THE TASTE OF HIM

Cael's POVThe flashbulbs were still bright in my eyes as my driver whisked me away from the auction house. It felt as though I was the talk of everyone tonight-Cael Marcellus, the artist himself, the one who fetched the highest piece in his recent work to date. It went on and on as reporters shoved their microphones at me for comments on what I was going to do next for an artwork, how it felt to hear the title "father of a new generation."I smiled, nodded, bought them the answers, but frankly, my mind was nowhere in that glittering hall. Applause and champagne meant nothing when my personal life was crashing down.Adrian and I had been at one another's throats for a week now, fighting about everything and nothing, something that was bound to explode from those tiny little things.His complaints were always ok the same thing. He always complained that I would ignore him, too focused on my career-to-unavailable, so words had been particularly biting and harsh coming from him, conside

Cael’s POV“Home…not so sweet home.” I mumbled as I stepped into my bedroom.I just had the intention to enter the bedroom, lay down on the bed, and erase everything from my mind.Adrian was already gone. The suits had disappeared; the cologne bottles were vanished from the line they had occupied on the dresser; the framed photo of us which he had insisted on keeping next to the bed was also gone. Only his closet door stood ajar on a bare wardrobe.I stood at the doorframe for eternity, feeling utterly drained, the quaking voice of Claire, Adrian’s pathetic excuses, and some dim person from last night’s resurfacing felt like a surreal touch washed off from my skin.Deepest regrets came slamming through, and for the next thirty seconds, I found myself cursing in the bathroom, the shower at maximum heat, I thought, because nothing would really wash the filth off anyway.Downstairs, starvation hit me like a ton of bricks. I retrieved some eggs and bread and tried to concentrate on the m

Cael’s POVI awoke from sleep because my phone began to buzz. I groaned and dragged it off the nightstand and squinted at the screen.Missed calls. A ton of them. From mom.My chest tightened. What now?I pulled myself upright, dragged my hand over my face, and quickly dials her back. She answered on the first ring."Cael Marcellus!" Her voice harrowed and cut through my half-awake state. "Where are you?""I just woke up," I muttered, swinging my legs off the bed. "What's wrong?""What's wrong?" she repeated, pitch rising. "You were supposed to be at the airport already! Your sister is landing, and you-"I froze halfway to the bathroom. "Wait, what? Selene? Why would I pick her up in the middle of a semester?"She let out a long, frustrated sigh. "Oh for heaven's sake, Cael. If you weren't so wrapped up in your world, you would know she graduated last month! I've told you that three times. And this weekend is my wedding, so she figured this is the best time to come home, but obviously