Chapter 44: Babe, Honey... or Sweetie Pie?

Richard tsked.

He couldn't tell if his best friend spoke the truth or not. It wouldn't be unlike Ambryan to keep it a secret. He had always done that—especially when it concerned his childhood. Stories that happened outside of the city were off-limits. Not even Avery had shared anything.

It still had him curious after all these years.

"Look, I'm just saying what I know." He snorted, gulping a mouthful of wine.

Ambryan averted his eyes and drank some more. He only took a break only to respond briefly. He refused to let this theory be dragged longer. "She wasn't the only person who had red hair."

'That woman… Mila was it?' He thought, recalling the third woman he met, 'She had tight ginger curls. It was also natural compared to Evangeline's which seemed dyed.'

Richard choked on the wine. He coughed raspily as his throat burned from the sensation. He hadn't expected such a twist—not that he minded. Things became more interesting than he initially expected.

"Oh, really?" Richard smirked. He reached for a tissue. A box of them sat on the kitchen island. He wiped the corners of his mouth. "Then, she must be more special than the other one."

"She's the least troublesome one."

The immediate answer left him speechless. Any hope he had was crushed. Of course, that would be the reason. It surely sounded like his best friend. 'This was going nowhere, wasn't it?' he lamented.

"Coming from you, that's a compliment," Richard snorted, giving up on this interview. He decided to use a different approach. "When do I get to meet her?"

Ambryan refilled his glass. "Why would you need to meet her?"

"Shouldn't I have some input about this girlfriend of yours?" Richard exasperated. His best friend didn't plan to hide her from him, right? What would he say if others asked him about it? They'd expect him to know insider information because of their relationship.

Most of those were just excuses. He really just wanted to meet her.

She'd probably talk more than Ambryan ever would.

"Girlfriend?"

"Well, yeah. What else would you call her?" Richard questioned. A confused look painted over his face. "You did talk about that, right?"

Ambryan titled his head to one side and scowled. "Talk about…?"

"Oy vey...," Richard moaned with a sigh. He bowed his head and ruffled his own hair. The curls became messier than usual. They stuck out in different directions. Looking up, he grumbled out his concern. "What was the lunch discussion about then?"

Granted, he expected Ambryan to be this way. Although, he did expect the woman to lead this relationship. It would be her who would put this subject to light. A large portion of the female species found this a sensitive topic.

They wanted a clear line, not half-baked promises.

It seemed that this woman belonged to the small portion.

"Terms and conditions."

Richard closed his eyes and hung his head. He stayed that way for a moment. A growing headache throbbed at his temples. Now, he really wanted to meet this woman. Either she was meek and mild, letting Ambryan take the lead, or she was like his best friend, uncaring about the details.

Sighing, he brought his chin down and said, "Did you remember to put a label on it?"

Ambryan gave him the same bewildered expression.

Richard pinched the bridge of his nose. How should he explain this?

"Yan, you have to be clear," he started to say and used a firm voice, leaving no room for compromise, "The two of you are dating right now but how would you introduce her in gatherings? 'Hello, Mr. Baltimore. This is Unnamed-Girl. She is my contracted date for 9 months'?"

"What a wonderful suggestion."

"..."

Richard grabbed the bottle and drank straight from it. It flowed down to his stomach like a tidal wave. Thinking about it, he realized that he should have bought two. Not only did his best friend have high tolerance but also he needed it to soothe this headache.

"Anyway," he said, breaking the silence. He slammed the bottle on the counter. It only had a little left. "Fake or not, establish the relationship. At least, refer to each other as boyfriend and girlfriend. It wouldn't be good to have it unlabelled with no clear understanding for outside parties. They wouldn't know about your mother's scheme after all."

Ambryan glared.

His dirty look stared at the bottle's rim. Now that Richard drank from it, it became filthy. His saliva tainted both the bottle and its contents. Ambryan could no longer drink from it.

Unless, he wanted to exchange spit with his best friend.

