CLAIRE (EIGHT)

I finished dressing and applying light makeup to my face in five minutes. I didn’t want to put anything on my face at first, but considering how neat and classy Raviel looked, even in simple clothes, I decided to put some makeup on my face. A little orange lipstick and blush would do the trick to brighten up my look tonight.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“It’s ok. I used my time to reply to the emails that came in this afternoon.”

Raviel tucked his phone into his pants pocket. His gaze never left my body. I could tell that he was satisfied with what I was wearing. The boredom in his eyes had turned into a sparkle of enthusiasm. I wish I could always see him like that.

“I thought you wouldn’t be dealing with your work during the holidays.”

I made the first conversation after we got out of our suite area. The lounge we were headed to was near the resort’s main restaurant. We had to walk through a path lined with palm trees to an open area, past a playground, and a garden. Every VIP guest got a buggy to go to the restaurant, but Raviel just told me that he wanted to walk to the lounge instead of using the buggy.

“Those jobs are unavoidable. No matter how hard I try to get away from them, there are always things that make me have to go back to them. So yeah, this is how I enjoy life.”

“I thought being rich was fun.”

“There’s always a price to pay for all the privileges we have. By the way, how does it feel to be a psychology student who studies human behavior all the time? Do you ever get bored?”

“Bored? No. I like it. I like being around strangers and observing them. Humans are unique and interesting. I can hardly resist making simple observations of the people around me.”

“So, you’ve been observing me all this time?”

“Well, how could I pass up the chance to observe you when I’m this close to you, right?” I chuckled softly.

“Tell me, what’s your assessment of me so far?”

“Hmm… You’re a mysterious man full of surprises. I mean, there are so many sides to you that I hadn’t noticed before.”

Raviel laughed at my silly assessment of him. His laughter sounded so crisp and melodious. My stepfather truly had a unique personality. It made me want to stay close to him, to uncover more of the sides of himself he kept hidden from those around him.

“I’m just an ordinary man, Claire. I have emotions, and of course, I can laugh. It’s just that I don’t laugh every day. I only laugh when something is truly worth laughing at.”

“Even so, you’re still unique in my eyes. If only I could have known you better in the past, but well…” I gave a slight shrug.

“But we were too busy with our own things, weren’t we?”

Our short conversation stopped abruptly when we arrived at the lounge. The place was very beautiful with a very beautiful beach view and live music. Everyone who was having dinner at the lounge were couples in love. Maybe we were the only ones who weren’t a couple here. But Raviel booked the table to have dinner with my mom. I just replaced her because she wasn’t feeling well.

Don’t get a big head and think that Raviel prepared all this for you, Claire!

“Our table is over there.”

My focus immediately shifted to the food served on the table. Raviel had ordered food before we arrived at the lounge to save time, so we wouldn’t have to wait too long for our food to arrive. And I was very grateful for that because I was very hungry. I hadn’t eaten anything since I got off the plane. My saliva almost dripped as my eyes explored the food one by one. And guess what, I found one of my favorite foods among them. Great!

“How did you know I really like grilled salmon?”

“Just a random guess.”

Raviel pulled out a chair for me like a true gentleman. Again, it made me forget that he was my stepdad, and not my boyfriend.

“Thank you. I really like grilled salmon.”

“Eat it and don’t leave a single thing on your plate.”

“I won’t. Maybe I will embarrass you with my pig-like eating style. Mom said I’m fat like a pig.”

“I think your mother is exaggerating. You are not at all fat like a pig,” Raviel stroked my cheek gently.

“Your mother is just jealous of you because you are still young and fresh like a flower that has just bloomed in the garden.”

I chuckled at his words. “There’s no way my mother would be jealous of me. She has everything a woman in the world could want.”

Raviel stared at me intently before gracefully placing the napkin on his thigh. He seemed indifferent, but the words that came out of his mouth after that managed to make the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.

“Trust me, your mother has a thousand and one reasons to be jealous of you, Claire. You’re the lucky one.”

And he smirked at me.