Page 58 of Chemistry: The Chemist

A few feet away, at the other end of the table, Chem sat with his eyes trained on me and a glass of brown liquid against his lips every few seconds. I squirmed under his scrutiny, wondering just how badly he was tearing me apart with those orbs.

My weight shifted every few seconds. My hands were unsteady. Cutting into the tender steak became a much more difficult task than it ever had been.

“Uh um.” I cleared my throat, feeling the room grow smaller.

The temperature increased, simultaneously. I crossed my legs underneath the table. My posture slacked slowly, but I straightened my back the second I realized it was crooked.

Please. I begged him. My entire body was unsettled. I couldn’t keep still.

“You’re staring.”

“I’m aware,” he responded without remorse.

God, he’s a fucking dream. There wasn’t a part of him that was imperfect. He was fine. Unbelievably so. And his energy, whichever he was giving at the moment, made him so much finer.

“Chem.”

“If my actions haven’t made it clear, Eden, you don’t get to choose another nigga. I’ve chosen you.”

Lifted brows and piqued curiosity led me to drop my utensils.

“They don’t belong there,” he informed me, nodding toward the napkins on both sides of the plates.

I laid the knife and fork in their rightful places and focused on the man across the table.

“Have you?”

“I have.”

“Do you know what that consists of, Chem? Choosing someone?”

“I don’t. Not from experience, at least.”

“I didn’t think so.”

“I’m learning day by day.”

“You’ve never been in love.”

I wasn’t surprised. You had to be a special kind of woman to deal with a man like Chem. There weren’t many of us in the world with the capacity to do so. Fortunately for us both, I did.

“No.”

“I wasn’t asking. I was voicing m–”

“That means nothing, Eden.”

“For you. For me, it means several things.”

“Your food will get cold. You should eat.”

I picked up my utensils and continued chopping away at the flavorful steak.

“There are better ways to ask a woman to be yours.”

“I wasn’t asking.”

I gulped water from the glass in front of me before clearing my throat. It was thickening to the point of discomfort.

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