Zaria hung up the call and finished her pasta calmly. If Desmond was smart, he would know that settling the matter legally would not be beneficial to Preston and Fort Group. After all, they had an agreement and he had breached it first. If she sued him for it, it might create yet another headline for Preston and Fort Group.

However, it wouldn't be beneficial to her either. With her current reputation, the best outcome would be both of them having their names tangled in a mess. It was a mutual loss situation, and she was sure that she might end up losing out more than him.

So, despite the headstrong threat, she hoped that he wouldn't let the matter escalate out of proportion. Finishing up her pasta, she stood to leave.

Norman had stepped aside to give her some time to herself. When he saw her standing to leave, he rushed over to her and handed her a takeout bag. "It's your dad's favorite braised pork."

She took it with a smile, wondering whether Norman was their long-lost relative. He was so caring. He had always been so kind that most of the people who visited his restaurant would come back often. Although his culinary skills had improved so much over the years, he neither thought of increasing the food prices nor moving to a busier location. Memories mattered more to him.

Thanking him, Zaria held the takeout bag in her hand and thought of how happy her dad would be.

Norman stuffed a card into her hand. "Take this. This is my sister's contact details. She runs a hotel chain. If you meet her requirements, she could give you a part-time job. Just make sure the people from Preston and Fort Group don't find out that you found a job."

Zaria was in disbelief. "Thanks, Norman. But I can deal with it on my own. I don't want to implicate your sister."

He smiled as he waved his hands. "Don't worry! Although I own such a tiny restaurant, my sister is a tycoon. She will help you put that jerk in his place."

Zaria chuckled at his angry tone that still sounded too kind. With his personality, it was hard to imagine him losing his temper. However, she felt a familiar presence closing in from behind them and tensed up. "Uhm…jerk?"

"Isn't he one? Let me ask you, is that insane playboy targeting you because you rejected his advances?"

"Uh…" Zaria desperately wanted to tell him that the man he was cursing was closing in on them from behind her, but Norman took her reaction as a yes. Because all his focus was on Zaria, he didn't realize that there was someone behind her.

He was even more enraged. "You did the right thing. Don't allow yourself to be humiliated by a jerk who would cheat on his fiancée and be proud of it."

"I didn't cheat on my fiancée, and I'm not proud of it." A displeased voice sounded from behind Zaria, making Norman look up.

The man didn't freak out like Zaria expected. On the contrary, it was as though arguing with unreasonable tycoons and teaching them a lesson was something he did every other day. He pointed the spatula that was still in his hand at Desmond. "So, you're the man who's been making Zaria sad. Don't you know that women are treasures? Men who make them sad are immature assholes."

She felt chills down her spine as she expected the unreasonable 'big baby' behind her to erupt in fury. Contrary to her expectation, a deep laugh vibrated from above her head. "Got it. I will treat her better next time."

"Good. Take this." He rushed over to the pastry counter and brought Desmond a blueberry muffin. As he gave the muffin to him, he lowered his tone to whisper some fatherly advice. "You like her, don't you? Never mind. You will probably deny it anyway. Just keep in mind that nice girls don't come by every day. Don't wait until you've pushed her too far before you start to regret it. Of course, I would advise you to get rid of your business deal of an engagement first if you want to pursue her."

Desmond smiled and didn't explain anything. He merely cast a glance at Zaria and nudged her out. "I'll drop you off."

"I can walk." She explained, but he had already plucked her handbag off her shoulder so she could only follow him.

She entered his car but felt as though she was sitting on needles. He wouldn't get back at her for what Norman had said about him, right?

"Norman is…"

"Quite cute." He cut her off before she could explain. "And unpredictable."

Zaria frowned at his words. Why did he make it sound like he knew Norman? Surely, he had never had a meal at Blacklight, right? As a man, who was born with a golden crown on his head, this was probably the first time he had been to such a place.

Glancing at the blueberry muffin in his hands, she wondered whether he would eat it. He would probably look down on it right?

However, he would rather throw it away than give it to her.

Desmond saw that the woman beside him was glancing at him and swallowing longingly. He was almost startled by her gaze until he realized that she was not gazing at him but the muffin in his hand. So, in her eyes, he was not even as handsome as a muffin.

He smiled and intentionally moved closer to her. "Do you want to have a clearer look? I think this angle is better."

"Don't be silly." She pushed him away before asking, "What do you want? I already gave you my terms."

"I want to trade something with you." He held the muffin before her eyes. "This for the braised pork."

Her eyes widened. How did he know…

The point was, "Nope, not trading." This was for her dad, okay?

He retreated for a while then offered the muffin. "Take it."

She glanced up at him cautiously. "That's so unlike you."

"I know. It's too sweet for my liking. I won't eat it anyway." It was obvious that Norman had deliberately given him something that Zaria liked. He didn't have any use for it.

Finding his explanation plausible, she happily took the muffin and munched on it. However, she had just taken a bite when the takeout bag she had been guarding preciously disappeared from her lap.

"Hey!" She shot him a glare.

The man's lips curled wickedly. "You took a bite of my muffin. It's just fair for me to eat your braised pork."

Zaria was speechless by his shamelessness. Did he just trick her for a serving of pork? What was worse, he ate all of it, not flinching even when he learned that it was meant for her dad.

___

When she got home, she finally had time to check out the information on the business card that Norman had given to her earlier.

When she saw the name of the CEO of the hotel chain "Emerald," she finally understood why Norman was sure that the latter would not yield to Desmond's order. Ava Sparks? Wasn't that the mother of Desmond's fiancée, Natalie?