Page 12 of Mr. Delicious
Chapter 4
Adam
* * *
What an asshole indeed.
It had been awhile since I got worked up enough to hit someone but here I was clutching the table, fists turning white.
Selene was called away so she didn’t get to hear anything. I was happy about that because she didn’t seem like the type who would be tactful in hearing such scandalous information.
I heard some of what happened to Wren. Not all, but enough.
The words that kept popping up werecheating, scam and Billy. He was the boyfriend—ex- boyfriend.
Then there was the debt.
That was the part I heard most, and what crushed her. By then she saw me and turned her voice down to whispers so I could no longer hear what she was saying.
Five minutes later she went out back to the break room and Stella left.
I sat for a long time after, watching the place fill up. Couldn’t finish my bagel or the coffee.
Unknown to her I was part of the problem.
That business loan was…
Well it wasn’t exactly a loan of the usual kind. It was more the sort where your friend lent you money and never expected interest. An interest free loan from me, who at the time knew nothing of this woman.
Unknown to her all this time, I was the one who’d sort of invested in her coffeehouse.
I owned the place much like everything around here when she got it. The bank manager, who also happened to be a very good friend of my father, contacted me about it when she’d first applied for the loan. The property was one I had wanted to make good use of myself, but I’d never been quite sure what to do with it.
The coffeehouse stumped me until I saw the letter Wren wrote to support her loan application. It moved me, and I couldn’t have thought of a better idea than a coffeehouse. I’d also thought the name she chose was fantastic:The Spot. It was perfect.
Unknown to her, the bank had wanted to deny Wren’s loan application because they felt she wouldn’t be able to make the substantial repayments which included a high interest rate and other charges for the location. It was almost double what she was asking to borrow. However, as I looked over the application, her financial situation, and everything else, I decided to lend her the money myself.
So, when the bank contacted her and made her aware she had a good offer for a no-interest business loan, she well and truly had a good offer.
At that point, I hadn’t met her yet. What drove me to meet her was that letter. She spoke of her love for baking and for her aunt. She spoke of wanting to bring something new to the community that would bring people together but would also be a refuge from the stresses of daily life. There was a certain warmth that came from it that got to me, so I decided to attend her opening party. I didn’t know what to expect, but I totally hadn’t expectedher. The women I was normally attracted to were all the same—super model types with a “don’t care” attitude. They were the ones who could match the wildness I had; they were always good in bed, headstrong, and best of all had no expectations from me.
The minute I looked at Wren that night so long ago, I knew she was different.
People say not to judge a book by its cover, but I did it all the time. Wren was of the delicate variety. She was warm, just like the letter, and had a sort of ethereal beauty that made her seem almost angelic in appearance and personality.
I thought she had the body of a goddess with her slim figure, large breasts, long golden hair, and those coffee-colored eyes I’d seen light up when she was happy. She was the kind of woman to kill you with kindness; she was the homely kind I figured had always been faithful and loyal.
It wasn’t my style to watch any woman, and for so long, without making any sort of move. And, I didn’t take too kindly to wanting things I couldn’t have, like her.
Until now…
She was single, free of that asshole, and there was nothing holding me back now.
Was it wrong of me to see this as a foot in?
Somehow, I didn’t care about how it seemed. My interest had peaked all the more and I was going to seize the chance.
She also wouldn’t have to worry about the loan on this place. I’d sort that out.
