Chapter forty-four

Leo bumped Nick a few times.

Nick lifted his eyelids, rested his chin on his hand, and still didn't utter a word.

Leo glanced at Nick and saw a flash of coldness in his eyes.

Suddenly, he also felt a bit chilled.

Jack engaged in a conversation with the girl back and forth.

Seeing that Nick hadn't spoken at all, they all assumed that he didn't want to mention Zoe.

The girl smiled even more brightly, fiddling with her phone for about twenty minutes. She held up her phone and exclaimed, "She's here, she's here..."

Upon hearing this, Jack asked, "Zoe has arrived?"

"Yes, let's go and pick her up."

The girl said this as she stood up, adjusting her dress.

Jack put down his glass and said, "I'll go and take a look too, after all, we were classmates."

The others, also curious, stood up one after another, wanting to take a look.

Leo called out to Nick.

Everyone looked at Nick, who seemed reluctant. He tugged at his collar, as if he was annoyed by the heat, stood up, rubbed his lips with a tilt of his head, and walked with a casual demeanor, once again attracting everyone's attention.

The girl, seeing that Nick was also going out to take a look, suddenly got excited and smiled, saying, "Nick, you remember her, right?"

Nick's expression was cold, and he showed no intention of acknowledging her.

She laughed awkwardly, knowing that his personality was always like this, so she didn't continue asking.

But she was inevitably pleased inside. She turned and led the way, fiddling with her hair, stepping out in her high heels, walking towards the door.

The others immediately followed.

Leo and Nick lagged behind a few steps. Leo couldn't see what Nick was planning to do, so he didn't say anything.

A grand procession of about ten people, men and women, walked out of the hotel door together, as if welcoming some important guest.

In reality, they were all coming to see a joke.

A yellow taxi slowly drove up and stopped at the entrance of the glittering hotel. The evening breeze blew gently, and everyone was eagerly staring at the taxi.

Inside, a pale hand handed money to the driver and then pushed open the door.

The people outside felt a bit tense for no reason and watched intently.

The girl bit her lip and looked at Nick, who was lazily smoking a cigarette. As soon as the door opened a little,

Nick, with a cigarette in his mouth and his fingertips holding up his sleeve, strode towards the taxi, casually helping to pull open the door.

Facing Zoe's startled face, he reached out and led her out, whispering, "Why didn't you wear more clothes?"

Everyone present was shocked.

Leo stood at the back and snorted, but he also felt relieved.

The girl who had provoked the situation turned pale and green. Jack asked incredulously, "Nick, who is she?"

Zoe still held her phone in one hand and was led by Nick with the other, receiving everyone's gaze. She was still a bit out of it.

Nick led Zoe forward a few steps and came to the group of people who were avoiding eye contact. He said, "Oh, let me introduce you. My girlfriend, Zoe."

The scene fell silent.

Leo looked at these people and sneered, "Hey, are you all stunned?"

Nick spent two months chasing after her, spending a lot of money, about a million or so, right?

Nick found Leo agreeable at the moment, and he flicked away some ash from his cigarette, saying, "It's about that much."

Jack's face paled repeatedly.

The girl wanted to find a hole to hide in.

Zoe looked at these old classmates and couldn't actually recognize most of them.

She held up her phone and asked, "Who is Rose?"

The girl was suddenly called out.

She hesitated, wanting to hide, but was pushed by someone next to her.

Jack smiled and said, "Zoe, this is her."

Rose had to step forward, biting her lip and feeling like everyone was staring at her with daggers.

She hesitated for a moment and said in a small voice, "It's me."

Zoe frowned and asked, "You said you have a love letter I wrote to Nick? Where is it? Give it back to me."

If it weren't for Rose's claim, Zoe wouldn't have come out. She was almost asleep.

She had written a love letter to Nick, but it never reached his hands and was lost, she didn't know where it was.

Rose sat behind her before, so when Rose said she had it, Zoe believed her.

Nick was shocked to hear this: "You have a love letter from Zoe for me?"

He asked harshly, his voice cold.

Rose trembled and nodded frantically, "No, I lied to Zoe. I... I just saw Zoe delivering a letter to you, putting it on your desk, and then it disappeared."

Zoe asked, "So you don't have it here?"

"No, no!"

Rose shook her head vigorously.

Nick extinguished his cigarette and said coldly, "If you dare to lie to me, you'd better be careful."

"I wouldn't dare."

After saying that, Rose pushed through the crowd and turned to run back into the hotel.

It was so embarrassing, too embarrassing...

After she left, the others gradually regained their composure.

They all looked at Zoe with a flattering expression.

"Zoe, it's rare to see you, come in and have some fun together?"

"Yeah, long time no see, you're still so beautiful."

"You and Nick are such a perfect match, envy!"

Wang Ge also smiled and said, "Zoe was a little beauty back in high school, and now she's even more beautiful."

Everyone started to flatter her.

