A Night of Desire

Seeing that he was just trying to be funny, Seth Quinn didn’t press him. He rested his chin on his propped-up hand and stroked it a couple of times with his index finger. Then he stood up and said as he walked back to his desk,

"After work, call Linden and get Chase Childs. Let’s go to The Tuberose for a get-together. It’s been a while."

"Oh? Not going to spend the evening on the phone with your dear Clara? A day apart is like a decade for you two, and if you’re not constantly glued to your phones, it’s like three years. Are you really willing to spend time with us? What if Clara feels neglected and makes you kneel on a washboard when you get back?"

The moment River Sterling heard he had company for the evening, he grew excited and immediately started cracking jokes.

Seth Quinn had already sat down in his office chair and was looking at a document. At this, he glanced up at him coolly, raising an eyebrow in disdain. "Kneel on a washboard? My wife is way too reasonable to resort to a tactic like that!"

Even though his words sounded normal enough, River Sterling still felt goosebumps break out all over his skin.

For a man with such a cold, stoic face to be saying something so mushy—by his standards, at least—was just jarring.

Before River Sterling could even shake off his goosebumps, he heard Seth Quinn casually add, "She’d only use a method as trendy, simple, and brutal as making me kneel on a durian!"

Uh...

His unexpected humor almost made River Sterling choke.

...

Night fell. Inside their usual private room at The Tuberose.

Seth Quinn, River Sterling, and Chase Childs were seated around the room. Linden Jennings only just pushed the door open after the three of them had already gone through about six or seven bottles of beer.

He looked utterly dejected and cold. It was obvious at a glance that his search for Poppy Vance was still fruitless.

Seth Quinn shot River Sterling a look. River Sterling got the hint and immediately stood up, pulling Linden to sit beside him. He clapped him on the shoulder and said, "Linden, what took you so long? The three of us have already had two beers each."

Seth Quinn couldn’t help but frown. ’I just wanted him to make Linden feel welcome, maybe try to cheer him up. Who told him to bring up drinking?’

’Linden probably just wants to drown his sorrows right now. But I’m afraid getting drunk won’t ease his pain—it’ll only deepen it.’

Sure enough, the thought had barely crossed Seth’s mind when Linden Jennings leaned forward, lined up three empty glasses, and filled each one to the brim. "I’m late," he said. "I’ll take three as a penalty."

With that, he set the bottle down, picked up a glass, and tilted his head back to down it in one go. Then came the second glass, which he also drained instantly. He was drinking hard and fast.

After finishing, he reached for the third glass.

No matter how well you can hold your liquor, no one could handle drinking like that.

Seth Quinn was sitting too far away to reach him in time. In a low, urgent voice, he called out to River Sterling—who was, unbelievably, just sitting there watching—and motioned for him to stop him.

River Sterling, however, just shook his head at him and mouthed, "Let him drink his sorrows away."

Seth Quinn was left speechless. He stood up to intervene, but before his hand could even touch the glass in Linden Jennings’s hand, Linden had already drained it.

After he finished, he even turned the glass upside down to show them, a bitter smile playing on his lips. "How about that?" he said. "Three glasses. Not a single drop left."

But that smile was filled with a profound sadness.

Seth Quinn gave him a deep look, then retreated to his seat. After a moment’s thought, he said, "Linden, don’t worry. We’ll find Poppy eventually."

Linden Jennings looked at him, his shoulders shaking with a soft, humorless laugh. "Worry? I’m not worried. I have my whole life to find her."