Chapter 10

Kimberly turned around, ignoring Nicholas calling her name. She didn't know how to explain her feelings at the moment. She was devastated and disappointed when she saw Nicholas's intimacy with the man. She had seen the man who was with Nicholas before. He was the man rumoured to be Nicholas's lover. He had come to this office a few months ago.

Kimberly had never met the man personally, and Nicholas had never introduced him to her.

Kimberly took a deep breath as she entered the elevator. She stepped back until her back was against the side of the elevator. Her hands clenched her chest, which felt so painful. Kimberly knew this would happen, but she wasn't ready.

Kimberly's eyes felt hot as clear tears forced their way out of the corners of her eyes. This time, she could no longer hold back the tears that had been dammed up in her eyelids. But she quickly wiped away her tears when the elevator door opened. She got out and went straight to her room. After grabbing her bag, Kimberly went out again with quick steps. She didn't even care when Haylee asked her.

But she just remained silent when she was in the car. She was confused why she could be so angry and disappointed when she saw Nicholas getting intimate with his male friend. Didn't she know that Nicholas had a lover? Her friend often said that he was dating a man, but Kimberly never believed it because Nicholas had never introduced him to her.

"I should be happy if Nicholas is happy," she mumbled, forcing a smile. Bland. That's what she felt this time. Even though she tried her best to stay calm and okay, she still couldn't hide her true feelings.

Kimberly sighed as she slammed the steering wheel of her car. She screamed, venting something that was building up in her chest. She felt hopeless about her own feelings. What did she actually feel for Nicholas? Why was she so angry? But the more Kimberly questioned it, the clearer her feelings for Nicholas became.

"You're stupid, Kim." Kimberly laughed at herself for her stupidity. She finally realised that all this time, she had been in love with Nicholas. But her love couldn't be reciprocated because everyone knew that Nicholas only liked men. Kimberly's smile widened, even though there was sadness in her eyes. This was the first time she felt her heart being squeezed hard. Kimberly felt a pain that she couldn't explain herself.

Kimberly adjusted her breath, trying to control her emotions. She tried to stay calm even though her feelings were mixed up right now. After feeling her emotions subside, Kimberly drove her car out of the basement building. She had to get away from Nicholas so that her feelings wouldn't deepen. She had to accept reality.

About half an hour later, Kimberly's car was in the club's parking lot. She didn't get out right away. Kimberly looked hesitant and kept tapping her index finger on the steering wheel. Her eyes looked restless, as if she was thinking whether she needed to go inside. After a while, Kimberly took a deep breath. She grabbed the bag that was on the seat next to her and got out.

Still in her work suit, Kimberly entered and went straight to the bar. She sat in an empty chair and put her bag on the table. Her forehead furrowed when she didn't find Ben there.

"Where's Ben? Didn't he come to work today?" Kimberly asked Ben's replacement, who was mixing drinks in front of her. The man looked at Kimberly for a long time before answering.

"What do you mean by Mr. Benjamin Lawson?" The man didn't answer directly but instead asked back.

"Yes. I think that's his last name." Kimberly looked hesitant; she didn't know Ben's last name for sure.

"Oh. Mr. Lawson is in his office. He's the owner of this club. Because the club has grown, he's become so busy that he doesn't have time to serve his customers himself. So he hired me to help him," explained the new bartender, making Kimberly gape. The new bartender leaned his head a little closer to Kimberly and whispered, "Word is, Mr. Lawson has a few more clubs besides this one."

Kimberly was even more surprised to hear the new bartender's words. "Wow! I thought Ben was just a regular employee. Turns out he's the owner of this club." Kimberly didn't expect Ben to be the owner of this club. She thought Ben was just a regular bartender here. Ben's friendly attitude made him not look like a businessman.

The new bartender named Sam just smiled. It could be seen from the nameplate attached to Sam's right chest. Kimberly quickly became close to Sam because Sam was no less friendly than Ben. He was also able to find conversation topics so they didn't run out of things to talk about. Until unconsciously, Kimberly had finished several bottles of whisky, and it made her quite drunk.

"You're drunk enough, Kim! I won't give you any more whisky," Sam refused when Kimberly forced Sam to give her a bottle of whisky. The man looked at Kimberly with concern. Even though Kimberly looked very cheerful, he knew the woman in front of him had deep wounds. Sam didn't know what problems Kimberly had, but he could see it from the look in her eyes.

“Come on, Sam! Don’t be like Ben. I came here to drink. Why won’t you give it to me?” Kimberly complained with a voice that was almost indistinguishable. Her face was flushed, and her eyes looked dazed, clearly showing that her awareness was fading.

“What’s wrong, Sam?” Just as Sam looked puzzled, Ben approached and asked. He glanced at Kimberly and clicked his tongue.

“This customer is drunk, and I’m just trying to stop her from drinking more. I saw her come in alone, and I’m afraid something bad might happen to her.”

