Chapter 1996

Chapter 1996 Taking Advantage There’s no way I can help him into bed.

Elisa could only resort to the next best thing. With great difficulty, she managed to help the person onto the couch. Then, Gareth started to move again.

The couch was simply too small to accommodate him. It looked like he was about to roll off after barely settling down.

Left with no other choice, Elisa could only sleep next to Gareth for now.

The couch, which was originally quite spacious, seemed cramped once Gareth lay down on it.

All Elisa could do was to rest her hands on her own abdomen in a proper manner. Otherwise, she would have nowhere to lie down.

No one knew if it was intentional, but after Elisa lay down, Gareth’s hand led her into his embrace.

Elisa was stunned for a moment, unable to react. By the time she came to her senses and tried to push him away, his strength was surprisingly great. He firmly held Elisa captive in his arms, rendering her unable to move.

After struggling two or three times without success, Elisa simply resigned herself and lay flat.

Gareth was murmuring something under his breath, a satisfied smile plastered on his face. Elisa couldn’t quite catch what he was saying.

One thing was certain; he had been drinking, and quite a lot at that. The smell of alcohol was overwhelming, and his words were somewhat incoherent.

“You’re really asking for trouble, drinking so much when you’re not in good health,” Elisa chided with a chuckle, venting her frustration by playfully poking Gareth’s forehead with her finger.

“Stop messing around,” Gareth mumbled, gripping Elisa’s hand before falling back asleep.

Elisa’s face turned crimson. She wanted to push away but couldn’t.

I’ll just go with the flow. Elisa found a comfortable position and eventually fell asleep.

Meanwhile, Bella arrived at the hotel with the project team.

Immediately, a very polite waiter led the group upstairs.

However, Bella appeared very solemn, twitching at the door for a long time without going in.

Lowering her voice, she advised the people behind her. “Mr. Matthams can really hold his liquor, and he’s a fairly upright person.

But Mr. Macdonald, who’s with him, is a different story. He’s not exactly clean- handed and likes to play by unwritten rules. So, if something feels off, stop drinking immediately. Don’t force yourself. Especially for the girls, you must take care of yourselves, understand?”

Bella brought along two men and two women, paired up in twos, so they could look out for each other.

The hushed voices of four people came through. “Understood.”

Bella gave each of them a hangover remedy before she finally pushed the door open and walked in.

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1/2 As for herself, she was confident that she wouldn’t get drunk.

Immediately after, Brian Macdonald went forward to greet them, his hand casually holding onto Bella, yet his face was full of righteousness.

“You’re here at last. We’ve been waiting for you, Ms. Wickam. You won’t believe how long we have been waiting here for you.

When I heard that Ms. Benett couldn’t make it, I was quite disappointed... But thankfully, thankfully, you’re here, yes?”

Without revealing the slightest emotion on her face, Bella naturally withdrew her hand and then, promptly took her seat.

A hint of embarra*sment crossed Brian’s face, but he quickly sat down as well.

His seat was right next to Bella, so naturally, he made some subtle moves on her.

For example, his hand would accidentally touch hers while making a toast.

Otherwise, his hand would somehow end up on Bella’s thigh.

Bella had to muster a great deal of strength to keep her temper in check, managing not to lose her cool on the spot.

The people who were brought along couldn’t stand Brian’s behavior anymore. They started to mingle, offering toasts here and there in an attempt to create some distance between the two.

And so, Bella was able to catch her breath, distancing herself a bit.

Otherwise, no one knew what might happen.