Kris Lenner didn't matter anymore. His previous momentum? All gone. The attention shifted away from him and was fully poured on the blonde whose hair was shining under the limelight right beside the smiling redhead with an impressive feminine physique.
Ron was drinking when he received the vengeful grin. He shook his head subtly, then also turned to the blonde, his smile more restrained than before, but calm and confident.
Sharon looked at Glenn, only to see the eyes that seemed to say "the opportunity you wanted is here", then looked over to meet Ron's gaze. It was almost like she was seeing Alex Lenner with his smiling brown eyes. But on a deeper look, it instead seemed like a pale copy of the famous playboy. And while the latter seemed like the kind who could walk straight up to a woman and charm her into enjoying a night with him, this copy instead had something different in the depth of his smiling eyes, something more possessive, something… darker.
In him, she saw none of the respect for women that Alex Lenner seemed to instinctively project. If she was to describe it, compared to the famous playboy who was after enjoyment, this man, Ron, was after playthings… for his ego.
Sharon's eyes flashed, then she brushed her hair and flashed a bright smile that illuminated her beautiful face:
"I came prepared. I just don't know if your friend has what it takes to get a date with me."
"Woohhh!!!"
"Come on, Ron!!! You have to show her!!!"
"Bet!!!"
"Bet!!!"
"Bet!!!"
"Bet!!!"
Ron saw the challenge in Sharon's smiling gaze, her smile like a silent question asking if he dared.
The corner of his mouth twitched. He raised his glass and downed everything inside, hiding the flicker that flashed through his eyes, then put the glass down onto the counter. He gave Sharon another look, then turned to Lance, his gaze smiling but not playful anymore, only to pause.
Lowering his eyes, he looked down at the microphone thoughtfully held before him, glanced at the smiling Lance, then forced himself to suppress with a smile the violent impulse that suddenly rose up in his chest. Taking a deep breath, he decided to focus on the more pressing matter.
His voice clear, seemingly casual but with a depth of seriousness, he said, his face on full display on the giant screen, his trademark charming smile back in full force:
"My Ferrari for a date. The winner takes all."
Pause. There was a moment when the crowd, which had been clamoring for chaos, stagnated. But that moment came and went like the wind, leaving behind only the prairie fire it had nurtured. Suddenly, the simply burning atmosphere exploded with wildness.
On one side, a date with a famous actress whose beauty needed not to be mentioned, and whose popularity and level of attractiveness were obvious to all. And on the other side, one of the latest sports cars of a world renowned luxury brand, a sports car whose value could rival the value of a house.
The bet and those involved in it changed everything, and the crowd liked that, a magnum opus for the night. Just for it, attending the party tonight had been worth it, not to mention the other matter of interest, the clash that happened earlier.
What was certain was that the event tonight would be the talk of the town if not for one week, at least for three days, and that was saying something, given the short shelf life of gossip in this information age.
With that answer from Ron, Sharon didn't say anything more before she moved away from the counter to return to the Lamborghini she had brought. Ron turned to glance at the sway of her hips, then let his lips tilt upward a few more degrees, this time without the gloom from the challenge, or rather, from having been challenged.
Stepping away from the counter too, not just his smile, even his steps blazed with the confidence of a guaranteed win, and the expectation of an amazing prize at the end. Passing by the group that had now been relegated to the back of the crowd's mind, he tilted his head to sweep Kris Lenner with an empty gaze, then unlocked his Ferrari.
Resting his hand on the door, he didn't immediately pull it open and step inside the car. He turned to the car about to compete against him, and flashed a smile at the blonde on the other side, a smile that stoked the fire at the venue, a fire that suddenly, uncharacteristically died down.
There had been no sign, no prelude, no indicator, nothing, just a dark tide akin to darkness itself that came collapsing on the scene. It was not like the momentum Kris arrived with, and it was even less an overpowering noise overwhelming the scene.
It was just darkness that came, gliding over like water on a glassy surface, not silent, but subtle, and it silenced the venue.
Even before the beast fully appeared, it gripped the attention. It snuffed the fire at the racetrack, and made everyone focus on the darkened bend leading to the entrance of the club, even more than when Ron made his ostentatious display, even more than when Kris arrived.
And finally, the beast appeared — darkness incarnate, peeking from the corner. No noise, no fanfare. Even headlights felt soft, unabrasive as they shone on the ground. And for the second time of the night, the loudspeakers unconsciously went silent.
There was no brand feature on the dark beast that felt more like a military battle vehicle than a civilian car, and as it slowly came to a stop, barely gleaming under the bright illumination at the venue, it projected a pressuring sense of weight, a suffocating sense of gravity, akin to a black hole.
The soft headlights went out, taking back the silencing spell the SUV's arrival had cast, only for a sense of stillness to take the vacated stage, because a guess was starting to swirl within more than one mind on the scene, a guess that some needed no additional element to confirm.
The surprise on Lance's face receded. Shaking his head subtly, he looked at the frowning Kris with barely contained amusement. Putting down the glass he had just picked up, he tapped Tyler on the shoulder, and started walking to the black car.
As his movement stirred a tense sense of anticipation within the crowd, the owner of the black SUV didn't wait for him. The door on the driver side opened, and calmly, a foot descended, touching the ground with soft sound that felt obvious in the silence.
*Tap*