Love Is a Sweet Addiction

Esther was hungry but held the urge to eat at the thought of Terence, who promised he would come home for dinner. She decided to wait until Terence came back so that he wouldn’t have had the leftovers.

She sat back down on the sofa to watch TV.

She was not a fan of soup opera, drifting to sleep.

When Terence was home, Esther curled up on the sofa with the remote in her arms. She was still fast asleep.

He didn’t wake her up. When he quietly took off his shoes and tiptoed to wash his hands in the kitchen, he saw a table full of untouched food. His gaze shifted back to Esther, thinking, ‘Has she been waiting for me?’

The food should be cooked a while ago. Terence glanced at his watch and it was almost ten. She seemed to have been waiting for a long time.

After a moment of hesitation, Terence walked to the sofa and leaned to gently poke her on the shoulder. Esther woke up suddenly, looking fearfully at him. The horrified expression caught Terence off guard.

“Oh, it’s you,” Esther let out a relieved breath and wiped the sweat coming from fright with her sleeve.

“Should there be anyone else?”

“Oh, of course not.”

“Are you afraid of living here?”

“No, I’m fine,” Esther shook her head. Instead, she was afraid of what had happened in the ancestral hall for the past few days. Esther hadn’t got a decent night’s sleep since then. If she didn’t take the cold medicine, she wouldn’t have fallen asleep last night.

“Have you eaten?” She stood up from the sofa and walked to the dining room while saying, “I’m afraid the food needs to be reheated.”

“I have eaten,” Terence’s voice sounded from behind.

Esther jolted to turn around, “Oh? You’ve eaten.”

“Haven’t you?” Terence glanced at the table of food, “Didn’t Shaw tell you to eat first?”

“Yes, but I’m not that hungry. I just wanted to wait for you.” Esther looked more disappointed than she looked. She said matter-of-factly, “That’s fine. I can eat now.”

Terence quietly walked off to take a shower in the bathroom.

After the bath, he saw Esther eating alone at the table. After a moment of hesitation, he went to sit across from her to eat.

Esther looked at him in surprise, apparently not expecting Terence to eat with her.

“The construction got me kind of late, so I simply filled my stomach. Well, I feel a little hungry.” Terence said suddenly.

Esther nodded in response and buried her head to eat. After a while, she asked, “How is the work going? Is it tricky?”

“Not really.”

“What kind of issues?”

“The housing quality and some legacy issues from the expedition.”

Esther nodded again. These weren’t her expertise, so she couldn’t bring the topic further. Terence was usually quiet and seldom started a conversation.

They were eating silently until Terence asked at the end of the dinner, “Do you need me to help you with the dish?”

“No, I’ll take care of this,” Esther answered without a second thought.

How was possible to let a spoiled, rich dude wash the dishes and stained his hands with bubbles? It was hard to imagine!

…

Esther set the table with breakfast the next morning when Serena called.

She glanced at the phone number and said to Terence, “Excuse me, I need to pick up a call. Please take your time.”

Terence pulled out a chair and sat down.Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

The Breakfast was simple yet nutrient, including meat porridge, and eggs. Esther almost changed the recipe for everyday breakfast this week. Although they were simple and easy, Terence found them more delicious than the feasting table in the Gibson’s.

Esther heard Serena’s suggestive voice over the phone, “How is it? Did the newlywed live a happy life? I haven’t heard from you for quite a while.”

“When did it happen? Then who do you talk to over the phone every day?” Esther said.

“That’s for work. It’s different.”

“You spend half of your time gossiping in every phone call from work.” Esther paused for a moment and continued, “What is it? I’ll get off the phone if it’s the usual chatter again.”

“Hey, you’re so cruel! Did you only have Terence in your mind?”

“Cut the crap.”

Serena turned a little serious. “Well, alright. I was bored on the weekend and would you like to grab a drink?”

“What do you want? Just cut to the chase.”

“What else could it be? It’s about you and Terence,” Serena shifted in a playful tone of voice. “How is it? It’s been a week. Have you made any progress? Is he still mad at you?”

Serena threw a bunch of questions. Esther peeked at Terence, who was eating breakfast at the table, and walked to the bedroom as she answered in a low voice, “Didn’t I tell you before? Terence leaves early and comes home late every day. Even he is home, he mostly stays in the study room. We barely talk.”

“What? It’s pathetic!”

“That’s how it is.”

“Then you can take the initiative, right?”

“Well, I didn’t.”

“Then that’s your fault,” Serena said in a serious tone, “Esther, have you forgotten how you lost James? You were bad either at pleasing men or acting as open as Anne. Haven’t you learned your lesson? Why haven’t you grown an inch? Men like sexy and beautiful women, especially a rich man like Terence, clear?”

Esther smiled bitterly. James cheated on Esther partly because she didn’t know how to please him as much as Anne did. But it was mostly attributed to James’s mistrust. Anne told him that Esther messed with a man five years ago, and he chose to believe it.

Although she lost her memory, Esther always kept her nose clean and would never ever believe Anne.

“Esther, are you listening to me?” Serena suddenly raised her voice.

Esther snapped back to her senses.

“You are married. Don’t be too conservative, especially when you are in bed. No man will like a woman as rigid as wood. We have to act like a slut on the bed and a lady off the bed.”