly as she hurriedly spoke up to stop him: "Don't drink so much, let's order some food to eat first."
She picked up the menu and ordered a platter.
Darnell didn't heed the warning and took another big gulp of beer. "Don't be fooled by Basil's poker face that never changes. He's actually very gentle at heart."
"Gentle at heart?" Cierra snorted. Basil wasn't about to cut open his heart for her to see. How could she know if he was gentle or had a black heart?
Moreover, his attitude towards her today was anything but gentle. But that was none of her business. They were just in an employment relationship.
"By the way, I heard Lettie was your senior in high school?" Cierra thought that since Darnell was drunk and might speak the truth, it wouldn't hurt to gather some business-related information.
"Lettie, you say?" Darnell let out a sound, followed by a burp. His eyes became misty as if he was lost in distant memories.
"She was the campus beauty of our high school. I don't think there was a single boy in the entire school who didn't like her."
Cierra suddenly envisioned Lettie standing under the stage lights, surrounded by admirers, while Basil waved a glow stick from the audience like any other starstruck teenager. The thought made her shudder; better not think about it.
She continued to ask cautiously, afraid her intention might be detected. "Did that include you and Basil?"
But it was clear she overestimated Darnell's alcohol tolerance. He laughed with a flushed face. "Basil probably did. He was so reserved, but whenever Lettie asked him for help, he'd always go above and beyond."
The hidden meaning in his words was clear. Cierra nodded, recognizing the typical plot level of Cynthia's novels.
In simple terms, high school Basil was just a tool, manipulated by his senior, yet the memory of his crush lingered for over a decade. This truly was... truly... a disaster that lasted for ages!
Cierra snorted. From Lettie's looks, she didn't seem like a good person. It was a wonder Basil had stayed so devoted and constant all these years.
"And let me tell you a secret, I don't like women—" Bam! Before he could finish, Darnell collapsed onto the table.
Cierra was dumbfounded. Not liking women, and then what? There had to be more! How could Darnell just fall asleep and start snoring?
Staring at the mess on the table, she immediately thought of a more serious issue. How was she going to get this drunk idiot home? After some thought, she decided to call Jakayla.
Jakayla's attitude was as haughty as ever on the other end. Finally, she just threw a number at her. "Call this number, and someone will help you with this problem."
Jakayla's words were unusually concise, at least when speaking to Cierra, she was very sparing with her words.
But she didn't mind. She dialed the number Jakayla had given her. The man who answered had a gentle voice. After she provided her contact information and location, it wasn't half an hour before a tall, muscular man showed up, looking worried.
"I'm Zander." The man was sweating, his face full of concern that hadn't yet faded.
He reached out and gently stroked Darnell's sleeping face. "Darnell, can you hear me?" His voice was filled with indulgent affection.
Seeing that Darnell was still sleeping soundly, he simply scooped him up in a princess carry. Then he turned to Cierra and asked, "Have you paid the bill?"
Cierra shook her head and was about to take out her wallet from her bag when Zander had already handed his credit card to the waiter.
"Let's go. I'll take you home as well." Zander's gaze was as gentle as a calm sea, quite a contrast to his rugged appearance.
Cierra softly said, "Okay."
Strictly speaking, Zander wasn't bad-looking, he was even quite manly, both rugged and bold. The muscles hidden under his T-shirt were hard and well-defined. But for such a man to treat Darnell so tenderly, as if he were protecting a precious treasure, was surprising.
So the first sight of him made her think of the Beauty and the Beast story.
The night was thick and dark as Cierra silently followed behind Zander. No matter how beautiful the starry sky was at that moment, it couldn't compare to the gentle prince who turned into a beast, sleeping soundly in Zander's arms in Darnell's dream.
