The Laguna Restaurant
The Campbell family settled at their table with little fuss. The restaurant was set in a beautiful garden with gazebo-style shading for each table. It gave the feeling of being in a fairytale meadow.
Leila looked around and could see other families in their own spaces. The gazebos provided the customers with privacy without compromising their view. She could not help but admire the design.
"Oh, the village bumpkin is in awe," Holly said sarcastically. "You should be thankful that you have the opportunity to dine here. You would not have the chance to set foot in this place without us."
Leila just smiled.
Holly assumed Leila did not understand the importance of the restaurant, so she continued.
"The Laguna is owned by one of the oldest families in Lake City, the Calliwells. The tables are reserved throughout the year. If you were not with us, you would need to wait years before you could enter." She spoke with pride.
"Oh, that is so impressive," Leila said flatly.
Afraid that Holly would make a scene, Charlotte started a casual conversation about each of their weeks. Their brunches were a good way to show harmony in the Campbell family and a time for them to check in.
When it was Amelia's turn to talk, she decided that this was the best opportunity to share her wonderful news about her internship.
"Mom, Dad, I am going to start an internship at Farrel Motors. My mentor organised it for me so that I could begin preparing for college. If I can become an apprentice with Edgar Farrel, I will have an easier time in my future career." Amelia said with excitement.
"That is wonderful," Charlotte was happy for her daughter.
Charlotte had never desired to work since she was younger. Her parents insisted on her learning so much and earning degrees, but she never had her heart set on becoming a career woman.
Instead, she always wanted to become an idle housewife who shopped and drank tea.
Still, she understood the importance of a good educational background in finding a good marriage. Even with beauty, most rich and powerful men preferred a wife they could show off to boost their position.
A lot of powerful men had wooed her in her youth, and she could have chosen someone more impressive than Isaiah. But she did not want someone too powerful because she would not have the peace she yearned for.
All things considered, she was very satisfied with her life.
She wanted the same for Amelia and Holly, so she also encouraged them to improve themselves as much as possible, even if they did not end up becoming career women.
"That is great, Amelia." Isaiah was also impressed. "But you should be aware of the situation at Farrel Motors."
Amelia frowned and felt her heart dropping to her chest. She hoped that the situation would not mess with her plans.
"What is happening at Farrel Motors, Dad?" She asked.
"Edgar Farrel is planning on retiring. His son has just returned from his position abroad, so he will be taking over as the CEO. Edgar will retain the position of chairman, but it will probably be mostly symbolic." Isaiah explained.
Amelia was a little crestfallen because her plan to intern with the expert was not going to come true. Seeing her looking sad, Isaiah felt a little bad.
"Elliot Farrel is incredibly talented from what I have heard. Otherwise, his father would not allow him to take over the company at only the age of twenty-eight. He has been essentially running everything for a few years now." He explained.
"Really?" Amelia felt a little more cheerful.
"Of course! The only reason his father wants him back to Lake City is because he wants Elliot to settle down and get married. I hear that the Farrel family is looking for suitable girls to introduce to him." Isaiah said.
Amelia's eyes twinkled with interest. Although she was eighteen going on nineteen, she was a plan-oriented person. She was already considering her prospects with regard to her future. She wanted to secure a stable relationship with a man from a wealthy family.
Even though she wanted to go to university, she thought it was important to have someone who would be devoted to her.
Elliot was a little bit older than her, but she did not mind. He sounded capable, and he would probably become the future patriarch of the family. Of course, she needed to see if his face and body met her standards.
"I will sign the contract on Wednesday and start my internship next week." She declared. Her earlier poor mood was a thing of the past.
"The Farrel family is holding a banquet on Friday night to announce the retirement. You can join me and your mother for the event. You can take advantage and interact with Elliot before the other interns." Isaiah said.
Isaiah did not mean anything by offering a chance for Amelia to get to know Elliot. Even though he wanted his daughters to marry well, he did not consider him a suitable candidate because of his age.
"Thank you, Dad."
With this, the conversation mellowed out, and the brunch continued without hiccups. Beautiful food was served to the family, and Leila enjoyed the pastries with relish. She did not feel uncomfortable about spending other people's money.
When she had enough, she excused herself from the table intending to go to the bathroom. However, on the way, she had a sense of Deja Vu and froze. It was that light scent of the person who had been following her.
Her eyes narrowed her eyes in anger and gritted her teeth. When she found out who it was, she would beat them up thoroughly. With that thought in mind, she followed the light whisper of the scent.
The smell led her to the main building of the Laguna Restaurant.
She felt her heart race as the scent became stronger. She could already identify the room from which the smell was coming from. With stealthy steps, she walked and stopped at the door of the room.
She put her ear to the door and listened.
"Oh, it seems we have a spy listening to us." A lazy voice spoke from within. "Just come in."
Leila's face flushed a little from embarrassment, but her anger was more. Without hesitating, she opened the door forcefully and looked at the room, intending to tear her stalker a new one.
However, she saw two people seated and drinking tea elegantly.
But more importantly, one of them was a vampire and the other was a werewolf.
The vampire had the usual pale complexion of vampires as well as the royal facial features that gave them a princely look. The werewolf was also handsome, but he had the good looks of a little brother from a pop group or TV drama.
Unfortunately, she could tell that none of them were her target.
She looked and saw a jacket tossed casually on a third chair. The scent was strongest on the black jacket, meaning the culprit had escaped. She felt her blood boil as she looked at the item, wishing it was the owner.
She would tear him up.
"Where is he?" She looked at the vampire and werewolf angrily.
She was now sure it was a man.
"What do you mean?" The vampire replied, acting ignorant.
"The third person who was with you here." She pointed at the chair. "The owner of that jacket."
"There is no one else here. Can't you see that we are on a date?" The vampire said with obvious amusement.
Sterling looked at Callum in warning, but he did not even look at him. Since the previous night, Callum seemed to think it was funny to imply they were a couple. It was probably payback because Sterling said he thought Callum had a crush on him.
Leila looked at them, and they did look like they were on a date. A mature vampire who knew the ways of the world with a cold but soft tsundere werewolf was very much in line with popular novels and dramas.
"He is so shameless that he can be a third wheel?" She muttered under her breath.
Callum chuckled and even Sterling let out a huff before he covered his mouth.
Leila shook her head as she imagined her villainous stalker killing the vibe at someone's date. She shook her head again as she realised that she had gotten distracted from her main concern.
"Are you going to tell me where he has gone?" She wanted to ask who he was, but she did not want to expose her ignorance.
"It is just the two of us here." The vampire said again.
She wanted to immediately beat them up but seeing that the opponents were a vampire and a werewolf, she could not use her usual methods. She was so frustrated that she almost stomped her feet in a tantrum.
"Fine!" She said before walking to the jacket and taking it. "He knows where to find me if he wants his jacket back."
With that, she left the room, making sure that she slammed the door hard.
"Should we have let her take the jacket? Xavier hates it when people touch his things." Sterling asked with a frown.
"You should leave the lab more often and try to understand human beings and their behaviours." Callum scoffed as he looked at the innocent fool before him. "If Xavier did not know her, would he have vanished the moment she came down the hallway?"
Sterling's eyes widened in understanding. "You mean to say that he ran away from her, not because he did not want to interact with strangers as usual."
Callum laughed.
How interesting…
Xavier running away from a five-foot-nothing woman…