Babel Novel
Chapter 32
A flight attendant glided down the aisle, her cart clinking with beverages. Seizing the moment, Miranda grabbed a glass of red wine, quickly adjusted her hair, and strode toward the first-class cabin, aiming directly for the VIP seats. Just a step away from her target, she stumbled, drenching a man’s brand- new suit pants in wine.
“Hey!”
Cedric, who was seated nearby, was the first to react, pausing his work.
“What’s going on here?”
“I’m so sorry, I just felt a bit dizzy and lost my balance.” Miranda clutched her forehead, her face a picture of remorse as she apologized repeatedly. “Maybe I can help clean that up for you?”
As she spoke, she knelt by Orion’s feet, her hands reaching for his pants.
The cold wine had disturbed Orion from his light doze. His eyes snapped open to a pitiful face looking up at him, her eyes red and pleading. Suddenly, a fierce glare shot from his eyes, “Scram!”
That single word sent chills through Miranda, causing her hands, which were about to touch his leg, to tremble with fear.
Cedric, experienced in corporate dealings, had seen through Miranda’s intentions from the moment she knelt. Trying to attract the attention of Orion with such a crude tactic was laughable. He hadn’t had the chance to intervene before Orion woke up.
Already suffering from insomnia and having worked intensively for several days, Orion had just managed to catch a bit of sleep on the flight, only to be rudely awakened.
“I’m so sorry, sir, it wasn’t intentional.”
Xanthea, engrossed in adjusting the resolution of her smartphone’s external device, was suddenly drawn by the commotion at the front of the first-class cabin. Rushing flight attendants headed in that direction.
Was that Miranda’s voice?
What happened?
She put away her phone and approached the VIP exclusive seats, catching glimpses of the scene through several flight attendants trying to calm the situation.
What’s going on?
Orion? Miranda?
Why was Miranda kneeling in front of Orion?
“I can help clean it up or compensate.”
“Miss, please step aside immediately; we will handle this ourselves!”
Hearing Cedric’s words, and seeing Miranda with the wine glass and her overdone act of contrition, Xanthea got it.
This bitchy girl, always seizing any opportunity to hook up with men, had just spilled wine on Orion’s pants.
Such a tactic, whether clever or tacky, was debatable.
“I’m sorry, sir.”
Before Miranda could persist, Cedric was about to intervene when a familiar voice cut through.
“Hey, sis, what happened? Why are you kneeling here?”
Xanthea pushed past the flight attendants and feigned surprise at the scene, “Mr. Lockwood, what a coincidence to see you again, good morning.”
Orion’s irritation seemed to vanish at the sight of her, like a gust of wind clearing away storm clouds, leaving only a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
Sister?
As Cedric heard her speak, he finally realized that the woman kneeling was Miranda Nightshade, the adopted daughter of the Nightshade family he had seen on “The Masked Singer.” No wonder she seemed familiar; he thought she was just another employee who had tried to scheme against Orion before!
“Xan, I accidentally spilled wine on this gentleman.”
“Good morning, Ms. Nightshade.”
Her tearful explanation was interrupted by his greeting, calm and rich, like a refreshing breeze on a summer day, starkly different from his earlier hostile tone. This content is © NôvelDrama.Org.
Miranda froze.
Why?
Was it because he didn’t recognize her? Or simply because Xanthea was the legitimate heiress of the Nightshade family?
“Oh, it was just a misunderstanding, everyone here is acquainted, no need for such a
fuss.”
Bending down, Xanthea gently helped Miranda up, introducing her, “This is Mr. Lockwood, CEO of the Lockwood Group. He attended my coming-of-age ceremony at Lakeside Manor and was a special guest on ‘The Masked Singer, remember, Miranda?”
14:58
“I-I just didn’t recall immediately.”
Miranda awkwardly explained while Xanthea patted her shoulder reassuringly, “It’s okay, I’ve this. You can go back to your seat now”
got th
What?
The abrupt turn of events stunned Miranda.
“What’s wrong?”
A flight attendant urged her from behind, “Please return to your seat, miss, the plane is about to take off.”
“No, it’s nothing.”
Miranda turned around, her face finally betraying her frustration.
She had taken such a risk to connect with Orion, only to be effortlessly ousted by Xanthea. Why did everything have to be a competition with her lately!