Chapter 10 - Endless Loop (1/2)
”Excuse me, sir. Are you attacking me?” Olivia asked, her voice laced with a hint of hostility towards Wyatt, the platoon commander, who shifted in his seat by the sudden chill in the air.
Wyatt could not explain why he got easily riled up when Olivia said what she said. He completely forgot that she basically grew up in a foreign country and her British accent alone was a dead giveaway. But his love for the country got the best of him, momentarily clouding his judgment, therefore, offending a new friend.
”Nobody's attacking you, Livi,” Emily said as she rubbed Olivia's arms. And as if it was not enough buttering her up, she snapped her head toward Wyatt and said, ”Hey! Don't attack her, Honey!”
After the words left Emily's mouth, it was now Oliver's turn to make a scene. Wyatt squinted his eye as if he stubbed his toe, and tilted his head away from Oliver. Wyatt's head started to spin when he felt his friend's menacing aura reach him. Can't these siblings give him a break, please!
”We promised that there will be no dating in our group!” Oliver w.h.i.n.ed like a child. He knew they were a.d.u.l.ts now and that blood pact was made when they still had their diapers on but he really wanted for them to keep it that way especially now that he's married to Ava. And now that Wyatt and Emily crossed the line, he could see the barrage of questions from his wife, one of which would be asking him endlessly whether he had dated Emily too.
”Is that why you're here, huh? To claim your territory?” Oliver asked with gritted teeth. But before the lovers could explain themselves, Olivia uttered while sipping water from a goblet, ”I haven't met this Maxen but I don't like him anymore.”
Switching from vexed to cool as a cuc.u.mber, Oliver faced his sister and said, ”He's a nobody, really. Just some playboy you don't want to hang around with.” His hand swept through his hair when he felt a sweat form on his hair as he remembered the awkward situation earlier. Although Oliver and Maxen were inseparable growing up, he would never let his precious sister date that guy for they share too many secrets together.
”How could you say that about your friend?”
”Why? It's true. I just saw him leave with Fiona.”
The three friends' conversation felt like an endless loop that Olivia can't seem to wrap her head around.
Maxen. Playboy. Fiona. Who is Fiona? Wait, why do I even care? Sometimes, having too many friends could bring in a lot of drama. Now she was thinking whether or not to hang out with her brother's friends anymore. But she really liked Emily though…
A soft voice disrupted Olivia's train of thought which she was thankful for. She saw a waitress holding out a black velvet check presenter, smiling brightly at her as if she was calculating mentally the tip she'd be receiving from their table. Olivia smiled back, making the waitress blush.
”Lunch is on me,” Olivia said as she pulled out her wallet from her bag. The waitress stood with bated breath and almost fainted when she saw the card. Out of all the diners in this restaurant, she only saw this card once and she didn't even have the chance to touch it. Her eyes glimmer in anticipation as Olivia clipped the diamond-encrusted black royal credit card with a real gold wrapping on the sides. Once the waitress was far from the diners' sight, she opened the check presenter and sniffed the card. She also traced her fingers along the gold wrapping before closing the check presenter with a snap. Today is a good day to be alive, the waitress thought.
”Livi, how did you get that card?” Oliver probed. That card was an invite-only card and most cardholders were from either a royal family member or people of ultra-high-net-worth status. Oliver raised a brow in suspicion when he realized that not even their father was granted an application.
”Oh thaaat… I slept with a prince,” Olivia said jokingly. It was only a whisper but it felt like she said it through a megaphone. Wyatt almost spew the water in his mouth onto Oliver's face. Seeing the faces of the three, Olivia cackled, one hand on her stomach while the other covered her mouth. ”Look at your faces,” she wiped the happy tear at the corner of her eye and clarified, ”I am good friends with a Saudi princess. I'm personally handling her accounts. That's how I got invited.” However, Oliver didn't buy what his sister said but he still left her off the hook.
”What's his name again?” Olivia asked, her fingers hovered over her phone.