Leilani won’t take no for an answer. She holds Gabrielle’s hands and walks up to Andrew. Andrew lifts his eyebrows as if he was expecting this all along.
“I told you that you’d eventually come to me voluntarily when you hit my head with a gun and ran away last night,” he says with a smirk, “I just don’t know you’d be so quick.”
“Shut up!” Leilani hisses.
She holds Gabrielle’s hands and tries to control her anger before, forcing a pleasant smile onto her face.
“Gabby said that you need a nurse,” Leilani says calmly, “I’ll hire the best one from the best hospital.”
“Leilani,” Gabrielle interrupts.
She pulls Leilani by her sleeve. Leilani silences her with a look.
“Please sit down,” Andrew says with a glance at the seat across from him.
Leilani gives Andrew a warning look, but she and Gabrielle sit down. One of Andrew’s bodyguards brings over a cup of coffee and a sandwich. Andrew changes his position; instead of reclining, he suddenly leans forward, forcing Leilani to lean back.
“Is there something I can get you?” he asks politely, “Matter of fact is, I’m very pleased with Miss Peters service.”
“What if I have to take Gabrielle away with me?” Leilani asks.
“Fine, do whatever you want,” Andrew says. He shrugs his shoulders and looks up at Leilani with flirtatious eyes, “But it all depends on whether Gabrielle is willing or not.”
“I’m unwilling to go with you,” Gabrielle whispers, with a lowered head.
“Well, Felicity, it looks like your sister is unwilling to go with you,” Andrew says tauntingly.
“Gabrielle!” Leilani scolds, giving her sister a warning look, but Gabrielle avoids her sister’s gaze, staring down at her hands folded on the table.
“Gabrielle, go get your sister a glass of milk and a sandwich,” Andrew orders. Andrew pours a packet of sugar into his coffee. He stirred it with a small silver spoon, his elegant hand making lazy loops through the air.
“Mr. Clifford, you’re not well enough to drink coffee,” Gabrielle quietly interjects.
She looks at Andrew quickly, lowers her head as if embarrassed, and walks away from the table. Leilani knows that Andrew sent Gabrielle away deliberately and she doesn’t stop him. She scoots her chair closer to the table to let Gabrielle pass and looks expectantly at Andrew.
“I’m warning you, Andrew,” she says, “Don’t you dare touch my sister.”
“What if I do touch her?” Andrew asks, carelessly tapping the small spoon against the table.
“Just try me,” Leilani says flatly.
Her eyes flash and she looks ready to fight Andrew. Andrew simply smirks.
“Wow, I didn’t know that Gabrielle had such a tough sister,” Andrew says, “But I like to think that we’re special friends now—especially after I spent a small fortune on you last night. Shouldn’t you be gentle with me?”
“I’m not your special friend,” Leilani hissed through gritted teeth, “I just want to take my sister away.”
“The problem is she doesn’t want to leave me,” Andrew says, looking at Leilani with a half-smile, “I’m sure you see it, too: she’s obedient to me.”
“Fine—what do you want?” Leilani asks.
Leilani knows Gabrielle will not willingly leave Andrew, and she also knows that playing tough and trying to force her sister will only make matters worse. The only way to save her sister from Andrew is to convince him to send her away.
“I want you to take care of me instead of her.”
Andrew’s smile becomes even more mischievous. Leilani can’t decide if he means what he says or if he’s just playing with her.
“Screw you!” Leilani hisses.
“Why are you so mean?” Andrew says with a mock offense, though the glint in his eyes shows he’s not offended in the slightest, “But you still owe me a favor, right?”
Leilani agrees without stopping to consider the consequences. No matter what she promises him now, they’ll be strangers as soon as she checks out of the hotel and returns to the security of the Hamilton estate. Andrew smiles victoriously to himself, but Leilani is too preoccupied to notice his expression. He can feel his heart beating wildly out of control; he’s excited to have a woman like Leilani in his debt.
Andrew agrees to release Gabrielle from her contract with him in the evening. Leilani accepts his condition and considers the favor she now owes him. She hopes to put it off for the indefinite future—she already has enough on her mind without catering to the whims of this dissipated playboy. She promises to find him a special nurse to compensate for the loss of Gabrielle.
When Leilani returns to her table, Waylen has just finished his call. He strides up to the buffet and helps himself to a glass of milk and several small pastries, sandwiches, and fruits. He sits down and slides the tray across the table to Leilani.
“Did you solve the issue?” he asks.
Leilani helps herself to a breakfast sandwich and takes a bite before she responds.
“Yes,” she finally says, “When we go back home, can we stop at my family’s home first? I want to see that Gabrielle gets back safely.”
Waylen gazes at her steadily from across the table.
“Move back to the presidential suite,” he says.
Leilani returns his gaze. She understands that this is his condition for helping return her sister to her family home.
“Alright,” Leilani agrees.
She picks up the sandwich and prepares to take another bite, but Waylen grabs her wrist and guides the sandwich to his mouth instead. As Waylen chews a waiter appears carrying a latte with an elaborate heart shape in the foam.
“Are you Felicity Winter?” the waiter says, “Mr. Clifford sends you this coffee and asked me to remind you that you owe him a favor.”
Leilani turns her head and sees Andrew raising his coffee mug to flirtatiously toast her. She knows that it means he has persuaded Gabrielle to return to the Peters family home with her. She gives him a glare in return.
When she looks back, she notices that the atmosphere at her table has suddenly become tense; Waylen seems to radiate fury. With a straight face, Waylen throws the coffee cup to the ground. The mug shatters and the coffee spills everywhere. The waiter is terrified and immediately squats to pick up the pieces of the cup and wipe the floor with a towel. Waylen suddenly grasps Leilani’s wrist.
“Are you ogling him under my nose?” he asks furiously.
People around them have stopped eating and are looking at them curiously. Leilani frowns slightly; Waylen’s grip is hurting her wrist. She doesn’t want to cause a scene and quarrel with him in public.
“Are you crazy?” she whispers back, “It’s not what you think.”
“So what is it?” Waylen asks.
Leilani sighs and places her free hand gently on top of Waylen’s. She strokes the back of his hand as if she’s smoothing the fur of an angry lion.
“Mr. Clifford once helped Gabrielle. He recently had an operation and he requires special care and assistance as he recovers. Gabrielle is a nursing major, so she thought she would pay him back by caring for him,” Leilani explains.
She looks at Waylen and sees the mistrust in his eyes.
“Gabrielle wasn’t willing to go with me,” she continues, “I was worried that she would get hurt if she stayed with Mr. Clifford—she’s so docile and innocent and she’s up against that wolf of a man—so I asked Mr. Clifford to do me a favor and release her.”
“And what were his conditions for this favor?” Waylen asks, tightening his grip on her wrist.
“There were no conditions—now I just owe him a favor. Let go of my hand now,” Leilani says, pulling her hand out of his loosening grasp, “I plan to hire one of the best nurses from the best hospitals to replace Gabrielle, though Mr. Clifford is being…difficult about it.”
“Leave these matters to Robert,” Waylen says.
Though he accepts her explanation, Waylen doesn’t want her to have any additional contact with Andrew.
“Can we go back home tomorrow?” Leilani asks, “The weather forecast says that the storm will let up by tomorrow morning.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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