I moaned again as I took another sip from my cup. I could tell Adrian was getting irritated since I'd been doing the same thing for the last ten minutes. Whenever he tried to make me talk, I'd silence him, calling him a sadistic anti-chocolate man for not letting me enjoy my drink.
That brought us to our present, with me intentionally moaning loud at the taste of this insanely delicious hot chocolate while the devil sat beside me with narrowed eyes. His cup was still untouched and I was itching to steal it for myself. Would that really be stealing, though? I mean, the man clearly had no interest in drinking that.
I was enjoying this so much that I didn't realise my cup was empty until Adrian rudely pointed it out with his smirk. I gave him my infamous glare that said shut up and sit like a stuffed toy if you want to live. But the devil just smirked wider. Maybe he only played with deranged stuffed toys with only one side of the mouth turned up when he was a kid. That seemed like a plausible reason for his frequent smirks.
"You've wasted 17 minutes of my time, White. Talk. Now." He stated, tapping his expensive watch and I glared at him. Rude much?
I smirked and tsked at him. "I thought you'd last for twenty, at least. Tsk tsk. Remind me to never make a bet on you." I shook my head dramatically and sighed as I was awarded by his single eyebrow raise. Oh, how I hated his independent eyebrows!
I took a deep breath when I saw that there was no point delaying it any further. "My health is perfectly fine. At least I think it is fine now after..." I started but left off that sentence hanging. I didn't want to go through that memory lane again.
I shook my head again and continued. "I have a sister, Evangeline. Eva in short. She's almost nine years younger than me. My only sibling and the girl takes full advantage of that." I smiled fondly and chanced a glance at Adrian to gauge his reaction. No one in the business world knew about my family and I'd kept it that way. But I didn't see any surprise in his eyes.
I narrowed my eyes at him. "You don't seem surprised, Stone. Did you know that I have a sister?" He looked startled for a moment but then shrugged. "I mean, it's a common thing. People have sisters. I have a sister. You have a sister. Why would I be surprised?"
I rolled my eyes at his explanation and continued. "Anyways, it's my sister who needs Dr. Marshall's treatment. She had an... accident that resulted in spinal cord injury. Her nerves are compressed which made her unable to move her legs. Dr. Marshall is performing a surgery to decompress the nerves and see if she'll be able to walk again."
I had every single detail of my sister's case engraved in my mind that one would think I was a licensed doctor with the amount of knowledge I had about the condition. I had read every book, surfed through every medical site and consulted every doctor out there about it. Dr. Marshall had come in like a ray of hope in my life and I was going to do everything to keep that hope alive. I was not going to think about the possibilities of failure.
I looked at Adrian to find a faraway look on his face. His eyes flickered with what looked like recognition for a fleeting moment before it was gone. "Eva..." He whispered the name to himself and ran his hand through his hair. "So that's why you chose the name for your company."
I nodded wordlessly. Eva was everything to me, the one person who didn't leave me. I didn't even need to think twice about the name of my company. It was for her, after all.
It was silent for a while and I began to get restless. I searched for something to say to end this depressive mood but then my eyes fell on Adrian's untouched cup. Seeing as he was still deep in thoughts, I slowly stretched my hand and took hold of it. He blinked at the sudden movement but it was too late. By the time he realised what was going on, I had already downed half of his cup.
He shook his head and mumbled something that sounded like 'sweet deprived woman' but shut up once he received my glare. The drink was barely hot at this point and I glared at him again for his stupidity. If only he'd handed this to me sooner since he had no intention to drink it.
I finished my... I mean Adrian's drink grumpily as it didn't have the same taste as before. Sure, it was still delicious but the taste had somewhat faded. Probably because it got cold. But I blamed it on his cup. His cup couldn't handle sweetness for long. Just like its owner. I smirked at the thought.
I was pouting at my finished drink when Adrian suddenly leaned close to me. Too close. So close that I could see the dark midnight blue color of his eyes clearly. My cardiovascular system betrayed me once again by beating furiously like a drummer on high.
Fingers suddenly came to my periphery of vision and I felt Adrian rubbing his right thumb over my lips. My eyes probably resembled those of a dead fish as they looked at his, which were focused on my lips. My lungs started working rapidly, making me wonder why. But I soon got the answer as my breath was suddenly cut off by a pair of lips slamming into mine.
Still wide eyed, I glared at him to find his eyes closed as his lips resumed their dance, forcing mine to follow their lead unwillingly. Millions of thoughts were rushing in my head but the next moment, everything faded away as my eyes closed on their own accord, finally submitting to his hypnotic kiss.
My lips moved tentatively against his and I almost yelped out loud as Adrian groaned low from his throat. One of his hands went to my hair, softly massaging it while the other held my jaw, moving it to get better access. My hands, the idiots they were, took his lead and wrapped themselves around his neck. His hair felt so soft against my finger that I wondered what else he used on it. Surely a shampoo wasn't enough for this smoothness?
