“Mr. Harding, I believe I left my earrings in the restroom. Can you accompany me while I search for them?” An attractive woman latched onto Garrett’s arm and pressed her ample bosom against him.
“1 am a married man. Perhaps you should ask the security guard to assist you in searching for them, as 1 am not a metal detector.” Garrett sat down with a disdainful expression and took a sip. “These old tactics are quite tiresome.”
“Would you have accompanied her if she had tried some new tricks?” Brandon clicked his tongue in disapproval and swiftly downed the remaining wine in his glass.
“What are you on about? I’m a man of principles now. My only priority is Laney. My wife and I share an unbreakable bond. This is precisely why our relationship remains unwavering.” The contours of Garrett’s face betrayed a subtle hint of pride, lending an air of self-satisfaction to his demeanor.
As Brandon was drinking, his deep-set eyes squinted with a mischievous glint. With a wry smile, he remarked, “If my memory serves me right, your family never really approved your marriage.”
“Let’s not bring it up, shall we? Do you want me to bring up Natalie in our conversation?” Only at that moment did Garrett realize that Brandon’s foul mood might have been related to a quarrel with Natalie. “A man entangled in the throes of love? How pathetic.”
“Garrett Harding, do you intend to fight me?” Brandon’s eyelids lifted ever so slightly, revealing a glint of coldness in his eyes. After a few seconds of contemplation, he quickly grasped the implication. “How did you find out about my spat with Natalie? Do you happen to know her whereabouts?”
Natalie left behind a note and explicitly forbade him from seeking her out. Despite Brandon’s repeated attempts to restrain his self, he couldn’t shake her from his mind.
“Do you truly believe I spend my days monitoring everyone’s activities?” Garrett was left speechless, surmising that Brandon must have seriously angered Natalie this time. He broached the topic awkwardly, cautioning, “It might be wise for you to take some action, my friend. Want my advice? When a woman claimed she wanted some time alone, you should never let her be alone! Women don’t always say what they mean. Once she’s had time to cool off, she’ll probably kick you out, because you didn’t do anything!”
Following a few seconds of silence, Brandon set the glass aside and got to his feet. “Where are you heading to?”
“Go have a chat with Johanna.”
“Be cautious. Do you truly believe Johanna will divulge Natalie’s whereabouts?” Garrett raised his hand in a gesture to halt him.
“I will figure out a way.” Brandon clenched his fists as he warned.
“How did you manage to be blessed with a friend like me’ Honestly, Natalie is at my place.” Garrett quipped with a grin, sidestepping Brandon.
“Was it Laney who informed you of that?” Brandon snorted dismissively. “That’s highly unlikely. I’m certain I.aney would take Natalie’s side and keep her whereabouts a secret.”
“She did, and I only figured it out on my own. Laney messaged me a while ago, advising me to steer clear of home tonight. Something is definitely amiss.” Garrett appeared confident in his conjecture. “It’s highly likely that someone else is occupying my house tonight. 1 presume it must be Natalie.”
“Let us go back together after drinking. After thinking for a moment, an evil smile flashed across Brandon’s lips. Garrett felt helpless and looked at his friend awkwardly. “Don’t drag me with you if you’re going to make trouble. If Laney finds out that 1 am taking you to find Natalie, she will be furious!”
“How could I let you suffer?” Raising his eyebrows, Brandon added mysteriously, “Don’t worry. I have apian.” Stunned, Garret clenched his fist and held it up to show his willingness to try.
“Alright, I’ll believe you. But you have to succeed this time, okay? If you fail, then… Well, you know Laney’s temper, right? If you fail and she got mad, I’m afraid we can’t be friends anymore.”
Later that night, it was dark outside, so Natalie drew the curtains on the window and heard Laney arguing with someone over the phone on the corridor.
“Was that Garrett?” As soon as Natalie stuck her head out of the door, Laney hung up the phone with a frown.
“Garrett told me that he was going to have dinner with a client tonight, but he ended up drinking with Brandon! He’s really pissing me off! He promised that he wouldn’t drink after I got pregnant, and now, he has broken his promise!” While Laney was in a fit of pique, her phone rang again.
Upon hearing that Brandon was also drinking, Natalie felt inexplicably restless.
“The phone is ringing non-stop. Why don’t you give Garrett another chance to explain himself? He might have his own reasons, right?” Natalie patted Laney’s back to comfort her.
“Yeah, I’d like to hear what lies he is going to say now!” With that, Laney answered the phone again.
In a drunken haze, Garret said over the phone, Laney, please! I don’t want to drink either, okay? Brandon forced me to drink with him because he was upset. lie’s completely wasted now He already threw up twice in the bathroom, but he still doesn’t want to leave the bar. Honey, can you please call the driver and ask him to come pick us up?”
Hearing that Brandon was wasted, Laney subconsciously glanced al Natalie and asked, “What do you say?” Natalie pursed her lips and remained silent while Garrett’s voice came from the other end again.
“Brandon! You’ve had enough! Why are you throwing up again? Stay still, and don’t fall, okay? Hey!” The call was abruptly disconnected.
Natalie grabbed Laney’s phone and shouted, “Did Brandon fall down? Garrett, say something!”
Laney was frowning, but she seemed calm. “Don’t worry. Call Brandon and ask him what happened.”
While dialing Brandon’s number, Natalie said in panic, “Brandon had a stomachache before. I hope he didn’t drink too much. 1 am so worried about him!”
No matter how many times Natalie tried calling him. the line wouldn’t get connected, which made her feel worse.
“Don’t worry. Garrett sent me the location earlier. If you want, we can just go there. But 1 feel like something isn’t right. Garrett is a cautious guy. And situation like this rarely ever happens.” A hint of doubt flashed through
Laney’s eyes and it seemed like she sensed the trap. “Which bar is it?” Natalie was too worried about Brandon to care about the second half of Laney’s words.
A helpless smile appeared on Laney’s lips. It seemed that Natalie would disregard everything when she got worried.
She quickly forwarded the address to Natalie and asked with a frown, “I must remind you that you’re still in a fight with Brandon, not to mention it’s very late in the night now. Are you sure you want to go?”
Natalie couldn’t understand her impulses either. After all, she still hadn’t forgiven Brandon. So why was she so worried about him? Just a day ago, she wished that he would disappear from her sight for good. But now ..?
“I want to go.” Natalie lowered her eyes, blushing. She quickly returned the phone to Laney and added, “J might not be able to stay with you tonight, okay? I’m sorry.”
New Book: Beginning with a Daring Encounter
Celsie was tired of being labeled as an introvert, workaholic, and dull virgin by her friends. Determined to prove them wrong, she made a bet that she would do something daring on her 25th birthday. Now that the day had arrived, it was time to fulfill her promise. On her daring to-do list, there was one task: a one-night stand with someone.
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