Oscar Quincy reached out to pat Morgan Carter’s shoulder, but Morgan sidestepped him and said coldly, “Don’t touch me!”
Oscar Quincy’s hand dropped awkwardly.
He smiled and said, “It’s not often we get to meet.
Let’s catch up for a bit.
Come on, have a seat.”
Morgan Carter looked at Maya Rivers.
She was slumped over the table, giving him a goofy smile and a wave.
“Talk.
Keep Oscar Quincy company.
He’s such a nice guy.”
Though annoyed, Morgan Carter could only sit down obediently.
Having lost to Morgan Carter in the looks department, Oscar Quincy was determined to make up for it in other areas.
He asked, “So, where are you working now?”
Morgan Carter answered truthfully, “A car shop!”
Oscar Quincy asked, “Car sales?
Which dealership?
I’m actually planning on getting a new car soon.”
Morgan Carter said impatiently, “Not sales.
I wash cars!”
“Washing cars?!”
Everyone else at the table froze for a second, then burst out laughing.
“For real?
He washes cars?
No way!
How could Maya Rivers end up with a car washer!”
Maya Rivers smiled, draping her arm over Morgan Carter’s shoulder with a proud look on her face.
“What’s wrong with washing cars?
The cars my husband washes are super clean!”
Morgan Carter nodded eagerly.
“The customers all praise me!
The owner’s wife praises me too!”
His tone was childish, his gaze artlessly direct.
Everyone finally realized something was off.
Oscar Quincy tentatively asked Hilary York, “Hilary, is he…?” He tapped his own head.
Hilary York strategically picked up her water glass, her eyes darting elsewhere.
“Don’t ask me.
I don’t know anything.”
Oscar Quincy understood everything.
The frustration in his heart instantly vanished, replaced by an immense sense of satisfaction.
He burst out laughing.
“So he’s an idiot!
Hahaha!
Maya Rivers, oh Maya, how did you end up with an idiot?
Ah…”
Excitement coursed through him.
He felt this was the funniest joke he’d heard all year.
The other former classmates also caught on that Maya Rivers’s husband was, in fact, an idiot, and they joined in the mocking laughter.
Morgan Carter didn’t understand what they were laughing at.
He only felt uncomfortable under their blatant stares.
When Oscar Quincy finally managed to stop laughing, he said to Morgan Carter, “You’ve probably never been to a restaurant like this before, right?
Order whatever you want today.
It’s on me.”
Of everyone there, Morgan Carter disliked him the most, and he certainly didn’t want to eat anything Oscar was paying for.
Hilary York couldn’t stand it anymore.
Half-joking, she said to him, “Hey, he’s treating.
You should order.
Go for the expensive stuff.
Make him bleed a little.”
Oscar Quincy’s lips were stretched in a grin he couldn’t contain.
“But he’s an idiot.
Can he even read?
Does he know how to order?”
He rested his hand on the back of Morgan Carter’s chair, watching him with leisurely amusement, as if teasing a pet bird.
Morgan Carter looked at the menu that had been thrust into his hands, his gaze sweeping over the names of the dishes.
Oscar Quincy jeered, “It’s okay if you can’t read.
Just look at the pictures.
That’s how little kids order.”
The crowd erupted in laughter again.
“Maya Rivers, what do you even see in him?
Is it just that pretty face?”
“You can’t live on good looks, hahaha.”
“Women shouldn’t be so vain.
Being handsome is useless!”
Listening to everyone’s mockery, Oscar Quincy was thoroughly satisfied.
He said to Morgan Carter, “Why don’t I just order for you?”
Morgan Carter said slowly, “No, thanks.
I wouldn’t like what you’d order.”
He turned his head to the waiter standing by.
“Hello.
I’ll have the escargots, a bowl of truffle soup, a Caesar salad, a medium ribeye steak, and the pan-seared salmon…”
His practiced ordering slowly silenced the boisterous crowd.
Even Hilary York sat up straight, staring at him in astonishment.
With his sharp features and low, steady voice, he didn’t resemble an idiot at all.
He seemed just like a regular patron of fine dining establishments.
Morgan Carter didn’t look at anyone.
Following a hazy memory, he rattled off the names of some familiar dishes.
Then he picked up the wine bottle on the table and examined it.
“Don’t serve a wine of this vintage.
The mouthfeel is astringent.
Bring a ’90 Romanée-Conti instead.”
Oscar Quincy’s heart leaped into his throat.
