Chapter 2

“I wanted to talk to you after your shift. What time can I come over?”

My mouth dropped open in surprise. I usually didn’t chat much with Eder. He would come straight to Gabriela’s bedroom, and hopefully, I’d get to see him the next morning as we bumped into each other in the bathroom. He’d give me a nod as the only acknowledgment of my existence. Then he would leave with an embarrassed face and come back again in the evening.

“I leave at two o’clock.”

“Good. I’ll see you then at that time.”

He walked out of the restaurant, leaving a cloud of delicious smell in his wake. I lost sight of him once he was through the doors.

“You like Eder, don’t you?” said a husky voice, quite familiar.

I turned toward that voice, and there, sitting at the nearest table, eating a piece of potato, was the same tormentor I met five wretched months ago.

Colton always wore his shirts pinned up. I think the bastard knew perfectly well how that put women off, all of them, even some men.

“Don’t be silly,” I said, trying to clean up a bit of the wooden counter Cliff had sent to order straight from India. Why, I don’t know. “Eder is not my type.”

“And what is your type?” he asked, slipping another potato into his mouth.

“Definitely not you.”

He raised her eyebrows in surprise.

“Not me?”

“Nope.”

“You don’t like me even a little bit?” he picked up another potato with his long piano-style fingers. I could only remember this morning when he invaded my privacy in bed. I didn’t tell Rita, but the real reason I stayed up all night was that I couldn’t control my breathing around Colton.

I mean, who in their right mind could sleep knowing he was in bed? Absolutely no one.

I had inadvertently seen the tattoo he had at the base of his back; it was some kind of writing or phrase, but I couldn’t decipher what it said since the other half was hidden by his pants. I was tempted to figure it out for myself...

“You’re hesitating,” he said after five seconds, in which I didn’t say anything. “That means you’re at least imagining me naked, right?”

“You fool!” Even though it was close...

“Easy, baby. I’ll let you get a piece of me, for free.”

I snorted.

“I don’t like you, Colton. Get over it.”

“So, tell me, what can I do to change your mind?” I watched him get up from the table and head towards me. He walked slowly, tasting his lips, giving me that look of a hunter aiming a rifle at his prey. There was no one lined up now, so it was easy for him to approach.

“I think you can do something,” I said. “Why don’t you stick your foot in your mouth?”

He raised an eyebrow, amused.

“You want me to stick your foot in my mouth?”

“Believe me, if I could stick my foot in any part of your body, it would be in...”

“Anna!” I heard Cliff call out. I saw his voluptuous body come out of the office, and seconds later, he was already standing next to me.

“Anna, look what just came in,” he shook in front of me a slutty version of a police suit. “It’s the new work uniforms.”

I heard Colton chuckle.

“Cop?” I squealed.

Now Cliff really flipped out. All that was left was for him to make us wear a slutty "nurse” outfit; that would be the cherry on top of my dessert.

“I got sizes for everyone,” he said excitedly, “except for Mirna.”

Mirna was a woman in her fifties; she was in charge of cleaning the place. She constantly complained about discrimination; apparently, she was the only one who wanted to wear Cliff’s exotic uniforms, but he would never let her wear them. He said that stretchmarks and cellulite drove away the clientele.

If only Cliff knew Mirna was in love with him...

“I’ll pay double for my food if you make her wear that uniform now,” Colton said, tossing a wad of bills on the counter. Cliff’s eyes widened.

I shot Colton a poisonous look, but that didn’t faze him enough to wipe his cocky grin off his face.

“Anna, go and debut the new uniform,” Cliff sent me.

Ha, screw him! He wasn’t going to denigrate me like that.

“No!” I shouted, furious.

“I’ll pay triple,” countered that idiot Colton, throwing down another stack of money.

“Didn’t you listen, asshole? I said NO.”

“I’ll pay triple, too,” spoke one of the customers, throwing his bills next to Colton’s. Cliff’s eyes almost popped out when he saw the amount of money.

My face turned red with anger.

“I DON’T THINK ABOUT USING THAT THING!” I shouted even louder so that the two jerks would listen.

Obviously, my protests were futile as after the fifth man showed up, saying he would also pay to see me in the new uniform... It was either that or accept Cliff firing me.

“I hate you,” I vocalized to Colton once I walked out to the counter wearing the ridiculous policewoman outfit.

He winked at me.

I didn’t understand why, but my stomach contracted at the gesture. Colton was always a joker with me; ever since I met him, he never stopped teasing me about the said condoms that were for Gabriela.

It was normal for both of us to treat each other like two old brothers who fought constantly. So why did I feel differently now?

I felt like ripping off the shirt with my teeth, then smearing melted cheese on his belly and eating my fries right off his chest.

