Chapter 6

Soon, Bella found out the guy's name was Larry Brown, a friend of Edward's.

Larry had been invited to join them and had set up a table right next to theirs.Scarlett and Larry hit it off right away.

Larry was funny and charming, always cracking jokes that had Scarlett laughing her head off.

Meanwhile, the atmosphere at Bella's table presented a stark contrast; an undeniable tension permeated the air.

"Why aren't you guys talking? Just sitting here is so boring. Mind if I join you?" Larry said, moving over to their table.

Bella stood up to make some room for him. "I don't know what to talk about."

She pretended not to know Edward well. Larry hadn't been at the previous dinner and didn't know about their relationship, so he started a topic, and soon Larry and Edward were chatting away.

Edward sat nearby, drinking, his brows furrowed.

When he wasn't smiling, he looked extremely cold. Bella could tell he was in a low spirit.

But so what? He had said himself that he didn't want to get married and wouldn't stay faithful to anyone. Didn't that mean he didn't want to be associated with her in front of others?

She decided to grant him that wish.

Larry looked at Bella under the bar's lights, her calm and serene expression making his heart flutter.

He hadn't tried to flirt with someone like her before.

"How old are you? Do you have a boyfriend?" he asked.

Bella replied, "No, I'm single. I'm twenty-six."

"Haven't you thought about getting married? At this age, your family must be pressuring you," Larry said, taking a sip of his drink, clearly familiar with the pressure.

Bella's fingers paused for a moment before she returned to normal.

"I've thought about it, but I haven't found the right person."

Larry became even more interested.

The two of them chatted animatedly without noticing the growing number of empty bottles around them.

Bella stood up halfway through, "I'm going to the restroom. I'll be right back."

Larry was still eager for more conversation with her as Bella departed.

He pondered for a moment, then shook his head, "She's got a great personality, but unfortunately, her family background isn't good enough. My parents would never agree. Plus, if I married her, I probably couldn't go out and have fun anymore. Better not flirt with her, right, Edward?"

He sought agreement from the only non-marriage advocate present.

To his surprise, Edward also stood up and walked out without a word.

Larry asked, "Hey, where are you going?"

"To the restroom."

Larry fell silent.

...

Bella washed her hands and stepped out, only to be pushed against the wall the next second.

Edward lowered his head and captured her lips in a fierce kiss.

"Edward, let go of me! Are you crazy? This is a public place!"

Edward didn't care at all.

She struggled hard, her waist slowly sliding down the wall.

He caught her with one hand.

Then he grabbed Bella's chin with his right hand, lifting it, and kissed her fiercely again.

Bella couldn't speak, only making broken whimpers from her throat, as she desperately pounded on Edward's chest, but it was in vain.

In the end, she went limp in Edward's arms.

"I don't know when you became so talkative. You have things to say to other men but nothing to say to me?" Edward's voice carried a hint of anger.

Bella could hear it.

But she didn't understand why he was angry.

She asked, "Are you angry? How rare. You actually get angry over a woman?"

"Didn't you say you'd never be tied down by a woman? What's going on now?"

Edward's intense gaze fell on her lips, now swollen from the kiss.

Sensing her anger made him inexplicably happier. "Are you mad?"

He wiped the lipstick from Bella's lips and said, "You're getting mad over something so small? You're really petty."

"Don't touch me!" Bella slapped his hand away.

At that moment, she was not only angry but also disgusted by his casual attitude.

"What do you take me for? You say you want to be a playboy, fine. No one can control you. So please stay away from me, can you?"

"Why are you approaching me again now? What do you intend to do? How do you perceive me—as your mistress or perhaps as a pet that comes at your beck and call?"

Bella was too emotional.

But she had been suppressing these feelings for a long time.

She had come out tonight to vent. Before this, she had been in a bad mood, and Edward's casual remarks to his friend had only made it worse.

Those words now echoed in her mind, and Bella couldn't get rid of them. She felt he had said them on purpose for her to hear!

Edward's smile faded quickly.

He said nothing, just stared at her.

When Edward wasn't smiling, he was terrifying, making it impossible to know what he was thinking.

His sharp gaze seemed to pierce through Bella's facade, hitting her most vulnerable, softest spot.

Bella now had calmed down. The anger subsided, replaced by intense embarrassment.

She couldn't even stand in front of Edward anymore.

"Anyway, my business has nothing to do with you. Go back and tell him I'm leaving."

Bella left, almost fleeing.

As she walked out, she texted her best friend Scarlett, saying she was heading home.

Scarlett immediately asked to be taken along, exchanging contact information with Larry before she left.

As for Edward's contact information, she didn't get it as he hadn't returned.

Scarlett was a bit disappointed, lamenting in the car, "It's such a shame I didn't get that handsome guy's contact info. Who knows if we'll ever see him again."

"By the way, Bella, you were sitting with that handsome guy earlier, right? You spent so much time alone with him. Do you have his number?"

Bella wasn't in the mood. "No, but I suggest you stay away from him. He's not a good person. The jerk I told you about, that's him."

"What!" Scarlett was genuinely shocked.

She muttered, "This world is too small. How could this happen... I'm sorry, Bella. Forgive me; I really didn't know! If that's the case, I won't pursue him. I promise, I'll stay fifty feet away from him in the future."

Scarlett kept shaking her head, firmly expressing her refusal, which made Bella burst into laughter.

"That's not necessary." She couldn't help but smile.

Seeing Bella smile, Scarlett finally relaxed, and the two of them took a cab home.

Bella didn't go back to her rented apartment but returned to her parents' house because she remembered Fallon had been urging her to come home.

When she arrived, her parents were already asleep. She quietly entered without waking anyone, opened her bedroom door, and collapsed into bed.

The consequence of a hangover was that Bella was late for work the next day.

She glanced at the time, covered her face with her hand, and reluctantly called in sick.

Then she got up to wash up.

There was a knock on the door, followed by Fallon's greeting, "Bella, it's late! Get up and have breakfast! I know you're back, so don't try to fool me."