‘Drink wine like that?
I’d have to leave my car here as collateral tonight!’
The waiter looked at Morgan Carter, troubled.
“I’m very sorry, sir, but our restaurant doesn’t carry that particular wine…”
Morgan Carter nodded.
“That’s right.
Not everyone can get their hands on a wine like that.
In that case, just bring a bottle of the most expensive red wine you have.
Decant it properly before serving.
Thank you.”
Oscar Quincy’s heart, which hadn’t even had a chance to settle, shot right back up into his throat.
‘Now I’m really starting to wonder if this kid is a real idiot or just faking it!
He’s clearly trying to fleece me!’
But he had already made the grand offer.
Taking it back now would be a huge loss of face.
He could only grit his teeth and bear it.
Morgan Carter seemed to have genuinely come just to eat.
He elegantly and skillfully cut his steak, even asking a groggy Maya Rivers if she wanted some.
When Maya Rivers said no, he began to eat happily by himself.
Oscar Quincy was no longer in the mood to talk to him.
Morgan Carter alone had run up a bill of over a hundred thousand, and Oscar was physically pained by the expense.
Hilary York was struggling to hold back her laughter.
‘Maya Rivers and Morgan Carter really are a pair,’ she thought.
‘They really know how to put people in their place.’
The crowd that had been chattering away earlier was now completely silent.
‘So peaceful.’
Once Morgan Carter had eaten and drunk his fill, he even said politely to Oscar Quincy, “Thank you for your hospitality.
We’ll be leaving now.”
With that, he once again tried to help Maya Rivers to her feet.
Maya Rivers was now dead drunk and couldn’t be helped up.
Morgan Carter bent down slightly, swept her up into his arms, and walked out as if no one else was there.
Hilary York stared at his retreating back, clicking her tongue in awe.
‘Holy shit, his boyfriend-material vibe is off the charts!
My dear Maya, that sucker for a pretty face, is so done for.
He’s going to have her completely wrapped around his finger!’
Oscar Quincy stared at the incredibly expensive bottle of red wine, from which only half a glass had been poured.
His eyes were practically shooting sparks.
Morgan Carter carried Maya Rivers downstairs from the restaurant and hailed a taxi.
He had been furious when he heard a man’s voice on WhatsApp, and had come looking for her, ignoring her orders.
‘It’s a good thing I came.
Otherwise, who would’ve taken her home?’
He looked at Maya Rivers leaning in his arms, a slight smile curling his lips.
‘I hope this ride is a long one, so she can lean on me for just a little while longer.’
The taxi couldn’t drive into the narrow alley where they rented their place, so after getting out, Morgan Carter carried Maya Rivers the rest of the way.
He savored every single second of this moment.
He loved any and all physical closeness with her.
Back in their room, he carefully laid Maya Rivers down on the bed.
Before he could stand up, her arms snaked around and hooked his neck, pulling him down toward her.
They were pressed too close together.
Morgan Carter was forced to hover over Maya Rivers, not daring to move an inch.
His Adam’s apple bobbed.
In the darkness, his breathing grew heavy.
Maya Rivers’s soft arms rested on him as she mumbled drunkenly.
“Maya…” Morgan Carter’s mind was buzzing.
Maya Rivers’s arms tightened a little more as she mumbled, “Hug…”
Morgan Carter hesitated for a moment before carefully reaching out and tentatively hugging her.
Only then did Maya Rivers quiet down.
Morgan Carter slowly lay down beside her, letting her nuzzle into his embrace.
He was both scared and excited.
Maya Rivers nuzzled her head onto his arm, draped one hand over his lean waist, and pressed her face against his chest.
Only then did she drift off to sleep, completely content.
Morgan Carter, however, lay in the dark with his eyes wide as saucers, his heart feeling as if it would burst from his chest.
He waited until Maya Rivers’s breathing was even before he slowly tried to pull his arm out to go take a shower.
But the moment he moved, she mumbled in displeasure, refusing to let his arm go.
Morgan Carter could only lie back down.
In the moonlight filtering in from outside, he gazed at Maya Rivers’s flushed cheeks and pink, moist lips.
Every nerve in his body seemed to thrum violently.
‘I desperately want to taste those cherry-like lips.’
“Maya…”
He stared at her lips, letting out a low, pitiful sound.
Maya Rivers was asleep and didn’t respond.
Morgan Carter hesitated for a long while.
Finally, he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.