I tried to avoid him; I really did.
God was a witness to this very fact that I tried my best to stay not five hundred but five thousand feet away from Brenton Maslow, yet he still managed to show his stupidly handsome face in front of me.
With an awkward smile at the smiling Clayton and not even bothering to spare Brenton a glance, I took a quick step back so that I was standing three feet away from him instead of two.
I just hoped Brenton waited until the end of my shift to call the police and have me arrested, but knowing him, that was like wishing for rain in the desert.
“I—I’m Ce—Cece—Cecelia,” I said to Clayton while pretending that Brenton did not exist.
“Well, I can definitely say it is an absolute pleasure to finally meet you, Cecelia, and can I just say that your name is just as beautiful as you,” Clayton remarked with a beautiful smile that had me blushing instantly.
I would’ve melted into a puddle of hormones if my arch nemesis hadn’t been standing right in front of me.
“Th—Thank y—you,” I stammered, hating the fact that my heart was beating faster than my mind could process information.
I was not afraid of Brenton; I was afraid of the fact that he would tell the Hamptons about the restraining order that he’d filed against me and that he’d have me fired, and if he did that, then I would have no choice but to leave the city and start over, which would be difficult.
“Clay, are you just going to continue to flatter the lady, or will you introduce me as well?” Brenton asked.
Was it just me or did he sound annoyed? Maybe he was not happy that a man was treating me nicely.
Would Brenton break off his friendship with Clayton just because he was being nice to me? Considering how petty he was, I wouldn’t have been surprised if he did that.
“I need to make sure you don’t end up stealing her attention. By the way, Cecelia, this is my friend, Brenton. Don’t be fooled by his looks; he is an utter devil on the inside. The thousands of broken hearts are the proof of his evil ways,” Clayton replied with amusement sparkling in his eyes.
He might be joking about Brenton, but none of his words was a lie to me.
From my periphery, I could see Brenton rolling his eyes. “You don’t have to worry about me stealing women, Clay. We both know how they naturally flock toward me,” he said.
“Boys, boys, let’s not fight over who is more handsome.” Mrs. Hampton cut in, making me sigh in relief.
I really wanted to go hide in the bathroom once again, but it would be useless now. He already knew I was here, and all he had to do now was get me fired by telling Mrs. Hampton.
“You are absolutely right, Mrs. Hampton, because there is clearly no competition that I am more handsome than Clay,” Brenton said, smirking.
“Regardless of who is more handsome, I think that a person should have a beautiful heart, a beautiful personality. At least, that is my criteria for judging who is the better person,” I said, which killed Brenton’s smirk faster than I could’ve killed a bug.
I was just being honest, but it seemed as if I were inviting my demise via Brenton sooner than I would’ve liked.
“Finally, somebody who is not shallow. I must say, Mum, you have chosen a good one this time,” Clay praised with a smile.
If he continued being kind to me, I would have a hard time acting professionally around him.
No matter how nice he was to me, I had to remember that he was my employer, and it was not professional to have a relationship with him.
“Come on, Clay, we are getting late for our meeting,” Brenton said all of a sudden. Maybe he was getting tired of being in my presence, and that was why he sounded so cranky.
I hoped he wouldn’t come by here often, because I would have a problem working here. Maybe he was taking Clay away so he could tell him about the restraining order.
“Of course. Why don’t you go ahead, and I will be right there with you,” Clay said, which had Brenton frowning.
“Uh, I don’t think so. We are walking out of here together. I am not leaving you here,” Brenton stated, surprising me with his words.
I could not believe he actually cared about somebody other than himself. This was a shock, a beautiful shock.
“And why not?” Clayton asked.
“No offense, Mrs. Hampton, but it’s kind of claustrophobic in here,” Brenton remarked, undoing a button of his shirt.
Was this supposed to be an insult directed at me? Did I even dare overthink this? What if he was trying to insult me?
Mrs. Hampton stood up and smacked Brenton on the back of his head, which had my jaw dropping in shock.
How could she do this? Brenton had a lot more power than she did; he could have this restaurant shut down with one phone call.
“You can say whatever you want; I am not making this restaurant any bigger,” she stated, which had Brenton scowling like a schoolboy.
“Come on! I have been telling you for the past three years to buy the place next to yours. This restaurant will make so much money if you would just expand it,” he argued.
“I don’t care how much money it makes. I like it as it is,” Mrs. Hampton replied with a stubborn frown on her adorable face.
“But you are throwing away potential,” he protested.
“It is not about potential, Brenton. This restaurant was born out of love, and I want it to stay that way. This restaurant is not an investment, it’s sentiment.”
She cupped his face and smiled at him as if he were a little boy. “You will not understand until you are in love.”
“In that case, he will never understand,” Clay muttered, which earned him a punch from Brenton.
“That is not true,” he snapped, which resulted in a chuckle.
“Yeah, we’ll see when you are sitting in a pub all alone watching the couples pass you by,” Clay said.
“I will fall in love when the right person comes along,” Brenton said.
I had to refrain from giggling when I saw his cheeks turning slightly pink. I could not believe a man like Brenton Maslow could be embarrassed by something.
“If you are expecting an alien to land on earth, then brother, you will have to wait a long time.”
Clay laughed and dodged a punch Brenton threw at him, which had Mrs. Hampton bursting into laughter.
“I think you two should get going before you are late for your meeting,” Mrs. Hampton reminded them.
“Of course, Mum. I will see you after a few hours.”
Leaning forward, Clayton kissed his mother’s cheek before flashing a gorgeous smile at me, then he walked out of the restaurant.
