Initially, Manny did not put her friends’ scornful words to heart. As long as her daughter liked the guy, she would be fine with anything. But now, something warong.
My dear daughter, you should have set a standard and limit in choosing someone to love. You should not burden yourself. He doesn’t even have a car, and you need to take him here. Both of you don’t even look like a good match. He looks younger than you by seven years. He must have other intentions. Manny’s expression shifted unpleasantly.
“How could Zelda find such a boyfriend? Manny, talk some sense into your daughter. She’s young and beautiful, finding a more suitable boyfriend will be an easy thing for her.”
“Now, this kid is most likely living off Zelda. Sigh, people nowadays have no shame at all. We need to stop them now. If they sleep together and Zelda gets pregnant, then we’ll have a huge headache later.”
The two women kept on talking. Manny grew more afflicted with the things sheard. How can my daughter be with such a young kid? He’s too unreliable. I have to talk to her.
“Mom, Auntie Helen, Auntie Wanda.” Zelda came over with Chuck. She addressed them as ‘Auntie’s as they were her mother’s closest friends.
The three women stared at Chuck up and down. The woman with tight jeans folded her hands on her chest and rolled her eyes at Chuck. This kid knows how to present himself well. He’s handsome, quite young, fashionable, and almost the same age as the guy she would usually go for in a club. She could even say that people like him are suitable only for fun. If he wanted something else, there’s no way he could get it.
“This is my boyfriend, Chuck Cannon,” Zelda introduced with a smile.
“Hello, Aunties.” Chuck greeted them.
The more Manny looked at Chuck, the more grumpy she became. She frowned and nodded.
Zelda realized that her mother and two aunts were not happy. She also felt helpless, so to break the ice, she said, “Mom, aunties, let’s go eat dinner first. We’ve already booked a place for dinner.”
“Did you make the reservation, or did he do it? Manny asked.
“It’s Chuck’s decision, Mom.”
“Him? He didn’t pick a budget restaurant, did he? I heard that many cheap restaurants cook with dirty oil to save their costs.”
“That’s so disgusting. From the looks of him, he must’ve chosen a low-end restaurant. I won’t eat at such a place. I didn’t come all the way here just to greasy eat oil from a ditch.”
The two women shook their heads and became even more disappointed with
Chuck. Manny scowled.
“Mom, Chuck reserved a good place,” Zelda said.
“Zelda, it’s not easy for us going here, so we can’t eat anything random, okay? Forget it. Just ask your boyfriend to cancel the reservation. I’m quite picky, let me decide on dinner.” The woman with hot pants shook her head in disbelief. She had been here last time, and a friend invited her to have dinner in a hotel. Thotel was of the highest standard, and the entrees were delicious. She wanted to go there. Otherwise, how nasty would it be if she ate a dish made with gutter oil?
“Auntie…” Zelda found herself unable to defend Chuck. Their actions made Chuck look bad, and she felt a little guilty.
“Let her decide,” Manny said. She knew that her two friends were very particular about this.
Zelda sobbed and said to Chuck, “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Chuck didn’t mind. If he went somewhere else for a meal, he wouldn’t have to bother his mother’s hotel staff anymore.
“I’ve booked the place. Let’s go. The dishes there are very delicious, and the ingredients are fresh. You will feel safe and fulfilled if you eat them. It’s not something that a typical restaurant can rival with.” The woman with hot pants said while storing her VIP card at the same time. The woman intentionally glanced at Chuck.
I looked forward to nothing. I thought you would book an expensive hotel. Surprisingly, I have to pay for it myself. I’ll let you take advantage of me this time.
Let me show you what a good meal looks like.
“Get in the car.”
Manny sat in the car, and the two women followed her in.
“I’m truly sorry.” Zelda felt responsible for all the confusion and disgrace. Zelda thought that her mother might be frustrated with Chuck’s age, but she did not expect that her mother and aunties would judge Chuck for having no money. She never saw that coming. If she had known this, she should have let Chuck drive his newly bought BMW.
“I’m fine.” Chuck shook his head, opened the car door, and settled in.
Zelda sighed and followed suit. She had no clue about the restaurant her aunt had arranged.
Manny had already pulled away from the curb. Zelda also started the ignition and followed behind her mother’s car. She felt uncomfortable because she thought that her two aunts were so hateful towards Chuck. But why?
Chuck thought that since someone else had made a different plan, he would call Betty to cancel the preparations. His call got connected.
“Young Master, are you here already?” Betty’s voice sounded on the phone.
“No, I’m not coming. We will be going somewhere else to eat,” Chuck said.
