"I know everyone around here. Just tell me who you're looking for, maybe I can help ya out!" The man blocked Ivy's path as she tried to sidestep him. "Hey, lady, hold up! Don't be so cold. I'm just trying to lend a hand here! Why the silent treatment?"
Ivy, finding herself cornered, reluctantly engaged in a verbal dance. "I'm meeting someone, my date actually. Would you mind stepping aside?"
She thought her request was polite enough, but for some reason, the man bristled, "And who's this date of yours? Do tell."
"Sorry, that's none of your business," Ivy replied, not keen on entertaining his advances.
Yet the man remained an unyielding obstacle.
With a sigh, Ivy's patience wore thin. "Sir, what will it take for you to let me pass?"
"Want to leave, huh? Simple." He casually grabbed a glass of wine from a nearby table and held it out to her. "Just down this drink, and you're free to go."
Ivy eyed the proffered glass with no intention to take it. While she wasn’t adept at drinking, managing a single glass of wine was within her capacity. However, after a couple of bad experiences, she was wary.
Who knew what might be spiked into that drink? She was not naive enough to believe that it’s as straightforward as having just one drink.
Once she takes the first drink, there will be a second, a third, until she’s completely intoxicated!
"No thanks, I don't drink," Ivy said, lifting the hem of her dress to step around him.
Nash, that was his name, reached out and yanked her back. "Not so fast, Miss High-and-Mighty. It's not that easy."
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