Chapter 185 Misunderstanding
The flight attendant crouched down next to her, trying to be sincere. "Ma'am, our airline's blankets are thoroughly cleaned and disinfected. They're totally clean. Could it be something you ate or touched?"
"I didn't eat anything before boarding. Just had some orange juice and used your blanket," Claire said weakly, but you could hear the accusation in her voice.
The flight attendant forced a sweet smile, pointing to the orange juice on the table. "I see you only drank a little bit of the orange juice. Could you be allergic to it?"
First off, if the blanket was dirty, the allergic reaction wouldn't be so quick. Plus, the areas she didn't touch with the blanket were also red, so it clearly wasn't the blanket.
"No," Claire shot back immediately. To prove her point, she took another sip of the orange juice. "I love orange juice. How could I be allergic to it?"
The flight attendant felt a headache coming on. Claire had just taken allergy medicine, so even if she ate a small amount of something she was allergic to, it shouldn't be a problem.
She was sure Claire was just causing trouble, but for the sake of her job, she patiently replied, "Ma'am, I understand how you feel, but the blanket I gave you is brand new."
Claire was momentarily stunned, curling her fingers uncomfortably. She had lied; she was actually allergic to orange juice. She was making a fuss to get Charles' attention and to warn the pretty flight attendants to stay away from him. But now, with Charles watching, she had to keep up the act.
Thinking of this, Claire lowered her head slightly, her eyes filling with tears. When she looked up again, tears fell like pearls from a broken necklace.
Charles was momentarily dazed by the sight. Claire's tearful eyes reminded him of Diana's, and before he knew it, his hand was already touching her face.
Both the flight attendant and Claire were stunned.
"Charles," a soft call brought him back to reality. He realized his fingers were touching Claire's face. Her eyelids were slightly lowered, her long eyelashes trembling, looking a bit incredulous. Even the anger in her heart was dissipated by his touch.
Charles quickly withdrew his hand, his expression unchanged, and said in a low voice, "If it's the airline's fault, we'll hold them accountable."
The flight attendant quickly bowed her head and apologized, "Sorry, sir, we..."
But before she could finish, Claire suddenly changed her attitude, speaking shyly, "It's okay, maybe I ate something I shouldn't have. Thank you for bringing me the medicine."
The flight attendant was puzzled. Even after years of dealing with all kinds of unreasonable passengers, Claire still managed to surprise her.
She took a deep breath, her eyes still smiling, but her lips under the mask were pressed into a straight line. With professional courtesy, she said softly, "Okay, ma'am, I sincerely apologize again. I hope you have a pleasant journey. If you have any questions, feel free to ask us."
Claire nodded and waved her away. Diana used to never back down in an argument if she was right, which stood in stark contrast to Claire. Claire would never do anything to make Charles dislike her.
"Charles, thank you for speaking up for me."
Charles' eyes were cold. Seeing she was fine, he went back to his seat without saying a word.
Claire's smile froze, and she awkwardly changed the subject. "There are still three hours left. Charles, you should rest first."
Charles was looking at his phone. Hearing this, he turned off the screen and said in a deep voice, "Ms. Murphy, during work hours, please address me formally."
Charles had been out of school for years and was used to being called "Mr. Percy". Being called "Charles" felt strange, reminding him of the late Juniper, who used to call him that.
Claire opened her mouth to speak but stopped herself. As a secretary, she knew she shouldn't be so familiar. After a long pause, she said softly, "Okay, Mr. Percy."
When the three arrived in Celestria, it was three in the afternoon. The plan was to meet with the business partner tomorrow, so they had the rest of the day free.
But at the moment, Charles sat in the car heading to the hotel, his expression cold. Claire sat upright beside him, not daring to get too close and annoy him.
Nolan, in the front seat, knew Claire was just a decoration, so he took on all the work for the trip. He handled the tickets and luggage overnight and sat in economy class. The bumpy ride left him tired and sleepy, sipping coffee to stay awake.
Seeing him yawn repeatedly, Claire said softly, "Mr. Smith, why don't you sleep for a while? I'll wake you when we get to the hotel."
Nolan glanced at Charles in the rearview mirror and shook his head. He didn't want to be criticized at this critical moment. "No, I'll sleep at the hotel. If I sleep now, I won't be able to wake up."
Hearing his response, Claire didn't insist, just smiled sympathetically.
When they arrived at the hotel, Charles knew Nolan was tired and didn't stop him from going to his room to sleep. Their rooms were in the same row, so if something came up, they could still reach him in time.
Charles took a shower as soon as he got to his room. His hair had grown long, and now, freshly dried, it hung softly over his forehead, covering his deep, sharp eyes and making him look a bit more gentle.
Wearing a bathrobe, Charles picked up his phone from the table, turned off airplane mode, and waited for a flood of messages to come in.
Most were from the Percy Group, and he quickly replied to the important ones. As he scrolled through the messages, one caught his attention. It was from Jacob, sent four hours ago.
Jacob: [Mr. Percy, Ms. Spencer asked you to take care and have a safe trip.]
Charles raised an eyebrow, incredulous. Would Diana say something like that? She had been in a bad mood lately, always speaking sarcastically. When did she become so caring?
But somehow, seeing the message made the corners of his mouth lift slightly.
His fingers typed quickly, replying coldly with a simple "Okay."
There was a knock on the door, followed by Claire's hesitant voice. "Mr. Percy, are you there?"
Charles put down his phone and went to open the door. He opened it so suddenly that Claire, hand raised to knock, froze mid-action.
Charles was still in his bathrobe, the collar open, revealing glimpses of his muscular chest. A drop of water lingered on his collarbone, sliding down with his movement, disappearing into the darkness.
He asked coldly, "What is it?"
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