I placed the plate full of food in front of Adrian before walking over and taking a seat opposite him on the dining table. We ate in silence, and I internally groaned as I shoved another mouthful of eggs and chomped it down in an inhumanly manner.
I did not handle awkward situations well. I was the awkward situation. Was I meant to speak, or leave him be? Adrian didn’t say a word after I had re-entered his house, apart from leading me to the kitchen and telling me not to add any olives because he hated them. We were on the same boat for that.
His tantrum instantly stopped after that, and I was met with a silence I was neither comfortable with nor able to break. Was I supposed to start up a conversation? If so, about what? What if conversing ticked him off again?
“Can you shut the fuck up,” Adrian snapped, finally meeting my eyes.
“What? I haven’t said anything this entire time!” I exclaimed, putting my fork down in shock.
“You don’t have to,” he muttered while ripping off a piece of bread and shoving it into his mouth. “Your facial expression says it all. I’m surprised I’m not eating brain matter right now because your head looks like it’s about to explode.”
The thought of my own brain matter being mixed with the food in front of me nauseated me, and I cleared my throat and pushed the plate farther away from me to signal that I was done eating.
“Sorry,” I mumbled, gulping down my whole glass of water before getting up and taking my plate to the kitchen.
“You barely ate, Emily,” Adrian said in a stern tone. When I turned back around, I found him frowning at me.
“I’ve eaten enough.” I glared, before turning back to the sink and pulling at the tap as water came rushing down and spreading onto the plate. I heard Adrian’s chair scrape against the marble floor violently, before I felt his solid torso being pressed up against my back tightly. My breath hitched in my throat as he put his plate of food in the sink before snaking both arms around my waist in a backwards hug. “Why are you so damn difficult with me, shortcake?” he murmured into my ear. “You’re never like this with Allen, or when we’re at work.” I could practically feel the smirk that was implanted on his plump lips as his chin rested on my left shoulder.
“I’m only difficult to those who are difficult to me first,” I replied in an even tone, trying to mask the fact that he had an effect on me. “You’re my boss at work, so I have no choice there, and Allen is nice to me, so I’m nice back. It’s not rocket science.”
“No, I know that. Rocket science refers to aerospace engineering and focusing on how a rocket functions. Unfortunately, your mind doesn’t have a text book I can read to figure it out like rocket science does – hence why I’m asking the source of what has clouded my mind ever since the day we met. But I can see that I get through to you sometimes. I just have to get close.”
I finished washing the plates then turned off the tap before rolling my eyes and turning to face him in an awkward pose that reassured my conscience that my face wasn’t too close to his.
“And violate my personal space? Yep, that’s the way to go if you’re planning on winning a girl’s heart!” I faked enthusiasm, earning a chuckle from Adrian.
“I never said I was going to win your heart over. I just want to have sex with you.” He shrugged, and my facial features quickly transformed to a venomous scowl.
“Not happening,” I snapped, placing my wet hands flat on his broad chest before pushing him away. They left two imprints that looked tiny on his white shirt, but made it almost transparent enough for me to make out his tanned skin underneath.
“Why not? I know you want to,” he pointed out, earning another eye roll from me. “Plus,” he added, a smirk re-forming on his lips, “I’m pretty damn excellent at it, so you won’t regret your decision.”
“I don’t care how good or bad you are in bed, Adrian,” I declared angrily, “I’m just not that type of girl.” I tried to convey the finality of my decision through my tone.