Sebastian
"This is delicious." Sweet closed her eyes after she took a mouthful of creamy pasta.
Wow, she looked absolutely gorgeous and alluring, sitting there next to me, devouring her food. Her licking her lower lip or cleaning her spoon got me all hot and bothered. All that was on my mind was getting intimate with her later, doing naughty things to make her scream my name. The anticipation was getting stronger with each passing minute.
But she was seriously enjoying the food. It was a big international feast with a bunch of European dishes. And I was having a great time watching her. If she thought the food was divine, then I thought the same about her. She was like an angel, shining in a white satin dress, smiling and making friends with everyone around me and my family.
I was glad she was getting along with Mom. Now, I got excited to bring her along to our family get-togethers, parties, and events. I'd be so happy to introduce her as my girlfriend.
But first, I had to pop the question if she'd accept to be my girlfriend.
"I gotta grab some desserts." Her eyes lit up when she saw the dessert buffet after the main course. Delicious cakes, pies, crepes, ice cream, sorbet, assorted fruits for the chocolate fountain, and so much more.
I walked with her to the dessert table, and she took a little piece of everything.
"You gonna skip dessert?" she asked.
I leaned in closer and playfully whispered, "nope. I'll have a tastier dessert later on. I'm so impatient, I couldn't even wait."
She nudged me and shot me a look.
The party really got going with some singing and dancing after dinner. We've got a famous band playing live music, rocking a blend of 80s pop tunes and today's hits.
"Feel like dancing?" I invited her, and she agreed right away.
"Yeah. We have to burn up all the food we chowed down."
We hit the dance floor with everyone else. We danced close, feeling the rhythm, touching each other, and making me long for her. I pulled her in and gave her a kiss on the neck, when someone tapped me on the shoulder.
I stopped and faced the man standing right behind me. It was Tucker.
"Hey man," he said to me, before turning towards Sweet. "Sweet. Would you like to dance with me?"
I squeezed my lips shut. Sometimes, he had no shame. He asked Sweet when he knew she was with me. He could've asked any single lady at the party. But then it hit me. They wouldn't want to be seen with someone like Tucker. They wouldn't want to jeopardize their chances of finding a good husband.
"We're still getting our dance on, man. We just started."
"Alright, catch you later." His face flushed. He definitely had a few drinks.
The music stopped, and Mom was on stage, holding a mic.
"Hey everyone, good evening! I just wanna take a moment to thank you all for coming tonight and making my birthday extra special with your lovely gifts. Your presence alone makes me feel loved and special. Thanks again for coming."
Everyone clapped, and she kept going.
"Moving on..." she paused, and locked eyes with me. "I want to share incredible news! The board of directors officially appointed my son, Sebastian Stavrakos, as the next CEO of Stavrakos Holdings!"
I was all wide-eyed in shock. I was so happy, I couldn't move for an entire minute trying to process what she said. Becoming the CEO of our business empire was my dream, and now it's a reality.
"Congrats." Sweet hugged me and gave me a quick kiss.
"Thanks," I brought her closer to me.
"Congrats, dude." Tucker gave me a tap on the back. "You made it!"
Mom just kept talking. "He totally deserves the position after showing us he can handle the job. He recently sealed a massive deal that completely revamped our company, in a good way. He totally impressed the entire Stavrakos family and the board of directors."
Everyone cheered and clapped. Some people yelled congrats at me, while others came over and shook my hand.
Mom asked me to go to the front and give a curt remark. I was on stage, thanking my parents, family, board of directors, and everyone who witnessed the announcement. I accepted the position wholeheartedly and promised to exceed their expectations.
***
Sweet
"Can you believe how lucky that guy is?" Tucker whispered. He was right next to me, our shoulders almost touching, as we kept watching Sebastian talking up there.
"He got everything. His dream to control his family's bus's business empire came true. Did you know his goal is to be the most powerful man in the entire universe?"
"I gave him a disapproving look. I don't think he's keen on being powerful. Plus, their family already is."
He smirked, "You don't know the real Sebastian Stavrakos. What you see is only skin-deep. We've been buddies since childhood, and let me tell you, I can predict his every move."
"Really?" My eyebrows shot up.
"Yeah." He chuckled meanly. "Even about you."
"About me? What do you mean?" My eyebrows rose, curious about what he was talking about.
"Haven't you ever wondered why he's really into you, despite his reputation with women?" He asked.
