Page 40 of The Revenge Plan

“Why didn’t you?”

“I didn’t like it as a job, to be honest. It is more of a hobby for me. You aren’t eating your food.”

“Oh,” I galvanized into action and picked up my fork. I had been taken in by him, I had forgotten my fish. I took a bite. It was heavenly. I moaned and the burst of flavor that sparked in my mouth.

“It’s good, isn’t it?”

I opened my eyes to see Caiden staring at me with a smile on his face. “Best I’ve ever tasted.”

“They’re the best. That’s why I wanted to take you here.”

His revelation startled me. Part of me had thought that this was a last-minute arrangement since we had gone to the match and had no plans for dinner. I thought of the Caiden he had told me of. The one who had to work to go to college. It was a different Caiden than the one who sat in front of me, but in a lot of ways they were the same. He was still the ambitious teenager he had been, and he was still determined, but now he had different goals. He was now a successful man who had come very far.

“Tell me about Shepard,” I hoped it wasn’t a sore topic. I thought I had ruined it when he went silent and dropped his fork. Then he said, “he was one of the few people who believed in me. He saw my potential and asked me to work for him, but with better pay and an agreement to pay my college fees. I agreed immediately, of course. How could I not?”

“You liked him?”

“A lot. He was like a father to me.”

“I wouldn’t know what that’s like,” I muttered to myself.

“Your father is a piece of shit. He doesn’t deserve you.” I was surprised that he had heard me. I was even more surprised by his response. These flatteries. They were so addictive. I turned my gaze away from his arresting one and turned to his plate. He was a neat eater. Everything, the steak, the vegetables, the potatoes, were all neatly organized whereas my plate was a mess. That was how we were different. I was a mess, and he wasn’t.

“Are you coveting my food?” my gaze went back to his face. He was wearing a mischievous grin.

“No.”

He stuck his fork into one of the juicy steak pieces and pointed it at my face, “Here.”

I shook my head.

“Taste it.” He wiggled the fork. I relented, pulled the morsel into my mouth. It was just as good, if not better, than the fish. “Mmm…” I closed my eyes as I tasted the delicious piece of meat.

When I opened mine, his eyes were flaming with lust. The air became charged with electricity. I washed the meat down with wine and tried to ignore the energy between us as I went back to my food.

“We didn’t end up resolving the issue we were speaking of earlier.” He said when the dessert came.

“About?”

“Don’t play coy,” he lowered his voice, “you know what I’m referring to.”

I gulped.

“There should be a readdressing of the agreement we made.”

“There is?”

“Let’s face it, we’re both starved for sex.”

“I’m no—”

“Yes, you are. You want to fuck me as much as I want to fuck you.”

Put so crudely, the truth was hard to deny. I had a hard time sleeping as well, though it wasn’t as bad as he had it. I spent all day today thinking about him and what we did last night. Try as I might, I couldn’t get him out of my head.

“Denying each other what we both want is hardly good for anyone. It achieves nothing.”

“But sleeping with each other does?”

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