The Lies Behind Her Marriage novel Chapter 159

The Label.

“I met Mr. Gonzales. He said you called for an emergency meeting?”

The first thing that Serena did was call her brother. She was concerned with what their sales manager had said. She was very hungry, sure, but her family came first.

“Don’t worry. I can handle things,” Silas said on the phone. “We received complaints from our clients that their Vanguard upgrade prices were inflated, and some sales managers had asked for kickbacks.”

“Oh, my goodness.” Serena massaged her head. Just the thought of the problem made her head ache.

“Here, have some toast first while I get more food for us,” Nathaniel said, putting a plate of toasted wheat bread and butter in front of her.

She looked up at him and nodded. Then he returned to the buffet to get more food.

“Should I return?” Serena asked on the phone.

“I can handle it,” Silas said, chuckling. “I’m going to have a meeting with all the sales managers in a few hours.”

“Are you sure?” Serena asked.

“It’s sales. It’s my scope,” Silas said. “Finish what you came there for, but don’t take too long.”

Serena paused, then said, “Okay. Call me later.”

After ending the call, she immediately took a bite of her toast. “Mmmm.”

Her hands trembled as she spread butter on the bread, and then she took another bite.

Serena was famished!

A minute later, Nathaniel returned with Dennis and Peter. They were all carrying plates filled with meat.

All of them were carnivores.

Of course, Nathaniel carried two plates. The first one held a bowl of soup, which he placed in front of Serena.

“It’s beef broth, so you get both protein and collagen,” Nathaniel said. “Careful. It’s still hot.”

Serena dug in, carelessly putting meat into her mouth without testing its temperature.

“Ah!” She fanned her mouth, realizing it was too hot.

“Love, I told you,” Nathaniel hissed as he took the seat next to her. He turned to her and blew into her mouth.

“I said, be careful,” he laughed before blowing again.

Finally, Serena managed to chew the meat. She said, “I was starving.”

“Me too,” Nathaniel said. He picked up the table napkin and placed it on his lap before doing the same to Serena’s.

Then they both indulged without looking at their companions.

Though Serena felt it. Dennis and Peter were staring at them, registering every little bit of their intimate gestures.

“What did you guys do overnight?” Peter asked before starting on his meal.

“Did you guys have a marathon or something?” Dennis teased, and the two friends chuckled.

“We both didn’t eat breakfast. So, we’re starving,” Serena reasoned.

In response, Dennis stared into his plate as if the answer might be written at the bottom of his cake.

The coffee that followed their dessert turned awfully awkward after that. Serena knew why, but she didn’t address Nathaniel’s silent questions in front of his friends.

However, when they got back to their hotel suite, he went straight to interrogating her.

***

“What was that?” Nathaniel asked. “We kiss, we hold hands, we made love, we had a night of passion.”

“At the institute, you practically marked your territory on me,” he added, blood rushing to his face. “And now you’re telling me it was nothing? What exactly do you mean by ambiguity?”

“We… hooked up,” Serena answered plainly. “We share an understanding. I satisfied my needs, and you satisfied yours, but if it’s labels we’re talking about, I’m not ready for it.”

Nathaniel nearly laughed at himself.

So much for being on the same page. She was on a footnote. He was already at the epilogue—with a ring.

Where did he go wrong when seduction had clearly failed him?

Putting his hands on his hips, Nathaniel hissed. “Hook up? Shared understanding? So… wait, what am I? A fling? Your dirty little secret?”

“If it helps you feel better, you’re not entirely a secret. You’re very public,” Serena replied, making Nathaniel choke.

When he couldn’t cope with the shock, unable to reply, Serena added, “If you’re so eager to put a name to it, we can call it exes with benefits.”

Nathaniel: “…”