Chapter 323 - 321: Being Hungry Is Annoying Enough

A dim yellow desk lamp lit up a corner of the room, filling the air with a soft, humid intimacy.

The faint sounds of a man and woman’s pleasure intertwined in the air...

Then, they abruptly stopped.

"What’s wrong? Did I hurt you?"

Saul Thorne looked down, confused, at the woman in his arms, her pretty face flushed crimson.

Cecilia Sterling pressed her small hands against Saul Thorne’s chest, stopping him. She was breathing heavily as she said, "Something’s not right."

Saul Thorne’s handsome brows knitted together. He didn’t seem to understand. "What’s not right?"

"The feel of it isn’t right!" Cecilia Sterling said, giving a firm push and shoving the baffled Saul Thorne off her.

Before Saul could speak, her hand moved down to investigate. He blinked, dazed, but didn’t stop her. "Babe?"

A moment later, Cecilia struggled to pull "the item" off and hold it up for them both to see.

Only then did it dawn on Saul Thorne. "It broke?"

"You didn’t feel it?" Cecilia looked at him.

A wave of guilt washed over Saul Thorne as he stroked her face. "I honestly didn’t feel a thing. I was too into it. Was I being too rough? I didn’t make you uncomfortable, did I?"

Seeing how nervous he was, Cecilia couldn’t help but laugh. She ran her fingertip over the stubble on his chin. "Not at all."

Saul Thorne lowered his head, taking her delicate thumb into his mouth and teasing it playfully.

"It’s been too long. I’ve missed you like crazy. I’ve been saving it all up for you; I haven’t even taken care of myself once."

"Who asked you?" Cecilia blushed. "You’re always so prim and proper in your police uniform, but in private, you’re nothing but dirty talk."

Saul Thorne laughed. "If I can’t say it to you, who can I say it to? I’d love to say it to someone else, but they’d probably call me a pervert."

"So it doesn’t count as being a pervert with me?"

"Of course not. You started it. This is just me ’serving the people’!"

With that, Saul Thorne flipped over and pressed down on her again. Cecilia yelped, "Hey, wait, put on a—"

The rest of her word was swallowed by his descending lips.

Two hours later...

Listening to the sound of running water from the bathroom, Cecilia leaned against the headboard. The clock showed seven in the evening, and her stomach began to growl.

Suddenly, her phone rang.

It was Daniels.

"Cecilia, Eugene Jacobs is trapped on the hotel bed in nothing but his underwear. I’ve already left."

"Good. Thanks for your hard work. Pack your things tonight and move out of the apartment he’s renting for you."

"Cecilia, about studying abroad..."

"Don’t worry. After the show is over tomorrow, I’ll arrange to meet with you privately. We can discuss studying abroad in more detail then. I always do my best to keep my promises."

"Okay, I’ll wait for your call."

As she hung up, Saul Thorne walked out of the bathroom, toweling his hair dry. "Hungry?"

Cecilia nodded pitifully. "Didn’t you say you were taking me to dinner first when you picked me up from school?"

’How did we end up at the apartment instead?’

Saul Thorne flashed a wicked grin. "You’re hungry, and so am I!"

"Are we even talking about the same kind of hunger?"

Saul walked over, threw back the covers, and scooped Cecilia up in his arms, bridal style. She shrieked in surprise as he started walking toward the bathroom, saying, "Well, it’s all a form of consumption. Close enough, right?"

"I’ve been away for a while, so there’s no food in the house. Why don’t you take a shower and we’ll go out to eat."

A high-end mall near the apartment.

Having skipped dinner for two or three hours of "aerobic exercise," Cecilia was now so ravenous she felt like she could eat anything and everything she saw.

"Sir, there are sixteen tables ahead of you. The estimated wait is forty minutes," the hostess at the barbecue place informed Saul Thorne.

Saul Thorne looked at Cecilia. "I remember you said you wanted barbecue a couple of days ago. Want to wait? Or should we find another place?"

"Anything is fine. I’m starving." Cecilia surrendered, desperate to eat as soon as possible.

The two took the elevator to the sixth floor, but as they rounded a corner, they came face-to-face with someone they knew.

The meeting was clearly unexpected for both parties. When their eyes met, Cecilia herself froze.

It was Vivian Sheridan!

Vivian Sheridan also seemed shocked to run into Cecilia so unexpectedly. Ever since the big blow-up at their class reunion in Veridia over the Lunar New Year, the two hadn’t had any contact.

But they both knew that neither had blocked the other, because they could still occasionally see each other’s social media posts.

Snapping out of it, Cecilia was about to pretend she didn’t recognize her and walk away, but Vivian suddenly called out with a bright, surprised expression, "Cecilia? What a coincidence to run into you here!"

Her tone was so warm and affectionate, it was as if she’d completely forgotten what happened at the reunion. To any onlooker, they would have still seemed like the closest of friends.

Cecilia’s brow furrowed. Before she could respond, Vivian’s gaze had already shifted to Saul Thorne.

She had seen his picture. When she and Cecilia met at a coffee shop over the Spring Festival, Cecilia had shown her a photo of her boyfriend—the very man standing before her now.

Tall and handsome—even more so than in the photo.

"You must be Cecilia’s boyfriend, right? I’ve seen your picture!" Vivian gushed, extending her warmth to Saul as well. "I’m Vivian Sheridan, a high school classmate of Cecilia’s."

Saul was a little bewildered by Vivian’s sudden appearance and over-the-top friendliness. But since she mentioned that Cecilia had shown her his photo, he subconsciously assumed they must be on good terms.

So, out of politeness, Saul smiled, nodded, and replied, "Hello."

When he glanced over at Cecilia, however, he saw her expression was frosty, a stark contrast to Vivian’s warmth.

"Cecilia, I’ve been wanting to find a chance to apologize and explain what happened," Vivian said, her smile suddenly vanishing, her tone becoming humble. "You really misunderstood me at the reunion. I never, ever meant to embarrass you or make a fool out of you."

"We were best friends for all three years of high school. How could I possibly do something like that? You have to believe me."

A look of impatience crossed Cecilia’s face.

’Being hungry was annoying enough.’

"It doesn’t matter. I left all that nonsense behind in that room the day I walked out."

Sensing the cold distance in Cecilia’s tone, Vivian looked embarrassed for a moment, but she maintained her pitiful act. "So you’re not mad at me anymore, okay? I don’t want to lose you as a friend."

Just as Cecilia was about to speak, a handsome, refined-looking young man hurried over.

He was clearly oblivious to the situation. He came up, slung an arm familiarly around Vivian’s shoulders, and looked curiously at Cecilia and Saul. "Vivian, are these your friends? I didn’t know you had friends here in Lorcain."

"This is my high school classmate and my best friend, Cecilia!"

Vivian introduced them herself. "And this is my boyfriend, Trask. He goes to Republic University. I came all this way just to see him."

Saul could tell Cecilia had no desire to continue chatting with this old friend, so he cut in, "We’re in a hurry to get some dinner, so we’ll get going."