Ben sighed deeply and then took Kimberly's phone from her bag. “She must be having some issues. Where’s Nicholas? He usually calls that guy to come keep her company.” Ben was speaking more to himself. After finding Kimberly's phone, he began searching for Nicholas's contact. He was used to this kind of thing, so he didn't feel awkward.

After one ring, Nicholas answered the call immediately. A concerned question escaped his lips. “Where are you, Kim? Why haven’t you answered my calls?”

Ben frowned at Nicholas's question. He thought there might be trouble between the two of them, but he didn’t want to get too involved. “It’s me! Ben! Kimberly is at the club right now. She’s very drunk and…” Before Ben could finish, the call was disconnected. Ben was left speechless, his mouth agape in awkwardness.

“Her friend will be here soon,” Ben said to Sam as he placed the phone back in Kimberly’s bag. But Kimberly's phone rang again, and he pulled it out once more. His forehead furrowed again when he saw Harry's name. He thought for a moment before remembering that Harry was Kimberly's boyfriend. Although he had never seen him in person, he had often heard Kimberly mention his name when talking to Nicholas. After a moment of silence, thinking it over, Ben answered the call. He was worried that Nicholas wouldn’t come since he hung up so abruptly.

“Hello, Kim! Where are you? Why haven’t you contacted me since this morning? Why do I hear noise, Kim? Where are you now?”

“Hello…” When Harry heard a man’s voice responding to his call, he immediately asked in a high tone.

“Who are you?” There was a pause before Harry spoke again. “This is Kimberly’s number, but why are you the one answering? Who are you?”

“I’m Ben—”

“Who are you? What have you done to Kimberly? Where are you?” Harry sounded very angry, his voice louder than the music inside the club.

“Calm down. I’m Ben, and I’m the bartender at the club. Right now, Kimberly is in a heavy drunken state, so she can’t take your call. Come and pick her up!” Ben spoke kindly. This wasn’t the first time he had found himself in this kind of situation, so he was used to handling it calmly.

“Do you know Kimberly?”

“That’s not important. Just hurry up and come because she’s passed out.”

“Alright! Tell me the address of the club!” Ben then provided an address that Harry quickly noted. “I’ll be there soon. The club isn’t far from where I am now. I’m on my way. Please take care of Kim for me.”

Not long after, Harry arrived hurriedly. He went straight to the bar to find Kimberly. After thanking Ben, he immediately took Kimberly to his car.

Harry took a deep breath as he looked at Kimberly intently. He had just fastened her seatbelt. “How did you end up at this club, Kim? Do you come here often?” Harry asked, more to himself since Kimberly was unconscious. He had always considered Kimberly to be a good and elegant girl, so he never imagined she would enter a club, let alone get drunk.

Harry remained silent as he continued to gaze at Kimberly’s flushed face. She looked completely at peace, like someone asleep. Her mouth was slightly open, and the scent of alcohol was strong. Harry swallowed hard several times, feeling a stirring within himself as he looked at Kimberly in this state. Her flushed face was truly enticing. All this time, he had cared for Kimberly, and he had never kissed her because she was the woman he wanted to marry. He wanted to savour all of that on their wedding night.

“Just do it, Harry! Just once, it won’t hurt. Besides, Kimberly is unconscious, so she won’t know, and she’ll still think of you as a polite, nice guy.” The whispers in his head made Harry feel conflicted. Eventually, he leaned closer to Kimberly and pressed his lips against hers. He stayed like that for a while, gently brushing his lips against hers. Harry did it once, but he felt his emotions intensifying, urging him to do it again.

However, his actions were interrupted when someone suddenly knocked hard on his window. Harry gritted his teeth as he pulled away from Kimberly. When he looked outside, he immediately saw Nicholas's face.

Harry looked annoyed and got out of the car. If it weren’t for Nicholas being gay, he would have banned Kimberly from associating with that guy. Nicholas was very troublesome, always sticking to Kimberly.

Just as Harry opened his car door, Nicholas approached him with a tense expression. His fists were clenched, and he kept glaring at Harry. When they were close enough, he immediately punched Harry in the face.

“Don’t touch Kimberly, you bastard!” Nicholas said, breathing heavily as if he were holding back his anger.

Harry wasn’t prepared for Nicholas to be so furious that he would hit him. “What are you doing? I’m Kimberly’s boyfriend, so I have the right to do whatever I want with her!” Harry shouted, very angry that Nicholas was interfering with his relationship with Kimberly.

“Don’t think I don’t know anything about you! How dare you..." Nicholas said, his face tense, every muscle in his neck clearly visible. His finger pointed at Harry’s face, his gaze sharp and piercing.

Hearing Nicholas’s words, Harry’s face turned tense. He looked anxious and scared at the same time, as if what Nicholas said was a threat to him. He was even silent as Nicholas took Kimberly away.

“Why is he acting like a jealous guy? Isn’t he gay?” Harry murmured after Nicholas's car drove away from the parking lot.