Chapter 510 Not Straightforward
Donny Dickson, the owner of the private dining establishment, pushed aside the curtain and entered.
One of his staff had mentioned hearing a commotion, so he'd rushed over, worried something might be wrong.
But the first thing he noticed was Audrey's pitiful, tear-rimmed eyes.
What was she doing here? Hadn't he told her Owen had an appointment and shouldn't be disturbed?
"Owen... everything alright here?" Donny had seen this sort of situation before and immediately recognized it for what it was—a classic love triangle.
Everyone knew Audrey had feelings for Owen, but unfortunately, Owen didn't return them.
"I'm fine, Donny. Would you mind escorting this uninvited guest out?" Owen said firmly.
There was only one "uninvited guest" present.
Donny could only look at the surprised and hurt expression on Audrey's face as he tactfully suggested, "Audrey, I've just created a new dessert. Would you mind coming to taste it for me?"
Audrey glanced at Owen, but his gaze never lingered on her for more than a second.
She shot Lila a hostile glare.
Lila mentally rolled her eyes but remained silent. She thought, 'Why glare at me? I'm not the one asking you to leave!'
At six o'clock, Lila waited outside the research lab to intercept Victoria after work.
Desperately needing someone to confide in, she "kidnapped" Victoria right from under Alexander's murderous gaze.
"Alexander, I urgently need to borrow your wife. I'll return her later," Lila called to Alexander, who remained in the car, as she whisked Victoria away.
Dylan and Marcus exchanged glances, silently giving Lila mental thumbs-up. Few people dared to take Victoria away right in front of Alexander.
An hour later, in a private booth at an exclusive lounge, Victoria sat calmly on the leather sofa, watching Lila pace back and forth without saying a word.
Lila was clearly in emotional turmoil, unable to sit still.
After five more minutes, Victoria sighed. "Darling, what did you want to tell me? If you don't speak up soon, I'm going back to my husband."
Lila abruptly stopped pacing and stood before her, visibly conflicted.
Seeing her struggle to begin, Victoria helped her out. "Owen proposed again, didn't he?"
Lila nodded.
"And this time you accepted, which is why you're so flustered, right?"
Lila's eyes widened with admiration and confusion as she nodded vigorously. "How do you know everything? You're incredible!"
Victoria sighed, rubbed her temple, and glanced at the ring on Lila's finger. "I'm not blind."
She'd noticed the engagement ring the moment she got into Lila's car, though Lila herself had been too preoccupied to remember it.
Lila looked at her ring finger awkwardly.
Victoria asked, "So if you accepted his proposal, why are you so anxious?"
Lila sat beside her and recounted the afternoon's blind date setup in detail.
After hearing the story, Victoria saw Owen in a whole new light. It truly showed one couldn't judge people by their looks.
Still, she had to admit his method was effective, especially with Lila. Without that push, she would never have given in.
"Since you've already accepted, there's nothing more to discuss. Just relax and enjoy being a bride-to-be," Victoria said.
"But I..." Lila began.
"No buts," Victoria interrupted. "Owen is a catch. Many women have their eyes on him. Aren't you afraid that one day he might lose patience and be swept away by someone else? You'd be devastated."
Her advice was blunt but effective—it always worked on Lila.
Victoria posed a question, "Which would hurt more: seeing him with another woman, or being married to him?"
Without hesitation, Lila replied, "He can only be mine. Other women need to back off."
Victoria snapped her fingers triumphantly and stood up. "Then the problem's solved! Just go with him to meet the Rodriguez family and stop overthinking."
Lila grabbed her wrist. "What if his family doesn't like me?"
"That's impossible," Victoria looked down at her. "You're beautiful, charming, and full of life. Everyone loves you."
"Really?"
"Of course!"
"Well, since you're here, stay for a drink? I'm still a bit nervous."
Outside the lounge, Dylan spoke to Alexander through the rearview mirror. "Mr. Howard, it looks like Mrs. Howard and Miss Scott won't be out anytime soon. Would you like to get dinner first?"
