Page 40 of The Chemist

“What time is it?” Diesel asked, reaching for his phone and tapping the screen.

It was just after eight p.m.

“What? Are you fucking serious? I slept all day?”

“You must have needed it,” Zero said, placing the tray down on the nightstand next to the bed.

The food smelled amazing.

Diesel’s stomach growled in response.

Chuckling, Zero passed Diesel the tray.

“Had to hide it from Jared. The boy eats everything in sight.”

Not waiting for Diesel to offer, Zero plopped himself down on the bed.

“Yeah. He calls it fueling. Apparently, each of his muscles needs its own meal,” Diesel added.

“Please. These muscles put his to shame, and I don’t eat half the shit that he does.” Zero flexed his bicep, not noticing the sudden shift in Diesel’s jeans.

“Thanks for this. I’m fucking starving. What is it?”

“It’s white-wine mushroom risotto with oven-roasted chicken breast. And for dessert…” Zero reached into his back pocket and tossed Diesel a pack of sour candies.

Wow. This whole thing was kind of… sweet. Why was the man being so nice?

Taking a forkful of risotto into his mouth, Diesel let the flavors slowly roll over his tongue.Fuck.He had never tasted anything quite so good.

“Damn, where did you guys order this from?” Diesel asked, moving over to the chicken once he swallowed his rice.

“We didn’t. I made it.”

Surprised, Diesel lifted his gaze and stared at the man. “Who knew that a washed-up underwear model could cook?”

Zero punched him gently on the leg. “A man has to have some secrets.”

Yes, he does.

Staring into his chestnut eyes, Diesel wondered what other hidden talents the man was hiding behind that tradie rough exterior. Part of him was curious to find out, while another part didn’t want to show that he was interested.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Diesel returned to his meal.

“So, where are the guys?”

Zero grabbed a piece of chicken that Diesel had just finished cutting with the side of his fork and popped it into his mouth.

Umm, rude much?

He appeared to ignore the slight growl that emerged from Diesel’s throat and proceeded to answer his question.

“They’re both out following the doc while he goes on his nightly walk.”

That made sense.

Silence fell over them both.

“So, do you want to tell me what this morning was all about?” Zero asked in a gentle voice that Diesel had never heard before. The man seemed genuinely interested to hear what he had to say.

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