It didn't surprise me, 'cause I knew the answer. Sebastian and I had this dating deal that brought us closer.
"People change, it happens." I said.
"I'm with you on that, but not Sebastian," he chuckled nastily. "Just so you know, he's really vengeful towards anyone who messes with him."
That got me curious about what he was on about. I had a hunch he knew something.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
He smirked, "you're a smart woman and yet you didn't figure it out. I saw him blow up with anger when you called him out on live TV. He was hell-bent on getting his revenge."
"I get why he reacted that way. I felt the same way about him then, but we already talked it out and worked things out."
I was hoping he'd stop prying, 'cause what's going on between Sebastian and me is not his concern.
"Sorry if this sounds rude, but I'm just looking out for you. He's not the prince charming you thought he'd be, unfortunately. Last week, he wouldn't stop talking about how he was gonna get back at you."
"What are you talking about?"
He gave a shrug. "I told him to drop the revenge plan. You're a nice girl and I'm sure he'll come to like you. But he won't listen."
My heart suddenly felt heavy. All of me turned cold, like I got splashed with cold water.
"What revenge plan?" I asked him.
I saw Sebastian walking towards us in my peripheral vision, but my eyes riveted at Tucker, who was oblivious of Sebastian's presence behind him.
"You know, someone like Sebastian would do. He's set on giving you a taste of your own medicine, no matter what. He'd sweep you off your feet and make you totally fall for him, which he definitely succeeded, and then crush your poor heart."
I was totally stunned. I saw Sebastian standing behind Tucker, and we were both just as shocked.
Tucker was like, "Whoa!" when he realized Sebastian was behind him and quickly stepped aside.
"Wait, what the hell did you just say?" Sebastian's lips were mad as hell. He grabbed Tucker's shirt tight, not letting him go. "What are you shooting for, huh?"
"I'm just looking out for her. I gotta admit, she's a nice girl," Tucker said, freeing himself and expressing that I shouldn't be treated that way.
"You're messing with me, man." Sebastian looked dangerous and snapped at him, then he turned towards me. "Don't believe him. He's talking bullshit."
It was too late. My brain caught everything Tucker said, and it made me overthink and jump to conclusions.
"Is it really true?" I looked right into Sebastian's eyes.
He seemed really beaten. He shut his eyes and slouched his shoulders.
I got my answer, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I shook my head, like, no way! I was so mad; I bolted out of the ballroom.
Sebastian caught me in the hallway. He held onto my arm, stopping me from leaving.
"Sweet, please! Listen up, okay? I gotta admit, that's what I had in mind. I was so mad. Everyone abandoned me, even my family, when you called me out on live TV. But once I got to know you, revenge was the last thing on my mind."
I pulled my arm out of his grip and backed away. Despite being mad, I couldn't deny that his touch affected me.
"Really? I'm curious. When did you have a change of heart? Did that happen last week? This week? Yesterday, or just today."
"Sweet, please. Let's head to my place and talk about this. I'll tell you everything."
"Why? So you can use your smooth talk to persuade me you're the greatest guy I've ever come across. You pulled off your revenge plan perfectly. You broke my heart into a million freaking pieces. Congratulations. I hope you're satisfied now."
"Sweet, come on." He tried to reach out for me, but I stepped back. "I was planning on telling you the truth tonight, I swear. But Tucker totally screwed it up."
"It's good that he told me. I see through your lies now. I can't believe you did that to me."
"Sweet, c'mon now. Let's sit down and talk. I promise, it's not what you think." He raked his hair, creating a beautiful little mess on his head.
I threw my hands up, and said, "keep your distance and don't even think about following me. We're done."
"We're done? Just like that?"
He seemed pretty crushed. "Don't do this to me. You're shutting me out without listening to what I have to say."
I shook my head, feeling let down. First Jace, and now Sebastian, too. He went as far as making me fall head over heels for him, only to break my heart.
I made a quick escape to the elevator. I hit the close button right after I got in, so Sebastian wouldn't catch me.
"Sweet! Dammit. Let's have a conversation about this!" He hollered and the elevator door closed.
I was relieved to be by myself in the elevator. The tears I was trying to hold back ended up falling down my cheeks. I glanced down and just stared at my hands. I cried and left wet marks on the gray carpet.
Once I left the hotel, I sprinted to the cab.
"What's the destination, miss?" The cab driver asked.
"Anywhere, away from here, please." I answered, then sank into the leather seat and continued crying.