The Handsome Devil

Chapter 42 - Confession

Deya adjusted her outfit and gave it a quick check in the mirror. It was nothing fancy, an ordinary maxi dress with an exotic black ornament print. Still. It was something she wouldn't even consider wearing while being her old self, and it didn't even resemble the clothes Max picked for her.

It was the first step towards Victoria.

She opened the door and instantly froze at the scene in front of her. The whole room was engulfed in a warm candle light, the colours reminding her of sunset. The table in the centre of kitchen was set with an array of tastefully looking dishes, and her eyes didn't miss the bottle of italian wine in the centre.

What exactly does he think this dinner's about?

All the props distracted her enough to not immediately notice Hunter's figure observing her from the corner of the room.

"I'm sorry if I went a little overboard.." He broke the silence while wearing a shy smile. "I just wanted to celebrate your first day of freedom"

Her head snapped to him, but it took a moment before she was able to plaster on a fake smile.

Freedom. Right.

As of now, she wasn't quite convinced that his gesture is all that innocent. There must have been around 20 candles distributed across the room, and she was listening to the banging of pots and pans for the past three hours. He put way too much effort into it, which instantly made her doubt his intentions.

Nonetheless, she had to stay long enough to at least hear out his secret.

"It's okay... It's just... a lot to take in" She let out a nervous chuckle before walking to the table.

"You cooked all those by yourself?" Her eyes slowly scanned over the dishes, from bowls of salad and vegetables to a tray of mini burgers.

"Yeah, I wasn't sure what you like.." It seemed the man also wasn't immune to the tension in the air, and the girl just prayed it would finally dissipate.

"Well, let's get to it" She sat down and started to load her plate while Hunter took a seat across from her. 

She did not start eating right away. It might seem as a politeness, waiting for the host, but her motives were rather ulterior. She wanted to see him eat first to make sure there's no poison involved.

One can never be cautious enough.

After twenty minutes of silent feast, Deya decided she can wait no longer.

"Can we... talk now?" Her voice broke in the middle of sentence, corresponding to the moment Hunter's eyes full of panic shot up to meet hers.

He started to choke on the bite in his mouth, and the girl instantly cursed herself. If he's gonna get killed by a burger right before spilling the beans, I swear...

As she sprang up from her chair to help him, the guard finally managed to cough out the piece of bun, his face crimson from lack of air.

"Sorry" He murmured in between deep breaths.

"You would do anything to avoid the topic, right?" She teased and they both chuckled at the remark, which finally made them relax a little.

She watched as his muscular frame stood up and moved to the seat on her right, nonchalantly grabbing the bottle of wine on the way.

"Who should start?" He gave her a side glance while pouring two glasses.

"You" The girl hastily grabbed the glass just to distract him from how fast the answer came.