The party lasted until the early hours of dawn.
Gerda and Janet got piss drunk, while the others who hadn't joined in the drinking competition continued to eat and drink.
Once they realized that Janet had completely wasted, they finally decided to call it call it a night.
The coworkers had worked together to lift the two girls from their seats and carried them outside.
"Hey, what should we do with these two? They're drunk as a skunk."
Christopher glanced at the still unconscious Janet and cleared his throat.
"I'll send Lind home."
"Oh yeah, you and Janet went to the same university, right?"
One of their colleagues asked with a mischievous glint in her eye.
Christopher just smiled.
"Yes, we were schoolmates."
He was not particularly good-looking, but he always looked neat, and had a calm and gentle demeanor that made people feel
safe around him.
it didn't hurt that he was tall and had broad shoulders, too.
Gerda opened her eyes then, and grinned.
"I heard that you two are close.Didn't you stand up for her when Ike deliberately targeted her?"
"Aren't you supposed to be drunk?‘ Everyone had turned to Gerda in surprise, and couldn't help but admire her seemingly
indestructible tolerance to alcohol.
"I was just pretending.Lind is too stubborn for her own goad.She knows she can't handle her drink, but she still insisted.If I hadn't
acted like I was drunk, she would have kept at it until she had to be rushed to the ICU."
Gerda paused and let out a loud burp, her face turning red as a tomato.
"Well, then.Let Chrislopher send her back.We can leave it all up to him."
After reaching a consensus, they hailed their respective taxis and split up.
Christopher locked at Janet, who was slumped against the wall of the restaurant.
The early autumn breeze was chilly, especially given the hour.
Christopher took off his coat and draped it over Janet's shoulders, then he put an arm around her waist to support her to the
curb.His hold on her was loose and casual; he didn't have any ulterior motive.He only wanted to see that Janet went home
safely, and perhaps spend a little more time with her in the process.
Christopher slung her purse over his neck and ushered Janet to the street.
It wasn't easy, seeing as he was practically dragging a dead weight.
All the jostling must have woken her up, because Janet began to groan.
"Janet?"
Christopher leaned close and parted her messy hair to find her struggling to open her eyes.Her plump lips pursed as he tucked
her locks behind her ear.
"Are you all right? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?"
"Be quiet.I want to get some sleep."
Janet appeared to be sleep talking.She reached up with her slender fingers and scratched her nose.
Before he knew it, she had settled into a comfortable position in his arms, and was sleeping soundly against his chest.
"Okay...Sleep well."
Christopher was unaware that he was sporting a huge grin at that moment.He had even forgotten the fact that Janet was already
married.
Shortly after, he called a taxi and put Janet in the backseat with much difficulty before flopping beside her.
"Please take us to this neighborhood," he instructed the driver.
Christopher only knew the name of Janet's residential community, but he had no idea which apartment building she stayed in, let
alone her unit number.
The taxi sped into the night.
Throughout the drive, Christopher sat stiff and virtually motionless.
Janet's head was nestled in the crook of his shoulder.
Soon, he heard her muttering under her breath.
He lowered his head and stared at her delicate face.
"What? Can you say that again? I didn't hear you clearly just now." Janet huffed, her eyelashes fluttering slightly.
"I said, aren't you going to kiss me?" Christopher felt his ears burn.
He cleared his throat and took a deep breath.
"Do you know who I am?"
He was just a man, after all—a man with feelings for her.
"Why aren't you kissing me already?" Janet placed a hand on his other shoulder and pulled him close.
She sounded petulant, coy almost.
Christopher leaned into her invitation, his hand pressing against the small of her back.
He traced the curve of her cheek with his forefinger, pausing when his burning gaze fell on her lips.A muscle ticked at his jaw as
he hesitated.