Actually, there were quite a few beautiful girls in high school, almost every class had a class flower. The class flowers from their year were like being sold wholesale. Zoe was pretty, but she hadn't reached the point where people would remember her specifically for her beauty.

At most, people remembered Zoe's identity as the daughter of the Zuo family and her lavish pursuit.

Once you were tied to a popular figure, it was hard not to be remembered.

Zoe was remembered for her pursuit.

As for whether she was pretty or not, that was another matter.

But now, when they looked carefully, Zoe's skin was at least something few people had, so adding "pretty" and "more beautiful" was both a compliment and a way to flatter Zoe and Nick at the same time.

Nick reached down and hugged Zoe's waist, facing the wind and asking in a low voice, "Want to go in and have a drink?"

Zoe was a bit embarrassed by their praise, and seeing Nick here, she thought he probably still had something to do. If she went back alone, he wouldn't allow it.

So, she nodded and said, "Let's have a drink then."

Nick smiled and led her inside, his arm around her waist.

Passing by Leo, he winked at Zoe.

Zoe smiled back, lips pursed.

Back in the private room, Rose was no longer there.

Her bag on the sofa had also been taken away.

The others all breathed a sigh of relief, even thinking that it was good she had left.

Unconsciously, everyone felt a sense of repulsion towards her.

Jack took charge and asked with a smile, "What would you like to drink, Zoe?"

Nick let Zoe sit next to him, his hand resting on her waist, nodding slightly as he looked at her.

Zoe said, "Cocktail, please."

It wouldn't be too strong.

On their table were vodka and other strong drinks.

"Alright, I'll have someone bring it over."

Jack pushed a fruit platter and some food towards Zoe.

The others noticed Nick's gaze focused solely on Zoe, and they could immediately sense that Nick truly liked her.

Of course, some were curious why Nick had initially rejected Zoe but was now with her, even pursuing her actively.

But no one dared to ask.

Some girls pointed to Zoe's lipstick and asked, "Is this YSL's shade 21?"

Zoe touched her lips and smiled, saying, "Yes."

"It looks so pretty, is it the little gold bar?"

"I bought it a few days ago too."

"Oh, I see."

Nick then lazily swirled his wine glass and said in a low voice, "I bought it for her."

"Ah? Oh, I'm jealous."

The conversation then flowed easily, until Zoe's cocktail arrived.

With Nick present, no one dared to mention Zoe's family's bankruptcy. The conversation revolved around their current studies, Zoe's grandmother's cooking skills, and some people who had participated in dance competitions with Zoe, even though they weren't from the same class but had collaborated for a period of time.

So they also talked about the dance teacher back then and her whereabouts.

Zoe leaned her head to the side and chatted with the other person.

Nick listened to Jack talk about his big plans.

Time slowly passed.

When Nick realized, Zoe was leaning into his arms, looking a bit drunk.

Nick raised his eyebrows and lifted the girl's chin, asking, "How much have you had?"

Zoe squinted her eyes, trying to stay awake, "Just two glasses, and... it's quite tasty."

Her eyes were watery, her skin was as white as jade under the lights, her lips were crimson with a trace of wine still clinging to them, even emitting a faint aroma of alcohol.

Nick's eyes darkened, a hint of animalistic desire flashed across them. He brushed away the hair from her forehead and whispered, "Let's go back?"

"Okay."

Zoe nodded.

Nick stood up and scooped her up in his arms.

Tall and muscular, he looked like a prince carrying this petite girl.

Leo watched, then followed behind, calling for a designated driver while on the phone.

Soon, the designated driver arrived.

He drove Nick's car while Leo stood outside the hotel, reluctantly watching Nick carry Zoe into the backseat.

Afterwards, Leo sighed and turned back, saying to Jack, "Let's continue drinking."

"Alright, sure."

The black car drove all the way to the East China New District.

Nick carried Zoe upstairs, easily unlocking the door. Inside, a refreshing scent wafted through the air.

Zoe moaned softly, covering her mouth and saying, "I want to take a shower."

"Alright, I'll take you."

Nick led her into the master bedroom, put her down on the spacious bed, and reached out to take off her high heels, revealing her pale feet.

The room was quiet, filled with a warm temperature.

...

...

Later, Zoe didn't know how she fell asleep, but when she woke up in the morning, the person next to her was gone.

Zoe felt sore all over, her back aching. She struggled to sit up, leaning against the headboard.

The door opened, and Nick entered with a glass of milk in his hand. His narrow eyes fell on the floor-to-ceiling window behind her.

The window reflected Zoe's pale back, covered in red marks, her skin mottled with red and purple hues.

Nick's eyes flashed with a hidden sense of satisfaction.

When Zoe saw him come in, her face immediately flushed.

But she was also a bit afraid.

Nick placed the milk on the bedside table, crouched down, and lifted her small foot onto his knee. He wore a black bathrobe, revealing his well-defined chest.

Zoe shrank back a little.

Nick lowered his head and tenderly kissed her foot, saying, "You must have been exhausted last night, huh?"