Chapter 3 - The Order to Leave
Marco stepped forward immediately, sensing the exact moment the conversation ended.
"Is there an issue with your table, Mrs. Bennett?" Marco asked smoothly, his tone impeccably polite yet laced with steel.
Lauren flinched at the title Mrs. Bennett, looking around at the staff who were all looking at her with total disdain.
"Miss Pierce was just leaving, Marco," I said, unbuttoning the damp top button of my shirt with steady hands.
"Please pack her personal belongings and cancel her reservation."
"You can't kick me out!" Lauren snapped, her desperation turning into shrill hostility as her dream deal evaporated into thin air.
"I have a confirmed corporate reservation under Pierce Wealth Management! I have the right to sit here!"
"You had the right to sit here until you assaulted the proprietor with a beverage," Ethan cut in, pulling his phone from his jacket.
"And if you don't vacate the premises in sixty seconds, I will personally call Commissioner Hayes and have you escorted out in handcuffs for disorderly conduct."
Lauren looked at Ethan's phone, then at Marco, whose broad shoulders completely blocked her path to the dining room floor.
She grabbed her trench coat and designer bag from the chair with violent, shaking hands.
"You think you're so untouchable now, don't you, Maya?" Lauren whispered, leaning toward me with pure venom dripping from her lips.
"You're still the charity case from West Side. No amount of money or fancy dresses will ever erase where you came from."
I smiled, feeling an immense, liberating wave of peace wash over my chest.
"You're right, Lauren," I replied softly.
"I will never forget where I came from. That’s why I treat my dishwasher with the exact same respect I give the mayor. That’s why my staff would walk through fire for me, while your colleagues probably celebrated the second you walked out their door."
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Lauren’s jaw tightened so hard her teeth clicked together.
She spun on her stiletto heels and practically sprinted toward the glass revolving doors, nearly colliding with the host stand on her way out into the rainy Chicago night.
