Chapter 373: 373: Double Act_1

“`

When Bran Cook said this sentence, his face was filled with anticipation.

His language was genuine, and his gaze was sincere.

Most girls found it difficult to refuse such a devastatingly potent man.

But Quella Radcliffe was not most girls.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

She was only here because of the financial troubles her company was facing, having been introduced to this drinking event by a classmate.

The Radcliffe Group was currently in crisis, and Quella Radcliffe was well aware that Julius Reed could solve this problem.

But she didn’t want to become a burden to her man; her assertive nature led Quella Radcliffe to the decision to handle the problem on her own.

However, upon arriving at the party, she realized things were not that simple.

Bran Cook, standing before her, made no attempt to hide his pursuit; he was almost at the point of kneeling down to propose.

Especially Aaron Martin, the two playing good cop and bad cop, along with two classmates fanning the flames, were exceedingly zealous.

This was clearly a trap laid out for her to fall into.

“Well, Young Master Cook, I’ll drink with you!”

Seeing that Quella Radcliffe was in a difficult spot, Anna Harris quickly picked up her glass and clinked it with Bran Cook’s.

That clink even caused Bran Cook’s face to change slightly.

Out of courtesy, after the clink, he had to drink with Anna Harris; otherwise, it would be seen as a lack of respect for women.

Then the gentleman image he had just managed to build would collapse.

But if he drank, then it was clear Anna Harris was there to stir trouble, and as long as she was there, Bran Cook wouldn’t be able to communicate effectively with Quella Radcliffe.

“Then let’s drink one.”

He quickly resumed his smile, nodded at Anna Harris, and slowly lifted his glass to drink.

At the same time, he gave Aaron Martin a look.

“Excuse me, miss, what’s your name?”

Aaron Martin picked up a bottle of beer, opened it, and held it in his hand: “I see that the lady is forthright, quite similar to me in nature, why don’t we have a drink together?”

Seeing Bran Cook’s glance, he knew what it meant.

This light bulb was a bit of an eyesore; it was time to turn it off!

“I don’t know you, why should I drink with you?” Anna Harris wouldn’t care less, flatly refusing.

“What do you mean!”

“Dissing our boss like that? I’ll tell you, in Gonzalez City, those who dare refuse my boss’s drink can be counted on one hand!”

“Are you blind? You even dare to refuse Mr. Aaron Martin’s drink?”

Suddenly, a group of over a dozen young men surged around them.

They were uniformly dressed in vests, adorned with tattoos, and spoke in an exceedingly arrogant manner, obviously not good people.

Commonly known as “societal people.”

“What are you doing…”

Though Anna Harris was quite domineering, she was after all a girl, and against so many hooligans, she dared not be too arrogant.

Who knew what these people might do?

“Miss Anna Harris, Aaron Martin is a friend of mine, and all these are his brothers. By not giving face like this, you make it difficult for him. And if his employees really were to do something rash, I might not be able to stop them,” Bran Cook said with apparent difficulty.

And as soon as he finished talking, those people became even more excited.

“Sully Cook, if it weren’t for your face, we would’ve stripped her naked and thrown her onto the main street by now!”

“Right, we can’t make Sully Cook uncomfortable, but if you really push us too far, we might have to say sorry to you, Sully Cook!”

“`

“Such ingratitude! Go outside and ask about Mr. Aaron Martin’s fame; who in Gonzalez City doesn’t recognize it?”

With arms crossed, they encircled Anna Harris tightly.

It looked like violence could erupt at any moment.

This was still Bran Cook’s private club— even if she wanted to leave, it was unlikely she could right now.

“Sully Cook, my friend is just like this by nature, unaware of the severity of situations since childhood—don’t take it to heart.”

At times like these, Quella Radcliffe had no choice but to step forward and mediate.

Although she despised these people, there was no choice since she was there.

Get out of the situation first, then discuss the rest.

“Everyone, give me some face! Whoever doesn’t today should not blame me, Bran Cook, for turning heartless!”

Seeing Quella Radcliffe speak up, Bran Cook’s attitude immediately became firm and unyielding.

“Sully Cook, it’s not that the brothers don’t want to give you face. I, Aaron Martin, am respected on the streets—who doesn’t give me some deference?” Aaron Martin pointed to himself, speaking angrily, “If word of today’s incident spreads, where will my credibility be? How can I command respect in the future? You should ask the brothers behind me if they agree!”

Having said this, he slammed a bottle down onto the table with a loud “bang.”

This startled several of the girls present.

“Exactly! Without giving us face, no one is acceptable!”

“If the boss loses face, what face do we have left to mix in the streets?”

“No way! We need an explanation!”

The employees started to provoke further.

“Then what do you want to do? Don’t go too far! Otherwise, we can’t be brothers!” Bran Cook said, furrowing his brows and pointing toward Quella Radcliffe, “This person is my honored guest, you’d better have some limits! Otherwise, we can’t be friends anymore!”

The two of them once again played off each other.

“Since that’s the case, we are all friends here, so I’ll give you some face. You, drink a bottle with me, and after you drink, I’ll pretend nothing happened!”

Aaron Martin passed a beer bottle over and then stretched out his hand; another bottle was passed up by the employees: “One for each of us, just drink and I won’t hold this matter against you anymore!”

“This…”

Anna Harris looked at the bottle of beer, feeling uneasy.

She didn’t drink much, and could occasionally handle some red wine.

But to start with a whole bottle and seemingly needing to chug it, it was a bit difficult for her.

“What? Is my, Aaron Martin’s, face worth so little!” Aaron Martin’s tone grew heavier, which startled a few of the girls.

“I’ll drink for her.” Quella Radcliffe took a deep breath, picked up the beer bottle, and was about to drink.

Anna Harris was brought by her, and in such a moment, she absolutely couldn’t let Anna Harris be at a disadvantage.

“Forget it! I’ll do it!”

Anna Harris snatched the beer bottle from Quella Radcliffe’s hand and drank it down fiercely.

The intense carbonation rushed into her stomach, and lots of beer, along with the foam, spilled out of Anna Harris’s mouth, splashing everywhere.

“I’ll do it too!”

Aaron Martin burst out laughing, lifted his beer bottle, and guzzled it down, making sure to turn the bottle upside down afterward to show it was completely empty.

Whereas Anna Harris, with a pained expression, drank just a few sips and then hurriedly threw the bottle away, dashing to the bathroom.

With the strong beer in her stomach, all she wanted was to vomit properly and think of nothing else.

“Now that you have your face, please leave! Behaving unreasonably towards my friend like this, Aaron Martin, you are not someone worth engaging deeply with!” After seeing Anna Harris forced to leave, Bran Cook’s face hardened once more as he scolded Aaron Martin.

“Sully Cook, you and I have been brothers for years, even risking our lives for each other. And now, for a woman you met for the first time, you want to break ties with me?” Aaron Martin looked shocked and disappointed, “I really didn’t expect you to be the sort of man who prioritizes a woman over friends! But be careful with such a woman—though she may be beautiful, make sure you don’t give too much and get nothing in return!”

“Get out! My affairs are none of your business!” Bran Cook was angry once again.