"Sara, I dislike complications. And emotions? They're the most complicated thing in the world."
Sara knew Janelle distrusted love, but hadn't realized the extent. "Janelle, not all men are like your father." Was she letting Westin scare her off relationships forever?
"Sara, I will never place my hope in any man." Men were all the same: showering you with affection while pursuing you, then becoming unrecognizable once bored.
Janelle returned carrying two sauce bowls, handing the deliberately over-spiced one to Erik. "I'm not great at mixing dipping sauces either. Hope you don't mind."
Seeing the mountain of chilies in his bowl compared to the modest amount in hers, Erik knew it was intentional.
"Don't mind at all. I'll love anything you make."
Sara watched, amused, curious to see if Erik would actually use it.
Erik began cooking meat for them. It wasn't something he was accustomed to; usually, people clamored to cook for him. Though his movements weren't practiced, they remained effortlessly graceful. The man made even cooking hotpot look appealing.
"Erik, help Janelle. I can manage," Sara said, happily eating her spicy food.
Erik cooked Janelle's meat in the mild mushroom broth. Janelle, however, preferred spice. She politely rejected his effort.
"Don't bother. I'll do it myself." They weren't close enough for this.
She picked up a slice of beef from the spicy broth. It was delicious – numbing, spicy, fragrant. No wonder the place remained packed after so many years.
"Aren't you eating? Don't like the sauce I made?" Janelle asked, a slight smile playing on her lips.
"How could I not like it? I love it." Erik calmly dipped a piece of tripe into the fiery sauce and ate it without flinching. By the end, he'd finished the entire bowl of chilies.
Sara watched, concerned. "Janelle, he ate it all." Even she found this place's spice level intimidating.
"Hmm." Janelle remained impassive. No one had forced him.
Sara got a call – a design she'd submitted had issues, and her professor demanded she return to campus immediately. After she left, Janelle put down her chopsticks. They were alone in the booth.
"Enjoy it?" Janelle asked coolly. Erik's lips were visibly swollen and burning. His stomach churned violently.
Yet, his expression remained unreadable. "Enjoyed it. Very much."
Janelle stood to leave. As she passed him, his hand shot out, pulling her down onto his lap.
"You like spice so much? Let me share the taste."
Before she could react, his mouth captured hers in a demanding kiss. Erik never pretended to be a gentleman. His desire for her had always been blatant. Her lips were incredibly soft, intoxicating. What began as a simple kiss quickly deepened. He wanted more.
But Janelle was never one to submit. She bit down hard, drawing blood on his lip. Erik, however, was adept at seizing opportunities. His large hand locked firmly around her waist. His skilled tongue invaded her mouth, exploring and claiming.
Janelle did taste the lingering spice on him.
Finally, Erik released her lips. She sat on his lap while he leaned his forehead against her chest, struggling to control the raging desire inside him. Janelle wasn't unaffected. She was a twenty-year-old woman, and they'd shared intense intimacy before. His slightest touch could provoke a reaction. She instinctively squeezed her thighs together.
"Want it? Let's go to the hotel," he murmured against her skin, his voice thick.
"Janelle, wouldn't it be better to be honest about what your body craves? Why hide it?" He could already scent her arousal.
Janelle gripped his chin, forcing his gaze to meet hers. "Erik, that's just animal instinct." She tried to push off his lap.
Erik tightened his arm around her slender waist. "Just let me hold you a little longer." He didn't want to lose control either. But her presence alone ignited him.
Janelle, however, ignored his struggle, forcefully extracting herself. "So heartless," he sighed, the difficulty of winning her willing surrender starkly apparent.
"Leaving?"
"Leaving." Erik grabbed his overcoat from the chair back and put it on, the long coat perfectly masking his lingering state.
Exiting the restaurant, they were met by Nelson flanked by dozens of bodyguards, an imposing force. Nelson sat in a wheelchair, being pushed forward.
"Janelle, come here." Nelson decided to offer her one final chance. If she yielded now, he might let her go.
Janelle raised an eyebrow. What was wrong with Nelson? He hadn't been like this before. Why was he constantly debasing himself in front of her?
Erik hadn't expected Nelson to reappear so quickly, either. Thrown into the river and still breathing? The guy's resilient.
"Nelson, isn't living peacefully good enough?" Erik's voice was icy.
"Shut up! Everything you did to me last night, I'll repay tenfold today!" This time, he hadn't called the police. He wanted personal vengeance. Calling the cops would be letting him off easy. A nobody from the border couldn't possibly stand against him in Graham City.
"Are you even a man? This is between us. You bring an army? That scared of me?" Nelson didn't bother with a retort. A mere glance from him sent the bodyguards swarming, surrounding Erik and Janelle completely.
A one-on-one duel? Since he couldn't beat the man himself, why not bring help? This was Graham City. Even if he beat this man to death today, the Hills could make it disappear.
Janelle frowned. Nelson's audacity was staggering – publicly orchestrating violence in broad daylight.
"Nelson, here's your chance. Get lost." After a long day at Blue Whale, she was exhausted and didn't want to fight.
"Janelle, I've given you chance after chance! What love potion has this man fed you? What's so great about him?" Nelson genuinely didn't understand. Even if she couldn't marry him, if she just submitted, if she stayed with him, she could remain in Graham City. Countless women would kill for that privilege!
Janelle glanced at Erik beside her, then back at Nelson, her voice cuttingly clear:
"Him? Everything's better! Looks better than you, fights better than you, body better than you."