212 A TASTE FOR I

Entertaining Pierre turned out to be more challenging than Hu Lei had thought. The man never seemed to run out of energy, and he wanted to see anything and everything. He wanted to savour food, explore the downtown, check out the parks and in the evening, go out.

On the third night, Hu Lei could not handle the pressure and decided to call in reinforcement in the form of Shun and Wang Che. She did not know many people in Supreme City so she could only depend on the two to help her.

Hu Lei smiled when Wang Che offered a solution for entertaining her enthusiastic guest. As it turned out, they were going to an exclusive party which promised to be extremely invigorating. It was the kind of thing that Pierre would be into.

\"I should warn you that the party is being held by Qi Han's company. He is probably going to be there.\" Wang Che said before Hu Lei could hang up.

Hu Lei did not think much of it because she had already spoken to the man. \"There's no problem.\" Nothing could keep her from taking Pierre to that gathering.

\"Alright, Shun and I will pick you up at eight. We can have dinner before going to the party.\"

Hu Lei told Pierre the plan immediately, and as predicted, he was excited to meet the local second-generation. The truth was he enjoyed his life with Vlad, but he missed interacting with young and fun carefree people.

The party was held in a high-end lounge owned by Qi Han in the edges of downtown Supreme. The fun had already begun when the group of four entered, but they had VVIP seating and did not have to worry about missing out on anything.

\"This place is fancy.\" Pierre commented looking around.

Hu Lei nodded when she thought about Vlad's nightclub. Embrocation was a great club, but it was more edgy and gritty as opposed to the clean and sleek style of the lounge. Plus, the guests at this party were commercially pretty and cute, but they did not have the supermodel beauty and demeanour she had seen at Embrocation.

Wang Che had already asked and made an order for a range of drinks, so they did not have to wait for long before four bottles were brought by a beautiful waitress. Before long, they raised their glasses and drank deep.

\"Vodka, really?\" Hu Lei asked Pierre laughing. As far as she knew, Pierre had always drunk red wine with his meals, nothing more.

\"Don't judge. I developed a taste for it.\" He poured himself another glass.

\"And you, sake?\" She turned to Shun.

\"What's wrong with osake-san?\" The man's face was already becoming a little flushed.

\"Should you really be talking while drinking tequila?\" Wang Che asked her.

\"What's wrong with tequila? It's says I am ready to party.\" She pointed her chin at his bottle. \"Whiskey says that I am stuck in a 60s Hollywood crime movie.\"

Pierre poured another drink for Hu Lei and handed it to her as soon as she was done. Hu Lei drank with him while the next performer was introduced. Apparently, Qi Han had gone all out for the party because the performance stage was a hanging bedazzled cage, drifting over the dance floor.

The young woman was a popular K-pop star with great fame and popularity around the world. She had everything demanded of a typical star: a good voice, a great body, dance moves and contagious cuteness. Her showmanship could not be denied as she sang and danced in the cage.

The four watched her as they continued to drink. Wang Che did not show much except clinical interest while Shun was already in his happy place. The only people truly interested in the performance were Hu Lei and Pierre.

Pierre poured a fourth drink for Hu Lei.

\"Are you trying to get me drunk, Pierre?\" She asked loudly over the music while laughing.

\"What do you think?\" He smiled. \"That's the last one for now.\"

Hu Lei downed the entire glass in a single movement and looked at Pierre defiantly.

\"Let's go!\" Pierre pulled her hand and dragged her to the dance floor.

Hu Lei allowed him to twirl her around the dance floor. She followed the rhythm, allowing him to even dip her close to the floor. Deep in her heart, she felt a certain weight lift from her chest. In truth, she had always felt angry towards Pierre even more than Vlad.

Vlad had always been a mobster, and it was expected that he would result to nefarious methods to get his way. But Pierre was supposed to be the good one with a conscience, and he had allowed her to be used. After spending time with him once again, she understood him a little more.

He was an airhead who did not think a lot about people around him if at all. He just took things as they were and would not even notice the consequences of his actions on in action. She could continue to be angry at him, but it would accomplish nothing. It would be like being mad at a puppy. It was pointless, and ultimately, she would be the one left with the weight in her heart.

When he lifted her from the tip, she hugged him. \"We are good.\" She whispered. He was a complete idiot, but he was also mostly harmless. He tightened his hold for a moment in appreciation before he twirled her again.

\"Che, Che!\" Shun called drunkenly. \"Do you think that elf will steal the hero's wife?\"

Wang Che looked at the foolish man beside him and shook his head in exasperation. He was completely hopeless. He always drank more than he could.

\"Why did you choose sake? You know you can't handle it.\" He scolded lightly.

\"Of course, I can handle it.\" Shun said in protest. There was silence for a moment before he leaned closer to Wang Che and murmured in a low voice. \"I miss home.\"

When Shun had come to Supreme, he had only intended to make a few deals on behalf of his family's company and then, return. But things had changed, and he had built his own independent life away from his overprotective family. Supreme City had become his new home.

After initially moving to Supreme, he had often returned to spend time with his family, but lately, he had become so busy that he had not had a chance to visit his family. He felt so homesick that he wanted to hear his family nag him and tell him how thin he had gotten without their suffocating care.

Wang Che sipped his whiskey casually. \"You are coming with me next week. I have some business in Japan. There is a new motorcycle line that I want to check out for Clarion.\"

Shun looked up with wet rabbit eyes. \"I can't. I have too much work. I even have to work in the morning.\"

Wang Che smiled. \"You have to come with me. You owe me a favour, don't you remember?\"

Shun had put their last deal at the back of his mind even though he knew that the evil vampire prince would come to collect.

\"Fine!\" He said with dissatisfaction while turning his head to watch the elf and the hero's wife. When he thought that Wang Che was no longer looking at him, his lips stretched into a small smile. He did not know that evil vampire prince never stopped watching his prey.