Chapter 87 CHAPTER 091
"Bring her in in an hour. We are in the middle of breakfast." Linc dismisses him. I catch Hernandez sneaking a glance at his watch as he walks off without another word.
"You know, I realise that I don't know about Sheryl's connection to you and all this." I say in the silence that follows Hernandez's departure. It is a lie, of course. But I just want to hear about it from him. I trust him and I know he wouldn't lie to me. I don't know how but I just know he won't. I can feel it.
"That is right. Ask what you want to know." Linc says. His face is tight but he looks like he is so tired of the topic already that I consider not asking at all.
"The most important thing, of course." I say. I bite into my toast, it is decadent. Ontop of being a billionaire, Linc is also a phenomenal cook. Sometimes, I wonder how he exists at all. How is this man real?
"Tyler believed you abandoned his mother when she fell pregnant with him. He believed you were his father. Now, considering how things fell in place, I can see that that is not true at all. There has been some sort of mix-up or miscommunication. I just don't know what it is." I don't know if I make sense or all I said can be classified as a question. But Linc nods, he sips his coffee and gently places the cup back in the saucer.
He dabs his mouth and rivets his stunning eyes at me. No matter how many times I hold his eyes, or how close and intimate we get, those eyes would always knock the breath right out of me. The intensity behind them that holds at all times. Like he knew my deepest secrets and would never tell. I always felt bare and vulnerable to his gaze. And safe. He has an aura about him that he doesn't ever switch off. Maybe he just doesn't know how. That is a possibility.
"Sheryl and I dated for about three months during my first year in college. This was about twenty years ago. It was a time in our lives where we were young and dumb. Not to mention vulnerable. Maybe she was more vulnerable than I was. But my feelings and troubles at the time was and is valid." The corners of his mouth hardens. A dark cloud passes over his features. I almost want to ask him to not worry about the story anymore if reliving it affects him distastefully. I bite down on my tongue to stave off the impulse.
I want to hear all about this history from him. I want to get a glimpse of the man he was before my mom barreled into his life, dumping me with him. I want to know everything.
I want to know him further. Not better, I believe I already know all there is to know about him. I know the most important things and I am okay with that knowledge. I know he would protect me with all he has. I know he cares for me. I can't call it love or I refuse to call it anything other than affection and attraction, I don't want to set myself up for hurt later. I know I would always be safe with him. I know he always has my best interests at heart. All these and more. It is all I need to know about him to trust him.
"You know, somehow, I can't picture you as having ever been dumb." I say teasingly, my lips quirk up with a small smile. To lighten the mood.
He gives me an amused look, cocking his head to watch me and I tingle under the attention.
"Well, I was young." He says with an almost imperceptible chuckle. But I hear the mirth in his tone.
"Are you saying being young is being dumb?" I ask without missing a beat. I get the sense that we are veering off track, but I don't mind. It is fun going back and forth like this.
"No." His heated gaze holds mine. I stare back at him. I am still teasing, playing around and he knows it. The mood between us is light and companionable.
"Good answer." I smirk at him.
"Right. Can I go back to my rather short story about how we ended up with Tyler aiming to hurt me?"
Damn him. He knows how to drive straight to the heart of a matter. Sometimes I wish he was more sly. But that wouldn't be Linc.
"Yeah, sorry." I wave with my fork still in my hand, toast and eggs forgotten. I am not full but I am satisfied.
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"I don't want to get into unnecessary details..." Linc says but I quickly cut him short.
"Please do, I don't mind. I want to hear all about this young and dumb Linc Dmitri." I say, smiling without teeth at him. He glares at me but it is light and doesn't carry any malice.
"I used to party a lot. I met Sheryl at one of those wild parties. I was a crazy frat college kid with misguided priorities. Me and my group of friends. We were dumb. But it was fun times. Though I admit that grudgingly." He says, his expression softens with his nostalgia.
I give him an encouraging smile. He continues.
"I kept going to those parties even when we started dating and at first, Sheryl was okay with it. She used to tag along as usual. Our friend group was mixed after all. But then she started withdrawing from that crowd. And she wanted to pull me out with her. Maybe she had the right reasons and intentions, I don't know. And I didn't care then. It felt like she was asking for too much from me. Getting out of my circle of friends because of her was unthinkable. You must understand that this was at a time when belonging to a clique of friends, no matter how self destructive they seemed, meant everything. You had a place. You belonged. It was your identity. You held onto it fiercely. Most times, the only way you cut ties is if they cut you off first. Which, of course was like a death sentence then." He winces.
I am tempted to tell him that it is still the same thing now. Nothing much has changed. College can be incredibly daunting. People attach themselves to groups or form one themselves, and cling to it desperately. It can get lonely, isolating and miserable, we always need some place to fall back on.
But I keep my mouth shut. Unwilling to deter him from his story.