Daniela ordered a martini for herself and Adeline, staring at the cloud bewilderedly.
Unlike clubs she'd heard of which were loud with banging music, and women stripping around, this one was quite coordinated.
Only a soft tune could be heard in the background, everyone was dressed like they looked important. The lights was dim, making it difficult to catch the faces of the people present.
Daniela gave Adeline her Martini. "What? You like it?"
"I thought it was going to be loud and we would dance. I can barely hear any music," said Adeline.
"I'm a VIP customer, Adeline. The club isn't open, but we can chill while it's still quiet. We'll start dancing once the loud music is played."
Adeline made an ooo shape with her mouth as she sipped from her martini.
She gagged when the strong alcohol hit her throat.
"What in the bloody hell is this?" She questioned, glaring at the drink like it was a weapon fashioned against her.
Daniela burst out in a flood of laughter, barely controlling herself.
By the time she stopped, tears were already in her eyes.
"Relax, you have to drink it slowly. It's not juice, you know?"
Adeline did as she was told, yet the drink burned her throat. She shrugged her shoulders and continued.
She saw some men walk into the club. One was in front while three were behind him. It didn't take Adeline two guesses to understand that the person must be an important person.
She ignored them and continued to have fun.
Darien couldn't believe his eyes.
The woman sitting just thirty feet away from him was Adeline Donovan. It's been years since he last saw her. She was grown now, looking more beautiful than the last time he'd seen her.
"Darien, are you listening to what I'm saying?" Andrei questioned Darien.
"I am," he responded. Andrei gave him a suspicious look before turning to see who he was looking at out of curiosity.
Unfortunately for him, Daniela's back completely shielded Adeline so he couldn't see her face.
Dejected, he faced Darien.
"Well, at least act like you're listening to me." Then they resumed their conversation.
Twenty minutes later, the club was banging with music now as more and more people filled the space.
By this time, Adeline had already downed five martinis and the movements were starting to get all wobbly.
"Are you sure you still want to stay?" Daniela asked, concern evident in her tone.
Adeline shook her head vertically, her face flushed red.
She moved her body on the dance stage, swaying her body left and right depending on how the music moved her.
A few men came to ask for her hand in dancing, but she rejected them all. She wanted to dance alone and free herself of all her worries, just tonight.
Darien kept watch on Adeline like a hawk, his fists balled when more and more men kept coming to her even after getting rejected.
Her friend tried to pull her aside but Adeline shook her head.
He saw her returning to her seat to take another sip of her martini, making it the sixth glass.
Yes, he was counting.
He saw the opportunity and took it. He'd sent Andrei and his bodyguards away after completing his business. He covered the distance between them in ten long strides and towered over her.
"I think that's enough drinking for you," he said, gently putting the glass away.
Adeline looked at him with squinted eyes.
"Who are you to tell me what to do?" She questioned, her eyes still squinted as she tried to make out his face. "Who are you?" She demanded as she snatched the glass away from him, attempting to drink it again.
Darien gritted his teeth as he snatched it back. He couldn't believe he was going to be playing such a game with her right now. She didn't even recognize him, or perhaps, she'd completely forgotten his face.
"I said no," he stated, his tone firm this time around.
Adeline glared at the man hard. He looked familiar but she couldn't place a finger on where she'd seen him before.
But no matter who he was, he didn't have any right to take her drink away.
"You've had enough," the strange man said with so much familiarity she wondered where the audacity came from.
Hearing him talk reminded her of Theodore all of a sudden—the temerity in his tone to claim her as if she weren't a living being with a choice of her own.
Anger bubbled beneath her blood, and before she could think, her hands moved first, grabbing the bottle of beer Daniela had bought earlier, and the next thing, they landed hard on his head, the glass shattering.
Adeline was stunned.
Daniela was even more stunned.
The crowd was flabbergasted, and Darien, his hair was wet with beer while blood dripped slowly.
"Fuck me," he cursed under his breath with his teeth gritted hard.
"My goodness!! Adeline, what did you do?" Daniela questioned, fear evident in her voice when she recognized the man was Darien Hawthorne.
Adeline dropped the remaining piece in her hand, her face drenched in dread.
Darien fought to keep consciousness, but his head was spinning.
"I didn't mean to." Adeline shook her head as she spoke. "I didn't mean to." She is back to her senses now and has come to realize she almost killed a man.
The bouncers intervened, but Daniela stopped them.
"We'll take care of this. Just help us get him to the car," she instructed and they nodded, ready to take Darien.
Darien on the other hand couldn't think. He heard voices, and although the people speaking were close, the voices turned faint and distant.
Before he could get a grip on himself, he fell to the ground and everything turned black as he lost consciousness.