Chapter 421 Stunned on the Spot
Mrs. Bourbon was deeply touched, not having anticipated that Anika possessed such a talent for soothing and praising others.
Mrs. Bourbon: [Would you have time tomorrow afternoon? I'd like to invite you for some tea.]
Mrs. Bourbon proposed, quickly amending her invitation upon remembering the girl's youth.
Mrs. Bourbon: [Or bubble tea is fine too.]
Abella smiled. However, before she could respond, Mrs. Bourbon sent another message.
Mrs. Bourbon: [You saved me, pointed me in the right direction, and comforted me... I owe you a drink, no matter what.]
Abella: [Sure.]
Mrs. Bourbon: [What time works for you?]
Abella: [Anytime is fine.]
Mrs. Bourbon: How about three o'clock in the afternoon?]
Abella: [Sure.]
Mrs. Bourbon: [What would you like to drink? Coffee, tea, or bubble tea?]
Abella: [Anything’s fine.]
Mrs. Bourbon was pleasantly surprised by Abella's easygoing nature, her fondness for the girl growing as she anticipated their meeting the following day.
Mrs. Bourbon: [I'll look up some popular spots online and send you the address.]
She accompanied her message with a cheerful emoji.
Abella: [Okay.]
After typing her final response, Abella put her phone away.
"What were you talking about?" Phillipe queried.
At that moment, Phillipe, having finished his work, arrived at the mall to pick up Abella. He casually took the shopping bags from her hands, surprised by the number of purchases she had made for his parents. He was also intrigued by her cheerful conversation with someone on her phone.
"A very interesting Mrs. Bourbon," Abella revealed, her eyes softening, "I need to go out tomorrow afternoon."
"To meet with this Mrs. Bourbon you mentioned?" Phillipe asked.
"Yes," Abella confirmed.
Phillipe was somewhat puzzled. Abella didn't strike him as the type who enjoyed socializing. He wondered what kind of person this Mrs. Bourbon was that Abella would make time to meet her.
"How do you know her?" Phillipe inquired as he helped Abella into the car and buckled her seat belt.
"From delivering a music sheet last night," Abella explained.
"You two got close that quickly?" Phillipe asked, surprised.
"Yes, it feels like we've known each other for years," Abella admitted.
She felt a sense of long-standing familiarity with Mrs. Bourbon, finding her company comfortable.
"If I had known you were going to the tea house last night, I would have joined you,” Phillipe confessed, “The club came under my name eventually."
Abella was taken aback by this revelation, "Isn't that Mr. Romer's club?"
She had once helped Mr. Romer and was treated with special courtesy by the staff during her subsequent visits.
Then there was the time she assisted the club manager and the servers; they showed her genuine respect upon seeing her.
"Previously, the Romer family faced a financial crisis, and I helped Mr. Romer solve it. To show his gratitude, he transferred the club to me and focused on developing his real estate business," Phillipe explained.
Without Phillipe's intervention, the Romer family would have been buried in debt. It could be said that without his help, the Romer family would no longer exist in New York.
"Why is the club still staffed by the original crew?" Abella asked.
From the manager to the waitstaff, everyone had remained the same. "They are familiar with the business and they're doing a good job, so there was no need to change personnel," Phillipe explained.
Abella nodded, understanding the situation. She mused that she should have accompanied Phillipe the previous night, instead of leaving him waiting at home for over an hour without reason.
"Speaking of which, you seem quite familiar with the club's staff," Phillipe observed, glancing at her. "Do you go there often?"
"Occasionally," Abella admitted.
Abella quickly recounted the events that had transpired previously. Shortly after, they arrived at a restaurant owned by the Bourbon Group.
Inside a private room, Mr. and Mrs. Bourbon occupied the main seats, occasionally glancing at the time.
Standing to one side, Scott couldn't help but chuckle, "They aren't late yet."
Mr. Bourbon straightened his tie, appearing somewhat nervous, and cleared his throat.
Mrs. Bourbon seemed hopeful, her curiosity piqued about the kind of person her future daughter-in-law would be.
Five minutes had barely passed when a knock echoed through the room, drawing the attention of all present. As the door creaked open, Phillipe stepped into the room, a gift clutched in one hand and the other entwined with a young woman's.
The woman who followed him in was a sight to behold. Her beauty was extraordinary, her demeanor elegant. She was a natural stunner, her eyes piercing and her features delicate.
The sight of her left Mr. and Mrs. Bourbon in a state of utter shock. The woman bore an uncanny resemblance to their beloved Anika.
"I've brought Abella," Phillipe announced, guiding the woman forward. He gestured to his parents, "You've already met, these are..."
His words trailed off as he noticed the stunned expressions on his parents' faces. The resemblance was indeed striking.
"Mr. Bourbon, Mrs. Bourbon, this is Abella, whom we've mentioned to you several times before," Phillipe reiterated, attempting to break the stunned silence.
Mr. Bourbon, pleased to see Abella but noticing his parents' lack of reaction, nudged his son with a hint of dissatisfaction. "Say something, Mr. Bourbon!" he urged.
Mr. Bourbon had been quite talkative earlier at home. What had rendered him speechless now? Could it be disapproval of Abella? The thought irked him. He dared them to disapprove of her.
Madam Bourbon noticed her usually eloquent daughter-in-law, Mrs. Bourbon, was unusually silent. She lowered her voice, gently prodding, "Claire, what are you spacing out for? This is Abella, Phillipe's fiancée…"
"Mr. Bourbon, Mrs. Bourbon," Abella greeted, her smile warm and familiar.
She accepted the gift from Phillipe, presenting it first to Grandpa Medici and Grandma Medici. Then, she picked up two more gifts, extending them to Mr. Bourbon and Mrs. Bourbon.
"I hope you like this little token of my appreciation, Mr. Bourbon," she said, her voice a sweet melody.
Mr. Bourbon accepted the gift, barely aware of his actions. Not only did Abella bear a striking resemblance to Anika, but her voice was also eerily similar.
"Mrs. Bourbon, this is for you," Abella continued, offering the second gift.
Mrs. Bourbon remained silent for a moment before finally asking in astonishment, "Are you Anika?"
Abella nodded, her smile never wavering.
"Are you really Anika?" Mrs. Bourbon's excitement was palpable. "Mr. Bourbon, Mrs. Bourbon, this is the girl I told you about, the one I met on the street!"
Mr. Bourbon and Madam Bourbon were taken aback. The smart, beautiful girl with many talents and a kind heart that Mrs. Bourbon had spoken of was Abella?
"What's going on here?" Mr. Bourbon and Madam Bourbon couldn't help but inquire.
"Well, we haven't been back in so long, we thought we'd buy some gifts for you all. Speaking of which, have you even opened the gifts we sent?" Mrs. Bourbon suddenly remembered.
Mr. Bourbon and Madam Bourbon both shook their heads. They had assumed the gifts were the usual healthcare products or local specialties, so they had just put them aside for later without opening them.
Mrs. Bourbon anticipated their reaction and explained, "Before we got back to River Park, Mr. Bourbon remembered how much he loved the paintings by Cordelia Grey. He went to great lengths to contact Cordelia's assistant and asked Cordelia to paint a picture as a gift for dad. And guess what—you guys will never believe it, but Cordelia is actually Abella!"
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