Chapter 114 Friends

"Long time no see, Carmen." Ronald embraced Carmen Case, who walked out of the gate, and stepped back, saying, "You look even more beautiful."

Carmen Case looked Ronald up and down: "Thank you." She smiled. "You've lost a lot of weight since last time."

Ronald could sense that there were cameras shooting in their direction, but he didn't mind. Carmen Case, in a light golden ladies' suit, tall and graceful, with outstanding looks, easily attracted the attention of the reporters.

At this moment, a female assistant came up from behind, pulling a suitcase, accompanied by a shrewd middle-aged woman.

Dior also sent someone to pick her up, but Ronald didn't pay attention to them. He said, "Where to? I'll take you."

With limited meetings in the past and a long time since they last met, the two were somewhat unfamiliar with each other.

Carmen Case didn't refuse and smiled, saying, "Thank you for the trouble."

Ronald took the small suitcase from her hand and said, "We're friends, no need to be polite."

As they were about to leave, the middle-aged woman suddenly caught up from behind, pulled Carmen Case, and reminded her, "Carmen, Dior has booked a hotel for you."

Ronald turned his head and said, "I'm Carmen's friend. I'll take her to the hotel."

Perhaps due to vigilance, the middle-aged woman's tone was not polite: "Who are you?"

"Daisy, this is my friend Ronald Anderson in Los Angeles." Carmen Case quickly introduced the two: "Ronald, this is my agent, Daisy Broony."

Ronald nodded politely to the agent: "Hello, Ms. Broony."

Daisy Broony quickly glanced at Ronald. Apart from his slightly handsome appearance, he was quite ordinary in other respects.

Ronald noticed the paparazzi who had received the news rushing over and reminded them, "This isn't a place to talk. Let's get in the car first."

Carmen Case didn't say much and followed Ronald, but Daisy Broony frowned and stared at Ronald's back, as if trying to remember who he was.

The female assistant and Dior's personnel followed behind.

Carmen Case was no longer the unknown model from last year but a bona fide supermodel. As soon as they walked out of the airport gate, a bunch of paparazzi swarmed over to take photos. Ronald quickly shielded Carmen Case and used his body to block a few overly aggressive paparazzi, leading Carmen Case into his Cadillac.

The female assistant followed Dior's people into another commercial vehicle, but the agent also got into Ronald's car.

Ronald had dealt with many agents before. In Hollywood, agents were servants, and even directors like James Huang would dare to fire an agent if they were not satisfied.

This understanding had a great influence on him, and he didn't pay much attention to the middle-aged woman.

"Where to?" Ronald asked.

He couldn't take her to his home. His relationship with Carmen Case was far from reaching that level.

Carmen Case hadn't spoken yet, and Daisy Broony preemptively said, "Beverly Hills Four Seasons Hotel, thank you."

This tone seemed to treat Ronald as a professional driver.

Ronald started the car and drove away from the busy section of the airport. He asked, "Carmen, how long will you stay in Los Angeles this time?"

Daisy Broony tried to interrupt again but was stopped by Carmen Case's pull. The words she wanted to say were swallowed back.

Carmen Case answered in slightly awkward English, "About five days. After Dior's event, I have to prepare for Paris Fashion Week."

Ronald didn't have a deep understanding of the fashion world, but he knew the names of some supermodels. He asked, "Paris Fashion Week is about to start?"

Daisy Broony again interjected, "In September."

She seemed like a nobody in the fashion world.

Carmen Case asked, "Are you still going to Germany this year?"

Ronald thought for a moment. "I should go after the New Year. The specific date hasn't been set yet."

"Okay," Carmen Case replied.

Despite having occasional phone calls, with such a long time not seeing each other, there was inevitably a slight sense of estrangement. Moreover, there was also a thorny female agent in the car, so the two didn't talk much.

Ronald and Carmen Case were chatting intermittently. Daisy Broony occasionally interjected, dampening the warmth that had just been kindled by Ronald.

At one point, Ronald wanted to kick the annoying woman out of the car.

But she was Carmen Case's agent, and Carmen Case seemed to respect her, so Ronald couldn't say anything.

As they entered Beverly Hills, Daisy Broony suddenly asked, "Mr. Anderson, what do you do for a living?"

"Movies," Ronald replied truthfully.

Daisy Broony further asked, "In Hollywood?"

Ronald nodded. "Yes." Then he added, "I'm a producer."