Our lips moved perfectly against each other, performing a slow, yet sensual dance. My entire being felt consumed with a fire so strong, a foreign emotion burning within me with every touch of his lips. I realised I was so wrong. The man had sweetest lips known on the universe.
We pulled away for air and that's when an imaginary bucket of ice cold water splashed over my face. My brain finally began to comprehend everything that took place a few minutes ago.
Adrian Stone had kissed me, one again.
And I had kissed him back this time.
Damn you, Stone!
"Damnit! Stupid, stupid, stupid, girl! I'll kill you the second I meet you! Stupid Mrs. S! You're no longer a part of me! I hate you so much!"
I was so engrossed in scolding my stupid subconscious that I didn't realise Adrian coming closer until I felt a pair of arms wrapped around me. He shook slowly until my hyperventilation fully came to a stop.
"Hey, hey, hey. What's wrong? It's okay, take deep breaths. Come on, do it with me. Breath in, breath out. Once again, come on. That's it, you're doing good." I slowly took deep breaths with him and finally calmed down a little.
I pushed him away and glared at him. "You," I pointed an accusing finger at him. "You had no right to kiss me! Who do you think you are to slam your lips in mine? Slam them on your bathroom tiles if you can't find anywhere else! My lips are NOT a cup of your hot chocolate to taste them. Although they taste better than the drink. Anyways, I'm warning you, Stone, keep your lips away from me!"
"Come on, you're overreacting. It's just a kiss. Chill. And besides, I remember your equally eager participation in giving me a taste of those lips. Why are you even making a big deal out of it? I kissed you, you kissed me back. End of the story. Don't overthink." Adrian stated in a bored tone and I couldn't ignore a pang of hurt in my chest at his words.
Sure, it was only a kiss and sure, I had kissed him back. But hearing him say that it was not a big deal in such an indifferent manner made a small cut on my heart. Trying to ignore that, I smiled meekly at him and picked up my bag from the countertop.
"Alright, it's late. I need to go now. Thanks for the drink." I rushed out those words and turned to leave but a strong hand caught me before I could take a step.
"Come on, I'll drop you off."
"It's okay. I can go by myself."
"Don't be stupid, Evelyn. You haven't brought your car. You came here in mine, remember?"
"And whose fault is that?" I glared at him but refused to back down. "I'll call an Uber." I took out my phone and unlocked it but it was snatched away by the devil.
I looked up to find him glaring at me, his eyes dark with anger. "You. Are. Not. Going. Alone. I said I'll drop you, and that's what you'll do. Stop being stubborn for once. It's for your own benefit."
How dare he? I glared back at him and opened my mouth to tell him off but he held up his hand. He took.a deep breath and I almost laughed at him. See who was in need of deep breaths now, I internally smirked.
"Okay, imagine that I am an Uber guy. We won't talk at all if that's what you want. Consider that I'm a driver and I'm driving you home. You wanted me to be your personal driver anyway. Let's take this as a trial to see if I am capable, alright? Now come on."
He flashed me a smile and I had to wonder if he was in that time of the month. The man went from bored to angry to somewhat sweet to smiling in the span of two minutes. I bet even hormonal pregnant women couldn't be that fast at mood swings.
Instead of saying anything, I only outstretched my right hand in front of him. He got the hint as he grinned and placed my phone on it. We passed the living room and I was surprised to see it neat and clean with no evidence of it's rough state earlier. Even the horrendous yellow thong was missing.
I looked at Adrian in surprise and he smirked in return. "I called for my housekeeper."
I nodded but then I remembered our- uh... the kiss just moments ago and flushed with embarrassment. Surely the housekeeper must've seen it? Or guessed it? Or done whatever the creepy housekeepers do?
As if hearing my thoughts aloud, the devil smirked wider. "She had gone an hour ago. So it's just you and me now." I rolled my eyes at him while I was internally sighing in relief. At least my subconscious wasn't that stupid to not sense another person while forgetting her morals.
The car ride was silent and I was thankful for it. Adrian really took the driver role seriously and did not attempt to make any kind of conversation. That made me want to try my luck again in making him my personal driver but I somehow managed to shut my mouth. Now was not the time. I already had so many things to think over and now that my lips, under the influence of his lips had betrayed me, my mind was going crazy thinking about the things I needed to think about. Yeah, I wasn't making any sense here.
We reached my apartment in silence and I climbed out of his car. He didn't bother opening the passenger door this time, I noted with a feeling which was not disappointment. Not at all. I mumbled a small 'goodnight' to him and walked away, hearing his soft voice.
"Sweet dreams, Eve."