What the hell was wrong with me!

It must be the police outfit... it made me feel more powerful.

Gabriela and I shared an apartment. The place was simple and centrally located in a well-developed area.

Her father had given it to her on her eighteenth birthday (mine gave me a glow-in-the-dark My Little Pony keychain and a pre-made card that said, “Congratulations, it’s a boy!”).

That night, as I headed for the front door, I noticed a lingering smell of chocolate in the air. Bitter, thick, strong chocolate coming from our apartment.

Before entering, I decided to knock on the door, lest Gabriela be in her underwear with one of her two boyfriends in tow. I knocked insistently, but no one answered. Finally, I inserted the key in the metal lock and opened the door with some fear of finding a scene not suitable for all audiences.

True, I was already eighteen years old, but I was still not used to the various ideas my cousin had for fun (some of them left me traumatized). Once, I found her wearing a deer costume; when I asked her why, she told me that the guy she was dating liked innocent girls. So she thought, “What’s more innocent than a tame deer?”

That day, I laughed until I fell bent over on the floor.

The first thing I noticed when I entered the apartment was that the light was on. That was a good thing; bad things happened in the dark, right? The next thing was to hear a piano melody in the background. The volume was low and seductive. And the smell, oh, the smell of chocolate was getting more and more potent from here.

Could it be that she had prepared some? Although I was absolutely sure she couldn’t have done it alone - Gabriela would burn even salt water.

Maybe she’s already in her room, so I’d only have to run and get to mine; no need to run into any of her men. But I hadn’t even finished entering the room when I heard the sound of salivating kisses. I stopped at the sight of her sitting on the plush leather couch, her neck uncovered, with a dark-haired boy salivating on her collarbone.

Colton.

His back was to me, but he was definitely the same build.

It was him.

I don’t know why, but it felt like a needle was being stuck in my heart. Anyway, I already knew Colton was a jerk who agreed to be Gabriela’s second table. That I would ever fall in love with him was extremely stupid... and in poor taste.

I had no reason to be surprised, but above all, I had no reason to feel comfortable being around him. He was the worst kind of womanizer!

Gabriela, noticing my presence, broke away from Colton. There was chocolate smeared on his collar, and the first buttons of his shirt had been ripped off. She ran a hand through her wild orange hair and gave me a nervous look, her blue eyes piercing mine.

“I didn’t know you were going to be early,” she said, guilt creeping into her voice.

“I’m always at this time. Why?” Gabriela looked nervous; she kept flexing her knuckles, and her face turned tomato red.

“What...?” I immediately shut up when I saw that the boy licking her neck was not Colton; he was a stranger. My chest lightened the load.

But wait, Gabriela was already with someone else? How slutty could one be?

“This is Marcus,” spoke my cousin. The boy, Marcus, stood up from the couch and offered me a coy smile. He had chocolate at the corner of his lips. I frowned and gestured for Gabriela to follow me into the kitchen.

“Marcus, I’ll be back in a little while. When I get there, I want to see you shirtless and chocolate-covered for me,” Gabriela instructed him, then winked.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I yelled at her once we were alone. This time I wasn’t going to cover for her.

She was cheating on Eder and Colton!

“It’s just... I met him a few weeks ago, and we both clicked. I’m sure he’s the one.”

She had said the exact same thing to me when she met Colton: ‘I feel like he’s the one.’ And if he was the one, why didn’t she leave the other guy she was with?

“You know I wasn’t designed to date just one guy,” she told me on the verge of tears. Ha, another dog with that bone.

“I’m not covering for you. If someone finds out, you’ll have to figure it out on your own.”

“Please, Anna...”

“Does Marcus already know that you’re with two others, that the relationship isn’t exclusive?” I interrupted her. I wasn’t in the mood to listen to her silly excuses, especially after what Eder told me this afternoon. I was furious with her.

I wasn’t even able to find a decent guy in this town, and she already had three drooling on her doorstep (well, not so decent). The only boyfriend I had in high school was named Mason; he liked to fish and worked at his dad’s mechanic shop. He constantly smelled either of fish or gasoline. Whenever Mason kissed me, he would leave a trickle of saliva down my chin. It was disgusting. His hands roamed my body, and I could never keep them still. We were done before graduation arrived.

“Anna, please, please don’t tell Colton about this. Remember, you owe me a favor...”

“That I already paid you...”

“So now I am the one who owes you.”

“I don’t need anything from you,” I lied. She knew better than anyone how much I wanted to attend the University of Art and Design. I was trying to save part of my salary, but the tuition alone cost more than I earned per year. Instead, she could easily get the money just by snapping her fingers and giving her daddy a call. Life was unfair sometimes.