“Okay, Young Master.”
On the other end of the line, Betty put down her mobile phone. She had just come out of the hotel’s kitchen. She thought there must be a Michelin restaurant in a five-star hotel. Betty anticipated that Chuck was about to come over for dinner, so she deliberately brought out a bottle of Lafite 1982, three Australian lobsters, and prepared an exceptional cuisine for him and his guests.
Since Chuck cancelled just now, she had to deal with these ingredients. She hesitated for a moment and went back to the kitchen.
“Hey, where are we headed?” The woman with tight jeans asked in the car.
“A five-star hotel called Hotel Luna. The seafood there is superb and very gratifying.”
“That’s not bad. The restaurants in five-star hotels are usually exceptional. They must be much better than the one planned by Zelda’s boyfriend.”
“You’re still talking about her boyfriend? We ended up having to book the restaurant ourselves. Damn.”
Manny did not say a word as she felt so humiliated. She sighed in her heart, thinking what a big disappointment her daughter’s boyfriend had been.
“Manny, that’s the hotel directly upfront. I’ve been there last time.” The woman with hot pants pointed to the exterior of the building.
“Okay.” Manny drove over the entrance, and a security guard immediately approached them with a smile. Manny felt relieved and followed the guard into a parking space.
“See, this place is way better. And this is how a five-star service should be. This is the kind of high-end place where we should eat. I don’t want to eat anywhere else.”
“It’s not so bad. This hotel looks decent!” The two women were all praises, and they were also looking forward to it. After all, they were starving.
Chuck began to feel strange. “Is this the place that your aunt has selected? Isn’t this my mom’s hotel? What a coincidence!”
Chuck suddenly smiled. Zelda followed the security guard’s lead to the car park. She couldn’t contain her surprise as well. She had been here last time, but she did not expect to return after a few days. After parking the car, the two of them came down and walked toward Zelda’s mother and her aunties.
The five of them went straight inside. The hotel’s restaurant was next to the main entrance. The hotel looked modern, and there was a receptionist at the door to welcome them with a smile.
“Are there five of you?” the receptionist asked politely.
“Yes, there’s five of us. I’ve put a reservation on the phone just now.” The woman with hot pants said.
“Okay. You’re Miss Wanda?” the receptionist inquired gently.
“Yes, I’m a member here. I came here last time.” The woman with hot pants said proudly.
“Yes, we have reserved seats for you..Please come in.” The receptionist took them inside with Chuck following at the back.
“Wow, business here is good.” The woman with tight jeans looked impressed.
“That’s right. You can’t find a seat if you’re not a member here.” The woman with hot pants said. When she was on the phone just now, the receptionist said there were no seats left. Still, she immediately reserved seats for the group after the woman mentioned her membership number.
When they reached their table, everybody sat down, and the waiter began to introduce the menu. Chuck looked around and thought, “This is terrific. My mother is so good at managing the hotel. All the staff assists the customers with a ready smile. How did she do this? I’ll have to ask her about this later.”
“Zelda, what do you want to eat?” The woman with hot pants asked.
“Chuck, have a look,” Zelda said.
“Forget it, I’ll decide for everyone.” The woman in hot pants grabbed the menu and thought, “Let him order? What if he orders something expensive? He should already be grateful that he can eat here.”
The woman carefully studied the menu for a while and ordered the dishes. The waitress took the list and said, “Kindly wait for your orders.”
Then she immediately went to the kitchen. However, when she turned around, she suddenly noticed Chuck. This guy looked so familiar. She subconsciously thought about it and was immediately shocked. This guy was the one at the banquet last time. The waitress immediately went to look for Manager Bernard.
“The seafood here is very delicious. You should eat more of it later. After all, someone may not have been here in this kind of place.” The woman with hot pants snickered with a hint of sarcasm in her tone.
The woman with tight jeans smirked, but Manny flushed in distress. She grew even more cautious for her daughter to find such a boyfriend.
Zelda was raving mad, but Chuck didn’t mind it at all.
The waitress came out of the kitchen and happened to see Betty.
“Madam, the man from before has come,” the waitress said in a low voice.
“The man? Who?” Betty Bernard followed the waitress in confusion. When she saw Chuck from a distance, she felt a sudden alarm. “Why did the Young Master come here? Who ordered their food just now?”
“A woman named Miss Wanda. She’s a member here,” said the waitress.
Betty took a look at their orders. All the dishes were typical courses. She commanded, “Call the kitchen staff to prepare the three Australian lobsters. We’ll bring them over later. Also, go to the cellar and bring the Lafite 1982 here.
Remember to chill the wine now.”
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