I tried not to think much about anything that happened today because right now, all of my focus should be on Eva and her treatment. So I drifted off to sleep, forcefully kicking out the stupid thoughts about a certain tasty devil from my head.
*
"Okay, I officially give this woman to you as your late birthday gift. You can take her and do whatever you want with her."
"No way! I'm not taking this stupid gift. I've got no use of her. It's your property, you take care of it- I mean her."
"Ugh. Why me? God knows I have enough problems of my own. Why add one more? God really hates me!"
"Aww, sweetie. Don't cry, I'm sure God is watching over us. Perhaps even He is hopeless when it comes to her. So He has given up and put her in your care."
"I hate Him even more for it. Wait, do you think she can hear us?"
"Oops. I hadn't thought of that. But seeing as she is in the same room as us, not even a meter apart, and judging by the way her eyebrows are twitching in anger, I'd say she can. And I have a feeling she's about to explode."
"Right. She does look like a ticking time bomb, doesn't she? How long do you think will it take her to explode? Do you think we can make a countdown?"
"Even better, we can make a bet. I say four minutes from now."
"Four? I think she can last a little longer. I'll go for ten. Get ready with twenty dollars."
"Alright, game on. It's me who's gonna win, anyway."
"Nah. You're so gonna lose. I know my sister."
"And I know my bestfriend!"
"But a sister always comes before friends."
"Maybe, but sisters don't come before best friends."
"We'll see about that."
"Oh, we will. Don't cry when you lose. I ain't taking pity on you because you're in the hospital bed."
"I'm not gonna lose!"
"Right. That's what they say..."
"Whatever."
"Whatever"
"Don't even think about cheating! I'm keeping my count."
"Please! I don't need to cheat. I know my best friend."
"And I know my sister."
"Not more than me."
"That's not true! I know her mo-"
"OH, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL HOSPITALS IN THE WORLD, SHUT UP! BOTH OF YOU!" I threw my hands in anger as I looked at the culprits who were smiling sheepishly.
It was Wednesday today and we were currently in the hospital. Allie had also decided to join me as she hadn't been able to visit Eva for a while. The both of them took one look at me and the next thing I knew, I had spilled out everything that happened on Monday. That led to the present; my sister and my supposed bestfriend talking amongst themselves about how stupid I was, in front of me, as if I wasn't present. With the way they were bonding over my apparent stupidity, I had to wonder if they were best friends or sisters after all.
I had thought they would stop after I reminded them of my presence, but I was wrong. I hadn't even completed my sentence when I saw a smug Allie sneakily taking a twenty dollar bill from a grumpy Eva.
At least someone got twenty dollars richer at my expense.
I sighed and slumped down onto my seat beside Eva's bed and put my head on the mattress. I had the worst sister and bestfriend ever.
"Seriously, Eves. You're overreacting. It was just a kiss!" Eva stated before munching on her pringles. I eyed the almost empty can and wondered if she should be eating that. I shrugged. She was obsessed over that snack and would raise hell if I forbid her from eating that. Besides, they did say that it was healthy. To an extent.
It was then that my brain registered her words. "It wasn't just a kiss for me! For him, maybe but not for me. I know he's kissed me before but that's the problem. He had kissed me then, and that was it. But this time, I kissed him back! I kissed him back and I liked it! God, I'm a mess."
I groaned and once again rested my head on the soft mattress. I felt a hand softly running over my hair and the other gently patting my back.
"Eves, I know you meant to keep your promise. And you have been keeping it for so long. But think about yourself for once. What if he doesn't come around? What if he's already settled with someone else? You'll be wasting your time in vain. We're not telling you to date the first guy you meet, just don't push people away for someone who might not even remember you.
We just want you to be happy, Eves, and God knows you deserve all the happiness in the world because you've suffered so much. We can't force you to do anything, but just think about it, alright? If you think Adrian can make you happy, give him a chance instead of pushing him away. And if you feel that he's not the one for you, it's still okay.
And, if by any chance he comes for you, you can talk to him. You guys were both kids. There's no rule that you should feel the same thing for him after all these years. Feelings change, people change. So it's up to you to choose the one your heart truly wants. Don't let a kid's promise hold you back."
I kept silent as Allie's soft words slowly sunk in. I didn't want to admit it, but she was right. I was just afraid to let go of the one thing that I'd been holding on as a hope that he'd come for me. I feared that if I let go of this promise, there would be no ties between us, every moment we spent would be vanished in thin air, like it never happened in the first place.
All of us were silent, mulling over Allie's words when the door suddenly opened after a few knocks and in walked Keith with an embarrassed expression. He looked at anywhere but me, which made me a little suspicious. Then as if accidentally, his eyes met mine, where I saw sadness and hurt behind that awkward smile of his. That's when my doubts were confirmed.
He had heard everything.