Alexander's phone chimed. It was a Facebook message from Victoria:
[Darling, don't wait for me. Go home first. Lila wants to drink, and I can't leave yet.]
He quickly replied: [Okay.]
But immediately after, he opened Owen's contact and sent a message with the location: [You have 30 minutes to take your woman home!][You have 30 minutes to take your woman home!]
Owen, just finishing a meeting at the hospital, received the message and location. He could feel Alexander's extreme annoyance through the screen.
Clearly, Lila was monopolizing Victoria's time.
When Owen arrived, he met a grim-faced Alexander at the entrance.
He cleared his throat nervously. "Rush hour traffic. I'm a bit late."
Inside the private room, Lila had drunk too much. Victoria, who could hold her liquor better, had been careful not to overindulge.
As the two men approached the door, they heard Lila exclaim, "Owen is such a scheming, terrible man! He tricked me into saying yes!"
The men at the doorway fell silent.
Alexander turned to Owen with a raised eyebrow and a mocking smile. "What exactly did you do to her?"
Owen remained silent.
Lila stood near the door, venting to Victoria, completely unaware that anyone had entered.
She continued slurring, "He used a blind date as an excuse to work with my mother against me! I'm starting to think I'm not my mother's real child—he must be!"
"My mom even said... she even said..."
"Said what?" a familiar male voice suddenly came from behind her.
She turned around, stumbling slightly from the alcohol. Victoria jumped up to steady her, but someone else was faster, pulling her into his arms.
Lila, nestled in Owen's embrace, stared at his familiar face with unfocused eyes and blurted out, "Why am I seeing that terrible man Owen?"
Despite her words, she reached out to pinch his cheek, then clumsily patted his face. "He's warm!"
Owen and Victoria remained silent.
Alexander stood at the door, uninvolved, only wanting to take his wife home.
A sharp sound echoed through the quiet room.
Lila had gone from pinching to patting, but in her inebriated state, she had no control over her strength.
She had accidentally slapped him too hard.
Everyone fell silent.
Victoria cleared her throat. "Owen, you should take Lila home. She's had too much to drink."
Owen nodded, bent down to lift Lila into his arms, and turned to leave.
Suddenly being carried, Lila felt uncomfortable and began struggling. Fortunately, the staff knew Owen, otherwise they might have thought he was assaulting her.
Seeing her fuss, Owen whispered in her ear, "Lila, if you keep squirming, I'll keep you in bed for three days and nights."
His familiar tone and voice sent a chill through Lila.
She immediately went still. Owen was being so domineering!
But he was genuinely good to her, and often accommodated her whims.
That weekend, Victoria and Alexander finished breakfast and headed to Howard Villa.
They now visited every weekend to dine with Nathan.
Nathan watched the couple with increasing approval, thinking they were perfectly matched.
But he still wasn't completely satisfied, though he couldn't be too obvious about it.
"Alexander, Victoria, I'd like you both to attend Owen's grandfather's birthday celebration next Tuesday in my place. I'm too old for such gatherings," Nathan told them.
Victoria replied, "Okay."
Alexander simply nodded.
Nathan continued, "Also, Lowell Warren sent me an invitation for his great-grandson's one-month celebration. I'd like you to represent me there as well. I don't need the reminder of what I'm missing."
The couple remained silent.
Landon, however, was bold enough to expose Nathan's true meaning.
"Grandfather, if you want Alexander and Victoria to hurry up and give you a great-grandchild, just say so directly," Landon remarked casually, lounging on the sofa with a bowl of fruit. "We're all family here. Besides, if Alexander and Victoria don't catch your hint, you're wasting your breath."
Suddenly, a dark object flew toward him.
Fortunately, he caught it in his peripheral vision and quickly dodged.
"You rascal! I say one thing, and you contradict me twice!" Nathan's strong but aged voice boomed through the living room.
"Landon, what mischief are you up to now? Annoying your grandfather again?" Preston entered with Saskia on his arm.
Saskia added, "Looking for another beating, I see!"
Landon fell silent.
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