"I'll think about it. I'm leaving…" Irene stood from the chair with a dramatic flair, but there was a lightheartedness in her step. She approached Edward and shook his hand. "Mr. Edward, it's nice meeting you. Hope we have more interaction in the future." Her tone was playful, but there was something sincere underneath it.
"You don't need to see him in the future," Richard interjected, his voice flat, yet there was an unmistakable hint of possessiveness in his words as he eyed Edward with a pouted lip.
Irene found his reaction amusing and couldn't help but tease, her voice light. "Wow, why are you so handsome, Richard?" She laughed, making no effort to hide the amusement in her eyes. She didn't want to take sides, but she was enjoying the playful banter.
"Thanks for the compliment," Richard blushed, clearly flustered by her words. He scratched the back of his neck, trying to hide the flush creeping up his face.
"But the most handsome in the room will also be Julius," she said, glancing at Julius, who had been standing silently in the corner, almost blending into the shadows. "I hope you won't mind following me back to my country and becoming a model for the Queens. I'll pay you more than Mr. Brian pays you," Irene said, her tone teasing but laced with genuine interest.
Julius stood still, caught off guard by her sudden attention. He blinked, processing her words but unsure how to respond. His face remained neutral, and his mind was racing. "_"
Richard exchanged a glance with Julius, equally bewildered by Irene's constant teasing. He didn't quite know how to react either. "_"
"Why is this lady always disturbing my peace?" Julius thought, feeling the weight of the awkwardness in the room. He gave Irene a polite but firm response. "Miss Brown, I really like my job here."
"No need to hurry. You don't have to make a decision now. We still have a lot of time to consider, and I'll pay you more than him," Irene smiled and winked at him, her expression filled with playful challenge. It was clear she didn't take herself too seriously, but her words carried a weight that made it hard for anyone to ignore.
Brian, watching the exchange, suddenly felt a strange pang of annoyance. He looked at Julius, his voice low but carrying a hint of threat. "Why don't you go with her?"
"I really love working for you, sir," Julius said quickly, almost desperate to reassure his boss. He didn't want to disappoint him, especially when the atmosphere felt charged with so much tension.
Irene smiled sweetly, but there was a flicker of realization in her eyes as she tried to backtrack. "Why? He's giving you permission to be with me," she said, her tone light but with an exaggerated hint of mock anger. "Sorry, to work for me. Why won't you take it?" She threw her hands up in mock frustration. "Okay, I'm giving you permission to think it over… bye, guys."
"Bye, Irene. We'll talk later," Richard said, his voice warm but still tinged with amusement.
"Alright, handsome," Irene flashed a bright smile at Richard before turning to Edward. "Mr. Edward, what are you waiting for? You've got to drop me home."
Edward, who had been lost in thought for a moment, snapped back to reality. "Ohh, yeah, let's go," he said, his voice distracted but grateful for the excuse to leave the tense situation.
As they walked out together, Richard turned to Brian, his frustration clear on his face. "Are you going to let them go together?"
Brian, confused by Richard's tone, simply shrugged. "If not?"
Richard's mind was running a mile a minute. "What will I do with this dullard?" he thought, barely able to suppress his disbelief. He crossed his arms and looked at Brian, his voice laced with frustration. "That's your girlfriend?"
"We're not official yet," Brian replied, his tone more defensive than he intended.
Richard squeezed out his words through clenched teeth, his exasperation building. "Didn't you say you like her?"
"Because I like her doesn't mean we are officially dating. Do you hear her saying she likes me?" Brian said, feeling almost smug in his response. He wasn't sure why Richard was making such a big deal out of it, but it seemed to be a recurring theme with him.
Richard, defeated, threw his hands up in frustration. "Now I know why you're still single at your age," he said, shaking his head as he walked out of Brian's office.
Brian, still puzzled, turned to Julius. "What's wrong with him?"
"He's definitely stressed," Julius replied seriously, his tone uncharacteristically serious.
