A Beauty with Multiple Masks novel Chapter 20

Inside Arielle’s room.

Arielle felt neither unhappy nor unsettled in any way as she surveyed the modestly decorated interior of the hotel room.

Never mind that she had temporarily fallen out of favor with Henrick, her very presence had already thrown this family into disarray, and amidst the ensuing chaos, she reckoned that she would surely find the truth which she sought!

The ceremony would begin in half-an-hour.

 

Before leaving the room behind, Arielle went before the mirror to straighten out her disheveled hair.

 

The girl staring back at her in the reflection looked unbelievably fetching, coltish and acquiescent, but only she herself knew this to be a mere facade.

A wolf masquerading in sheep skin bit faster, more incisively and viciously, and left no chances for its enemies.

 

The venue for the ceremony was extravagantly luxurious, with the aroma of coffee from the sampling stations of the various sponsoring roasters saturating the air inside.

Shandie picked up a cuppa the moment she entered and took a whiff from it before tilting her head toward Henrick. “This is pretty good, smells full-bodied. And judging from its form, I reckon that it should be from… Corleon.”

 

The sponsor at the side approached appreciatively when he incidentally overheard her. “You’ve a good eye, Miss. Our beans are indeed sourced from Corleon.”

The man’s effusive praise for Shandie made Henrick’s heart swell with joy as he looked proudly at her.

While Shandie was basking in her moment of glory, she lifted her head to see that sponsor looking absolutely mesmerized by Arielle.

Shandie had no doubt that the man would start drooling were he to carry on ogling, and that irked her to no end.

Although Shandie was a little over twenty just as Arielle was, the former still came across as a young lass who had yet to shake off her own girlishness.

In a few more years, there would be no telling whether Shandie herself would even be fit enough to be a complementary leaf to the ravishing rose that Arielle could become.

The very thought of that had Shandie gnashing her teeth and wishing for Arielle to disappear.

She thought that a country girl like Arielle should not show up and mess up her life like this!

Shandie took two steps to her left to block off the man’s line of sight, and harbored deviousness in her eyes when she picked up a cup of coffee in the same motion.

She shoved the beverage into Arielle’s hands and said, “Have a taste of their coffee too, Arielle. I thought it’s rather decent.”

Before Arielle could respond, Shandie pressed a hand to her own mouth as if she had hit upon a realization. “I forgot that you’ve always stayed in the countryside… so you must not have taken coffee before, haven’t you?”

The sparkle vanished from the sponsor’s eyes behind her. He was looking for an ambassador for his company and had thought Arielle’s outwardly appearance fit the bill.

It did not occur to him that she was from the countryside and had not even drank coffee before.

As lovely as the girl was, he deemed her unsuitable, or even undesirable, as a brand ambassador since such an appointment would likely be received negatively by netizens.

Arielle paid little heed toward Shandie’s comments and only wished to taste it for herself.

The result of her sampling drew a frown from her. “Too bitter.”

As fragrant as the coffee smelled, it was too acrid to the taste buds and apart from the bitterness, there was little complexity to the aftertaste – The quality was not all that

Shandie made it out to be.

Shandie snatched the cup back from Arielle, adamant in the view that it was Arielle who did not understand coffee.

What does a country bumpkin like her know about coffee?

Arielle’s response was exactly as Shandie anticipated, and that greatly pleased her. The latter then turned to the sponsor apologetically. “I’m sorry, mister. It’s not that your coffee isn’t good, but my sister here doesn’t know how to appreciate it.”

The man became more certain than ever that Arielle, who did not understand his product at all, should not be up for consideration.

Once again, he regarded Shandie smilingly. “That’s okay, since not everyone is a coffee lover. In that case, I’ll be taking my leave. Good day, ladies.”

The sponsor nodded at Shandie before turning away.

Henrick was thoughtful as he watched the man depart, believing his younger daughter to be far more capable than his elder girl.

Afraid that Henrick might be upset, Cindy purposefully chided, “Really, Shannie. Why did you have to let your sister drink coffee in front of so many people?”

Shandie’s appeared quite indignant. “It just slipped my mind…

Henrick waved it off. “The girl had always been forgetful, but Arielle, how could you tell the sponsor in his face that his coffee was bitter? You‘ve really embarrassed me back there!”