“Come on, don’t be such a bitch to me...”

I was about to sarcastically retort to her when the doorbell rang, putting us all on alert.

“Shit!” Gabriela shrieked. That must be Eder. He said he’d stop by later. Good. Divine justice would finally be served. I raised an eyebrow and settled at the kitchen table, totally unconcerned.

“Anna! Don’t just stand there. Help me!”

The doorbell chimed throughout the apartment again.

“No. I’m tired of having your back.”

She looked at me with pleading, sheepish eyes.

“Ehh... girls, I think someone is knocking on your door,” Marcus said, walking into the kitchen. He had taken off his shirt and had his chest covered with chocolate. Really, where did Gabriela get these guys? Is there an agency that distributes them? Because if so, I’d like five... to go, please. Oh, and order quickly: I’m hungry. Grrr.

“For the love of all that’s holy, Anna, help me!” she squealed again. “And stop looking at Marcus like you’re going to eat him.”

Instantly, I became unhypnotized by the boy’s muscular abdomen. What was wrong with my hormones? There was no doubt it was all that chocolate being sucked into my respiratory system.

“Anna?” Gabriela called, increasingly concerned. “All you have to do is hide my little secret.”

“What secret?” asked Marcus, intrigued. When I looked up at him, he smiled at me as if he knew how appetizing he looked in chocolate. He had gray eyes, just like mine. Poor wretch, I didn’t know he was going to be my cousin’s snack.

“Gabriela, Anna!” shouted from outside the apartment. My treacherous heart recognized the voice immediately.

“Double shit! It’s Colton!” Gabriela shrieked.

“Who is Colton?” wanted to know Marcus.

“Last chance, Anna,” Gabriela spoke, ignoring Marcus’ question. I bit my lower lip.

“Please. I’ll owe you a huuuuge one if you help me,” she pleaded.

“Okay. I’ll help you,” I reluctantly agreed. He was going to charge me dearly. I know. I was a fool to be manipulated by a creep like her. I knew I was going to regret this.

“Thank you, you’re the best,” she said and ran straight for the door, but not before wiping her neck and buttoning her blouse.

I was dragging Marcus into my room to hide him and explain how his future relationship with my cousin was going to work (of course, if he decided to stay with her) when Gabriela stopped me by the arm.

“What are you doing?” she asked me in a low voice.

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m going to hide him.”

“Girls, what’s going on?” Marcus spoke. He looked scared.

“Shhh,” Gabriela and I hushed him.

“If you hide Marcus, Colton is going to notice that someone else was here,” Gabriela spoke in whispers. Her blue eyes denoted panic at all times. “Look at this place, it looks like someone had a cheesy romantic dinner set up. Colton is going to hesitate and find me out... I don’t want to lose him.”

“Hey, it’s not cheesy!” complained Marcus. Gabriela and I shushed him again.

I looked around. Yep, there was chocolate coming out of a fountain located on the table in front of the couch, and there was a huge white teddy bear with an embroidered heart in the center that said, “You’re all mine.” All it took was a path made of rose petals leading to a huge heart-shaped bed. I sighed.

“So, what do you want me to do?”

“I want you to say that he came with you. That he’s your partner.”

“What? Are you out of your mind?”

“Girls,” Colton said from the other side of the door, “I brought ice cream and it’s kind of melting. Are you guys going to be any longer, or are you done with your pajama party?”

“Anna!” Gabriela shook me. “Help, here!”

Yep, this was not going to lead me to anything good. I spoke. “Okay,” I agreed again. Then, with a huge smile plastered on her face, she opened the door to Colton.

Marcus still looked confused. “What’s wrong?” he whispered to me as the athletic, imperious it-is-the-king-of-the-universe personality walked in and grabbed Gabriela by the waist to give her a kiss on the lips.

“She’s married to that guy?” Marcus asked in alarm. “Because I thought she was 20 or 21. I swear. I also thought she was single.”

“No. She’s not married; meet my cousin’s number two lover. You just go with the flow, and you’ll be fine.”

When Colton finished giving Gabriela a not-so-chaste kiss, he riveted his eyes right on mine... and on the shirtless, chocolate-covered boy standing next to me. May the earth open and swallow me. Colton raised his eyebrows to the heavens.

“And who is he?” he asked, examining him like prey.

“He’s with me,” I stuck a little closer to Marcus. The guy smelled like a mixture of Dove soap and mint chocolate.

“I see someone already ate dessert,” Colton said, looking at me amused. I did something daring. I lifted my index finger and ran it over Marcus’ shoulder, then put it in my mouth and tasted it.

“Mmm... and it was delicious,” I said.

Colton’s jaw tensed slightly. “Look, he even bought her a teddy bear,” he teased.