Daisy Broony glanced at the driver's seat. She wasn't too familiar with the film industry, but she knew there were many producers in Hollywood.

However, producers were not all the same.

She thought for a moment. She didn't remember any famous producer named Ronald Anderson.

The car gradually approached the Four Seasons Hotel. Carmen Case looked at the agent, not caring about her attitude. She asked, "Ronald, do you have time tomorrow?"

"I have to go to the editing room to see the new film during the day."

"The evening is free."

Carmen Case invited, "Dior is hosting a party at the Four Seasons Hotel tomorrow night. Can you come?"

It was a party specifically held for "True Me Perfume" by Dior, one of the series of promotional activities in Los Angeles. As the spokesperson, Carmen Case had a few invitation spots.

Ronald, of course, wouldn't refuse. "I'll definitely be there on time."

Carmen Case told him the time, and the Cadillac arrived at the Four Seasons Hotel. Ronald had just parked the car when he heard Daisy Broony say, "This is a reception party, Mr. Anderson, so dress formally."

Ronald frowned slightly, pretending not to hear this sentence. He got out of the car and escorted Carmen into the hotel. However, he didn't stay long. Carmen had just flown in from Europe and also needed some rest.

Arriving at the hotel suite, Carmen hadn't finished unpacking when Daisy Bruni knocked on the door and entered.

"What's your relationship with that Ronald Anderson?" she asked directly.

Just like Hollywood agents would interfere in stars' lives, model agents did the same.

Carmen told the truth, "He's a friend I met last year in Los Angeles while I was doing an event."

Daisy Bruni, who had been promoting Carmen, didn't beat around the bush, "Boyfriend?"

"No!" Carmen shrugged helplessly. "Just a friend."

Daisy Bruni, who had been in the fashion industry for twenty years, never believed in purely platonic friendships between men and women. She warned, "Carmen, you know Hollywood people are unreliable. Be careful."

Carmen wasn't a naive girl. Understanding her agent's concern, she said, "I know. Don't worry, Ronald isn't that kind of person."

"Hmm..." Daisy Bruni had seen all sorts of ugliness in the fashion industry. "Don't forget, you're a top model now. You have significant investments and business in Estonia. People with ill intentions can easily find out."

Carmen smiled wryly, then set aside her work and sat on the sofa. "Daisy, you're overthinking it."

Daisy Bruni said seriously, "Models being cheated or taken advantage of in the industry, isn't rare, you know?"

Carmen had to admit, "Ronald isn't that kind of person, and he has no reason to be. He's wealthier than me. He owns a film company."

"What?" Daisy Bruni was surprised.

"I occasionally talk to Ronald on the phone and have seen some news about his film company in the media," Carmen said truthfully. "Do you know about 'The Purge' and the recent buzz about 'Blair Witch'? "

Daisy Bruni nodded. "I've heard. 'Blair Witch' apparently made hundreds of millions in North America with just tens of thousands of dollars budget, and a friend of mine in Hollywood said it's the highest ROI film in Hollywood history."

"That's one of Ronald's films," Carmen said.

This time, Daisy Bruni was shocked. "What?" She couldn't believe it. "That ordinary young man who drives?"

"Yes, it's true." Carmen recounted what Ronald had told her over the phone. "He bought the rights to that movie for $80,000 at a film festival, and now it has made nearly $150 million at the North American box office."

Daisy Bruni was speechless. Not even all the money her models earned combined could match the profit from one of Ronald Anderson's films. He was essentially a young millionaire, perhaps even on his way to becoming a billionaire.

"Okay, I overthought it," Daisy Bruni said, though she still advised seriously, "Carmen, remember the contract you signed with the company?"

Carmen's expression soured, but she didn't speak.

Daisy Bruni reminded her, "If you want to have some fun with Ronald Anderson, I don't mind. But if it's serious, it will be troublesome."

"I know," Carmen waved her hand at her. "Okay, Daisy. I'm tired and need to rest."

Waiting for the agent to leave, Carmen sat on the sofa, thinking about the contract. It was a contract she had signed with the agency when she was just gaining some fame. At the time, she didn't see any problems because many models' contracts included provisions about their personal lives.

Now that she was more famous and confident, she was increasingly dissatisfied with the contract.

The next day, Ronald spent most of the day busy at the post-production studio for "Ace Agent." In the afternoon, he went to the stylist to tidy up and bought a brand new suit before attending Dior's reception.