Love Like You Never Loved Before

I sprayed some air freshener in the ward, and just after Darius came inside, I dashed out of it immediately without turning my head despite Christopher calling out after me. I just couldn’t face Darius.

It was all Christopher’s fault, him and his sweet-talk, the way he said it was best if he could just feel himself inside of me.

I fell for his puppy eyes as he went on about how we had not seen each other for over a week, and how he was bedridden after the excruciating week. It had been almost half a month since his package had seen any action, and how he was getting blue balls from the lack of it.

Weak-minded as I was, I could not resist him and relented. I blushed furiously at the thought and took a seat right beside Zachary who was just standing there. “Has Darius been here for a while?”

Zachary nodded. “It’s been over two hours.”

That meant that Darius had been waiting for us to finish our business for more than two hours. I smiled dryly at the realization.

“Why didn’t you knock? We were just about to start two hours ago. It wouldn’t be that awkward if you guys had interrupted us then.”

“Darius said it’s best to not interrupt you two, but he didn’t expect for it to last that long.” Zachary peered at me, still stern-faced. “I think you should remind Chris to take it easy these days. He needs to take good care of himself.”

A sense of despair washed over me as the shame kicked in. Even though Zachary and Darius did not cast sideways glance at us, it somehow made me feel even more self-conscious.

Just look where your carnal lust has brought you, Yvonne.

At the sight of Zachary standing right there like a statue, guarding Christopher’s ward, I suddenly felt an urge to burst into a chuckle. What an upright man.

He was there to make sure Christopher was safe. So, the man ended up standing guard right outside the ward almost every hour of the day, except for the night where there would be a change of shift.

“Do you want to take a rest? Darius is here, after all, nothing’s going to happen. I’ll call you after Darius has left.”

“No need.”

I could hear Christopher and Darius engaging in a conversation back in the ward, but I could not figure out what exactly they were discussing. Hence, I took the liberty to lean in and eavesdrop.

At the thought of what Darius must have heard while sitting at the same position as I was, I felt a sudden urge to lodge a complaint to the hospital for having such a poor soundproofing system for VIP wards. Don’t they understand that most VIPs value privacy above all else?

Darius did not stay for long in the room. I sent him off downstairs, and just when I thought he was about to leave, he suddenly turned to me and said, “Why don’t we have a cup of coffee at the café opposite?”

I hesitated for a moment before nodding my head. Darius wouldn’t invite me for a cup of coffee if he did not have anything important to talk about. There must be something that he wants to talk to me about.

A wave of apprehension washed over me as I was unsure of what he was going to say. After all, not only was he the mayor of Avenport, but he was also Christopher’s brother.

I fidgeted nervously while in the café as my brain went into overdrive imagining the myriad of possibilities of what Darius was going to say. Would he slam on the table and demand me to steer clear of his brother, or would he seem nonchalant, but actually had a plan of driving me to leave Christopher on my own?

The possibilities were endless as my brain went wild, sending me into a daze. I did not pay attention to what he was actually saying, and Darius had to call me a few times to get my attention before I finally snapped out of it.

“Ms. Tanner? Yvonne?”

I regained my composure and noticed that he was fishing something out of his bag, and I felt a catch in my throat. Assuming that he was going to offer me something so that I would break up with Christopher, I waved my hands in a dignified manner and said, “Darius, there is no need for you to take the thing out. I will not leave Christopher unless he breaks up with me.”

Darius cleared his throat at my remark and regarded me for a while before taking a handkerchief out of his bag to wipe his hand and smiled. “I’ve noticed that how Chris pays special attention to you at the party. So, I wasn’t imagining things. When did it start?”

“Half a year ago,” I admitted and lowered my head like a guilty child. I paused for a moment before asking tactfully, “Darius, are you going to give me a check and demand that I leave Christopher?”