Derek smiled and then moved his hand toward Cassidy's thigh.
Alex quickly grasped Derek's hand and shook it. "Hello, Mr. Lloyd. It's nice to meet you."
"Who the hell are you?" Derek asked, taking his hand back and scowling at Alex.
"Derek, this is Alex," Cassidy said. "He's a friend of mine."
"How close a friend?" asked Derek, looking at Alex with contempt.
Alex frowned. He wanted to say something, but he remained quiet for Cassidy's sake.
"A good friend," she replied. "He owes a real estate company."
"A real estate company?" Derek echoed, raising an eyebrow. "Where? I bet he hasn't sold a single property." He shook his head. "Do you know why it's so hard for you to make it big, Cassidy? It's because you're always hanging around with losers. If you socialized with other celebrities or successful people like me, then you would have been popular all over the country by now."
He put his arm around her waist. "Come with me. Let me introduce you to some of my friends, and you can have a few drinks with us."
Cassidy's face turned red.
"What's the matter?" asked Derek. "Am I not allowed to touch you?"
Cassidy pushed his hand away. "Derek, I came here today to talk to you about something important. If you have a request to make, you can just ask me. You don't have to touch me—"
"Touch you! You make it sound like I'm going to harm you," Derek interrupted, clearly not happy he had been rejected.
Cassidy fell silent.
"I'll give you one last chance," said Derek quietly as he stood up. "Take this key card for room eight hundred and eight at Riverside hotel. Wait for me in the room, and I'll come shortly to discuss the matter with you."
Then, he turned to Alex and said, "What are you looking at? You have no business here."
Alex couldn't contain himself any longer. He raised his hand and slapped Derek across the face.
The force of the strike knocked Derek backward. He hit the edge of the table, and his forehead immediately started swelling up.
Cassidy gasped.
"How dare you hit me!" roared Derek as he felt his forehead.
Cassidy rushed to help him up. "I'm really sorry, Derek. My friend didn't mean to do that."
"Move out of the way," Derek said, pushing Cassidy aside. Then he glared at Alex and bellowed, "You have the audacity to hit me? Do you know who I am?"
Derek was an important person, and he was used to being treated with respect by everyone who met him. But now, he had been hit in front of his subordinates, and he felt humiliated.
"You'll regret what you've just done," Derek warned Alex.
Elaine and the others who had come in with Derek rushed over and glared at Alex.
"I don't care who you are," Alex said, shrugging. "If you harass Cassidy, I'll teach you a lesson."
"Teach me a lesson?" Derek repeated, almost snarling. "I'm the manager of the Robinson Winery and a member of the Lloyd family. Do you think you can get away with offending me?"
"Am I supposed to be afraid?" asked Alex, not in the least bit intimidated.
Derek's companions looked at one another, unable to believe someone had the nerve to speak to Derek like that.
Elaine looked at Alex with disdain.
"Cassidy, are you sure he's your friend?" Derek demanded.
"Derek, I'm sorry. It's all my fault," said Cassidy. "I'll make it up to you."
She didn't blame Alex for his actions. But, at the same time, she needed Derek's help and couldn't afford to offend him, so she needed to smooth this over.
Derek sneered. "Of course, it's your fault. If it wasn't for your poor choice of friends, then I wouldn't have to deal with this loser. And I'm warning you, Cassidy—I'm not finished with him. As for you, if you want to make it up to me, then go and wait for me in the hotel room. Maybe I'll give you another chance."
And then he pointed at Alex and said, "And in the meantime, I'll deal with him."
Cassidy's face turned pale. "Derek, Alex is impulsive. Please don't provoke him."
She had seen Alex kill Grayson by pushing him out of a window, and she knew there would be trouble if he got into a fight with Derek.
Derek turned to Cassidy and said, "You better make sure it's good tonight, then."
Without waiting another moment, Alex slapped Derek in the face again, causing him to stumble backward.
Alex's eyes turned cold. "Don't threaten Cassidy again, or you won't like the consequences."
Derek was helped up by his companions. "You'll pay for that!" he bellowed.
He wanted to fight back, but he wasn't sure he would be able to defeat Alex.
"This is your last chance to walk out of here," said Derek.
Alex snickered.
Derek took out his phone and made a call. It was clear he was hiring someone else to deal with Alex.
"I know plenty of people in Baltimore who won't hesitate to make you disappear," said Derek, turning to Alex. "Your reckless behavior will have implications for Cassidy."
Then, he pointed to her and said, "Don't think that I'll help you with your problem after this."
Elaine and the others looked at Alex and shook their heads, thinking he was a fool for challenging Derek. They all started advising him to apologize to Derek.
"He's not as simple as you think. You have no idea what kind of influence he has in Baltimore," said one.
"If you provoke him, then both you and Cassidy will suffer the consequences," said another.
Then they turned to Cassidy and said, "Please stop this before things get out of hand."