“I will see you soon, Mrs. Hampton. Take care of yourself and give me a call if you need anything,” Brenton said.
“I will; don’t worry,” she replied.
I held my breath as Brenton walked past me without sparing me a glance.
But just before he opened the door, he turned his head and locked his eyes with mine, and the words he conveyed to me with that one look were enough to terrify every cell in my body.
To others, it might look as if he were just looking at me, but I knew what that look meant, and I did not know what to do now.
“Cecelia? Are you okay, dear?” Mrs. Hampton asked long after Brenton had walked out.
“Yes, of course,” I turned to look at her.
“You have been staring at the door for quite a while,” she commented, which had me biting my lip.
“Oh no, I was just thinking about something. Don’t worry,” I assured her. “Your son is a wonderful man.”
“He is, isn’t he? I pray for him to always be happy, and Brenton as well. He is like a son to me. At times, I forget that he really isn’t,” she said with a soft smile.
“Have they been friends for long?” I asked, hoping to get a glimpse into the life of the man who wanted to kill me.
“They have been friends since they learned to walk. I used to be friends with Brenton’s mother. But I raised him like my own since Teresa had a lot going on with three other kids. So Brenton is a son to me, regardless of whether I gave birth to him or not,” she answered.
“That is amazing,” I said, not knowing what else to say. A person like Brenton having a friend and actually getting love was something I did not understand.
Why did he choose to be a monster to others when he was so kind toward a few people? What would happen to him if he chose to be kind to strangers?
“I pray that he soon finds a woman and falls in love. He is missing out on a lot of things,” she told me, which made me chuckle.
“And what kind of things is he missing out on?” I asked.
“Love changes you, dear... in ways you never expected. And I think everybody should experience this at least once in their life.”
Just as she finished speaking, the door opened, signaling the arrival of some customers, which meant it was time for me to stop asking questions and get to work.
“Well, is it time to close?” I asked Mrs. Hampton as the last of the customers walked out of the restaurant.
“Yes, I think we should close now.” Her reply had me walking to the door and turning the locks, then I switched off the lights so that only the light by the counter was on.
“So, what will you do now? I think you should eat something,” I suggested as I strode over to her.
“I am waiting for Clayton and Brenton to return; I will have dinner with them,” she responded.
“Uh, Brenton is coming too?”
If he saw me still standing here, then he’d be bound to get rid of me by telling them everything.
He’d already shot me a look of warning, and I would be smart to heed it. My job was fragile here at best.
“Of course, he will come. I made his favorite food today,” she said. This meant I had to get out of here now.
“Oh, okay. Then I guess I should be going home now. You take care. Have a good night,” I said as I got ready to leave.
“Why don’t you join us?” she asked, which made my heart nearly jump out of my mouth.
“No, no, it’s your family. Your son has come back after a long time, and you should spend time with him,” I answered, hoping she would not insist.
“I’m sure he wouldn’t mind. And he likes you, so you can stay for dinner.” The kind smile she was giving me made it difficult for me to refuse her.
But I only had one job and I needed this job, so I could not risk seeing Brenton again. If he let it slide once, I was sure he would never do it a second time.
“Oh no, I really shouldn’t. Maybe some other time. Your son came back after a long time so I’m sure you would want to spend some quality time with him.”
This was the only argument I had and I would use it to my full advantage.
“Spend quality time with whom?” I stiffened when I heard Clayton’s voice.
I could not expect Brenton to stay silent right now. He would get me fired now for sure.
I turned around, hoping that Brenton would not be present, but I should have known by then that my luck never worked, especially when I really wanted it to work.
So when I saw him standing there, I decided to finally bury my luck because it was as good as dead.
“Oh, good, you both are finally here. I was asking Cecelia to stay for dinner,” Mrs. Hampton said, trapping me, because I knew I would not be getting out of here that easily now.
“Oh, that’s wonderful! What have you cooked?” Clayton asked, taking off his suit jacket and placing it on a chair.
“All your favorites.” The grin on her face could’ve lit up the night sky, and it filled my heart with emotions.
“Thanks, Mum. Love you,” Clayton looked at me. “Cecelia? Why don’t you join us?”
“Thank you, but I really should be going,” I said to him.
“Oh, but we insist. I’m sure I will not eat all the food Mum has cooked, because she cooks a lot…when she does,” Clay replied.
“I understand that, but I really need to get home. There are some things that I need to do,” I told them, avoiding glancing at Brenton.
How come he was quiet when he was standing five feet away from me?
“You can do them later. And it’s just the four of us. You are no stranger now, even though we’ve just met. Mum has known you for some days now, and you have helped her out a lot, so I think you should stay and have dinner,” he countered.
What kind of a boss was he? How could he be so informal with an employee?
“I think it’s settled now. Cecelia, you will stay for dinner; we all insist. And now I am going to see whether everything is ready. Clay, you come with me.”
Without waiting for my response, Mrs. Hampton and Clayton walked away, leaving me with Brenton.
“Well, well, looks like you are still here,” Brenton said as he took a couple of steps toward me.
“Why are you coming closer to me when you are supposed to stay five hundred feet away from me?” I asked as I took a step back.
“I’m not supposed to stay away; you are supposed to stay away. And as for why I am coming closer, I am here to warn you, firecracker,” he said.
“Warn me? I am not afraid of you,” I snapped at him.
“That’s exactly what I need to warn you about, firecracker.” He came to a stop just an inch from me.
“Be afraid...”
“Because I am going to destroy you.”
