25. Egg
EGG
SEAN
I wanted to laugh at Karen for even suggesting me becoming Chelsea’s step-daddy.
Poor princess looked horrified, and I wished I could hold her hand and come clean to Marie that I was dating her daughter. But I didn’t want to put her on the spot, especially with the judgmental eyes of her ex and his mom watching us.
“I was a kid when we dated. I don’t have any feelings for Marie anymore,” I said, wiping my mouth with a napkin and leaned back on the chair. “I am serious about the person I’m seeing right now.”
Chelsea met my eyes, her pupils dilating before she looked away. I smirked and met Jesse’s eyes head on. He was insecure that she was getting attention from me. Good, he should be. He fumbled her, and it should be the biggest mistake of his life.
“Karen.” Her mom stuttered and changed the subject to the dessert which she had made. From what I knew, she had something urgent to share with Chelsea, but they hadn’t talked yet. I wanted to know what was so urgent that she asked her daughter to drop everything and meet her.
After eating the delicious apple pie, I said my goodbyes and sent her a text to call me.
Call me if you need anything, Princess.
I would think up something nice to punish her with for bratting out during the dinner.
Sugar Baby: yessir
***
Sugar Baby: what
Try again.
Sugar Baby: try again what
You’re asking to be spanked, pet.
Sugar Baby: oh naur im so scawed
Oh, you most definitely should be scawed, Princess.
I shook my head and rolled out of their driveway. I had a smile playing on my lips when I parked in front of the mansion. The security guard asked for my identity, and I was a little hurt that my friend hadn’t approved my car on the list of his family.
Once I had parked my car in the massive garage with two sports cars, a motorcycle, and an electric car, I checked my message to see a message from Chelsea.
Sugar Baby: Whatever, Daddy
I smiled at the kissing emoji face?—
Knock, knock .
The sharp knock on the window of my car scared me. I yelped and moved back to see a massive shadow standing outside.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” I said, stepping out of the car and glared at Cillian, my childhood best-friend. “You scared me, you asshole.”
“Who were you texting?” He asked, as a way of greeting, giving me a half hug.
I was going to stay at his and his wife’s mansion for the night. But I didn’t think that the shithead would scare me for turning up uninvited.
“No one,” I said, ignoring his look. “ Really . No one.”
“You’re lying, but I know you’re dating someone.”
I stared at him, narrowing my eyes. He copied my actions, and I couldn’t believe he was the same guy who feared lizards and screamed so loud during the third-grade school picnic that his nickname was ‘Scaredy Cillian.’ Yeah, third-grade students weren’t that creative.
“I will tell ahjuma you scared me,” I said, mentioning his mother, who loved me like his own son.
“You parked your car in my garage, interrupting me and my wife.” He looked me up and down. “You deserve it.”
I ran a hand through my hair and followed him to the kitchen. It was turning into a habit. Me driving to his place whenever I had life issues and him cooking for me. I removed my suit jacket and tie, greeting Emma, Cillian’s wife and owner of the mansion.
She was glowing in a pastel colored robe, and they looked adorable standing side by side. Cillian was massive and looked menacing in black tee shirt, sweatpants, tattoo sleeves, but he turned somewhat adorable whenever she was standing by his side.
“I didn’t know you were going to visit us today,” she said, watching her husband cook ramen for us. “You could have had dinner with us.”
“Aw, Emma, you’re too sweet to your brother-in-law,” I said, sincerely meaning it. “I always wanted a little sister like you. If you want anything, let me know, oppa will buy it for you.”
I was pouring oil on the fire. But by the glare from Cillian, I knew it was working.
“Never ever call him, oppa , Doll,” he said, stirring the pot. “He is evil.”
“I was eyeing the new collection from Vivienne Westwood, oppa ,” Emma said, giggling when Cillian glared at her.
I raised my brow when she ran around the island with Cillian chasing after her. It was entertaining and reminded me of Chelsea. Shaking my head, I stood up and inspected the pot of boiling water, ignoring the loud giggles, fake growls and smooching coming over my shoulder.
I sighed. I shouldn’t sulk since I was the one who came over without letting them know. I wanted something like what they had. I thought Liza would be that person for me. Someone who I could love without scaring her away.
But over-watering a plant will eventually kill it.
She must have gotten so suffocated with my love that it wasn’t enough for her.
“You have to stir the noodles,” Cillian said, snapping me out of my thoughts.
“Oh, yeah,” I mumbled, stirring them with cooking chopsticks.
I heard Emma say something about having fun during the boys’ night before leaving us alone. I was inspecting the broth of the noodles when a sharp pain ran through my right side.
“What the fuck?” I said to Cillian, rubbing the spot where he had punched me. “Why did you punch me?”
“Because you’re sulking in my kitchen after my wife called you oppa .”
“You can’t be serious about that,” I said.
He raised his brow. “Would you like it if your ‘Princess’ called me oppa right in front of you, hm?”
The thought of Chelsea, with her doe eyes and cute smile, blinking up at scary Cillian to call him oppa made me want to yell and punch a wall.
“No,” I said, and he nodded.
“That’s what I thought.”
“Fuck you.”
“I’ll pass,” he replied after checking me out, making me scoff.
“I’m everyone’s type. I know you had a crush on me when we were kids,” I said as he kept the steaming pot of ramen in the middle of the island. I grabbed four chopsticks as he tore the packet of sauce and poured it in the pot. I added the seasonings, and we both stirred it and paused.
“Egg.” We both said in unison and he stood up to get an egg.
“Did you know there was a ship's name for us? Cillsean was very famous.”
He broke the egg in the pot and looked at me. “Those rumors didn’t stop when I started dating Olivia.”
Olivia was his late wife, and I still remembered the day I was best-man for their wedding, and twenty years later, I was best-man for Cillian and Emma’s wedding.
My best-friend had married twice, had a son who was building his own family with a wife, husband and kid, while I was still single.
“Now will you stop talking about the past and tell me what brought you here,” he said, slurping on the noodles and eating kimchi.
He knew me too well.
I stared at the angry-red noodles that would make me sweat after one bite and said, “I think I’m in love.”
Cillian dropped his chopsticks and stared at me.
I sighed and continued, “She’s twenty years younger than me.”
“Same age as Emma.” He raised his brow, and I nodded.
“And you’re in love with your Princess?”