Richard quickly realized his mistake. He pulled the wine bottle off the kitchen island and stood up. His feet backed away slowly, proceeding with caution.

"I am just going to shut up and go to the other room while you talk with her about it," he laughed awkwardly. Once the next room appeared in his peripheral vision, he made his escape. "The food delivery might arrive suddenly."

Ambryan put his glass down. It was already empty. Two glasses barely satisfied his fill. He went to his wine selection at the L-shape counter and opened one. He made a mental note to not let Richard drink any from them.

Taking one sip, he fished out his phone and opened the DTC app.

.

``Yan: Good evening, Ms. Evangeline.``

``Lin: Mr. Hathaway! Going to sleep already? I am shocked.``

``Yan: Sleep?``

``Lin: Didn't we agree that you'd say 'good night' before going to sleep? I thought that would be the reason why you messaged me. <(￣︶￣)>``

.

Ambryan stared at the emoticon. He'd never seen her use one before. It seemed that someone was less guarded. That skating rink must have lifted up her spirits. Since he took her there, she became more relaxed.

Somehow, that delighted him for a bit.

A small smile teased the corner of his lips.

...

...

...

...

His gaze snapped towards a dividing wall. A blur of bronze vanished from his sight. Ambryan shook his head. He turned around and hid his front profile, keeping the 'spy' away. That person would find nothing to gossip about.

Ambryan leaned on the kitchen island and typed out his concern.

Well, his best friend's concern.

.

``Yan: No, I wanted to establish something. It has come to my attention that we needed a 'label' as I've been told.``

``Lin: Oh. You mean like 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend', right? Not 'babe', 'honey' or 'sweetie pie'?``

.

'Endearments?' Ambryan wondered. He read something about them in the past. He had also heard it from others like his parents. It seemed to be what couples called each other. 'Would she be more comfortable with that instead of his first name?'

Rereading her message, he dropped the idea. It already gave him the answer.

.

``Yan: The former.``

``Lin: That seems reasonable since we'll be 'dating' for a while.``

.

Ambryan blinked.

That seemed easier than Richard implied. What was the fuss about? His best friend acted like it was a huge problem. This conversation just further proved how overdramatic Ricahrd could be.

.

``Yan: Alright. That's done then.``

``Lin: Anything else?``

``Yan: No. Sleep well.``

.

He closed the app and locked the screen. He reached for the wine glass and drank half of it. It relaxed his muscle tension. This would be the last time he listened to his best friend's worries. They never turned out to be significantly rational.

His phone suddenly vibrated in his hand.

.

``Lin: Don't stay up too late!``

.

Ambryan snorted quietly.

He chose not to reply. It would only break her expectations. Since he spent hours outside, his work piled up. Eve always had the weekend off. He only contacted her if it was an emergency. Despite his work position, he still preferred to do most work by himself.

It caused him less trouble from the people Madison chose to hire. He had gone through several secretaries because of this.

The only one he approved of was Eve—except, her potential exceeds her position. If she chose to train, he'd relay more work on her and possibly hire an assistant secretary.

"Evangeline, huh?" A voice asked near his ear.

Whirling around, Ambryan found his best friend kneeling on the kitchen island.

"Richard," he spat out. He tucked his phone away and shot daggers at Richard. His violet eyes crystallized like dark amethyst. "I didn't know snooping is your new hobby."

"What do you call her? Eva? Angel? Lin? Her name has so many possibilities," Richard continued, ignoring his best friend's displeased expression. He slipped back on the stool and cradled his head between two hands. He resembled a high school girl watching a romance film.

"You can even call her, 'Van', and it would work. It would be easy to pick a unique nickname that you only use," he gushed. Out of all of them, 'Lin' caught his attention the most. It matched Ambryan's nickname, Yan. Both were the last syllables of their names.

Ambryan placed his glass on the sink and walked away from the scene. His response echoed around the penthouse, amplifying and gathering more power, "Thank you for your concern on my love life, Richard. If you had that much care with your own then, you might be married by now."

Richard flinched at his words.

'Did you have to hit me where it hurts deep?'