Brian nodded, his expression softening slightly. "Yeah, I guess so."
We, the readers, thought:
Birds of the same feather flock together.
---
Inside the apartment, the door opened with a soft creak. Irene walked in and dropped onto the couch like a lifeless doll. She looked drained.
"What's happening?" Esmeralda asked, raising a brow as she watched Irene slump dramatically.
"I'm so tired," Irene murmured, rubbing her temples just as Justin handed her a glass of chilled water. She took it gratefully.
"What's happening? Why does he want to see you?" Justin asked as he joined her on the couch, concerned eyes watching her.
"The Blacks are so crazy. Can you believe I thought I was playing them, but they wanted to play me?" Irene said, her voice rising in disbelief, her eyes wide as if trying to convince herself.
"Like, what really happened? And stop being a drama queen," Esmeralda said dryly, her arms crossed. She clearly wasn't in the mood for suspense.
"You're no fun," Irene pouted before perking up. "Good news—Brian confirmed liking me," she said, her face lighting up with pride like a child who had just been praised.
"That's a nice start," Justin said, clapping lightly with a small smile.
"How does that have to do with Edward taking you out today?" Esmeralda asked, tilting her head, trying to piece the puzzle together.
"Can you calm down? I'm taking it step by step. I don't know what conspired at the Black's Mansion, but Edward asked me out. He came to talk to me early because he doesn't want Brian to take me from him—can you imagine?"
"Whoa, I'm not getting this. Are they fighting over you now?" Esmeralda asked, now clearly intrigued, her earlier disinterest fading.
"I think Edward doesn't just want me to be with Brian because Brian likes me... like he wants to snatch whatever Brian likes," Irene said, gesturing animatedly with her hands, her face filled with exasperation.
"In this situation, we can't side with one and leave one, because any of the siblings might be involved in all this, you know," Justin explained, his voice calm and rational.
"Are you saying she shouldn't date any of them?" Esmeralda asked, her brows furrowed in confusion.
"What am saying, anyone she decides to date between these siblings, she still has to keep a good relationship with the rest," Justin explained, his brows furrowed in thought. "It would be a good idea if you could seduce one of the Black siblings, Esmeralda."
Esmeralda rolled her eyes, crossing her arms and leaning back on the couch. "How did you see me in the picture? These people are fighting over Irene and not me, you get?" Her tone carried a hint of bitterness, masked by a forced laugh.
"Are you jealous that I'm being fought over and you….?" Irene teased with a smug smile, flipping her braids over her shoulder. "I don't know why I just don't like Edward."
"That's your personal problem," Justin said dryly, his eyes not leaving the laptop screen in front of him. "You still have to keep a good relationship with him. He might know about their father's deeds."
Irene's expression shifted as something clicked in her mind. "Do you know The Black owns an airline company?" she said suddenly, looking up from her phone.
"What? How didn't you know about that?" Esmeralda asked, her voice rising in disbelief as she leaned forward, intrigued.
"Probably I forgot about it," Irene muttered, brows furrowed. "Because it was under Brian's name and not Raphael. But what I don't get is why Edward is heading it if it belongs to Brian?"
Esmeralda's mouth parted slightly, then her eyes lit up with realization. "Now I get why he could transport drugs from one country to another. He just needs to bribe people he needs to bribe at the airport then boom—the hard drugs are out of the country!" She gasped in admiration. "Wow, he's so brilliant," she praised, shaking her head in reluctant awe.
"We can't guess all this but no evidence," Irene said with a sigh, closing her eyes and rubbing her temples. "The bottle of perfume we took the other day can't be used either. This is going to be a long journey."
"Depending on how fast you walk into his son's heart," Justin said with a smirk, stealing a glance at Irene.
"I'm very sure Brian knows about the hard drug stuff, but I'm also having a doubtful mind. What if it is Richard or Edward?" Irene sighed heavily, her voice thick with uncertainty. "It's easy to be with any of them, but I don't want to choose the wrong person."