Damian's POV
I drove home, my mind occupied by my discussion with Dominic. Pinching the middle of my brows, I exhaled. "Why did I have to end up with a crazy twin, going around acting like a psychopath with my face?"

I opened the door, and the sweet aroma from the kitchen filled the room, calming my nerves a bit. I removed my shoes before entering. My eyes widened. "Bentley? You're back early. Aren't you tired?" I said.

He turned to me. "Welcome. I had a normal day at work, for the first time in a while," he smiled. "I'm not tired at all, thanks."

It's a good thing he didn’t overwork him today. He must've allowed him to rest so his plan would run smoothly.

I relaxed in the living room after lunch, watching the news. My eyebrows twitched, the deal with Dominic crossing my mind.

"I should confirm something first," I stood up and went to find him. Bentley was in the library, sitting in his favorite spot, reading a novel.

"Bentley," I said. He turned to me. I sat next to him, darting my eyes away from his stare. "Can I ask a question?"

"Yeah, go ahead," he replied.

"How would you feel if you got sacked from 'Breakfast Delight' because they were to shut down?"

His brown orbs froze for a few minutes. Pushing the middle of his glasses, he answered, "I'll be down for a few days... or weeks, maybe months," he shrugged.

I paused. "What if I get you another job?"

Bentley sighed deeply. "It'll be nice, but... the café shop feels like home. I feel like I belong there," Bentley smiled shyly. "Weird, right?"

"Not quite," I replied.

That’s all I needed to know. He cherishes Breakfast Delight and wouldn’t want anything to happen to it. I needed an indirect answer on whether I should dance to Dominic's tune. Looks like I'll go with his absurd rhythm.

"What's wrong? Is something going to happen to it?" Bentley asked, his voice laced with worry.

I gave him a reassuring smile. "No, everything is fine. The shop is safe."

He let out a sigh of relief. "That's good." He flipped a page of his book, silence following.

I glimpsed at him, saying internally, "I should make a move."

"Let’s read together," I mumbled. He raised his gaze to me. "Huh?"

"I-I want to read with you if you don’t mind," I said, holding my breath in.

He blinked, probably wondering why I wanted to read a fictional book. "That's fine, but you wouldn’t understand a thing," he answered.

"You can just summarize the parts I miss," I suggested. "Okay," he grinned, excitement flashing in his eyes.

Bentley explained the story to me before we continued reading together. It got boring after some time. My eyes slowly began to close—it had been a hectic day, and I couldn’t take a nap.

My head fell on something. I opened my eyes. "Why am I so close to his body?" I thought.

"A-Are you tired? You can sleep. Let’s continue later," he said. "No, I want to read with you," I mumbled, forcing my eyes open. "Oh... okay," he replied, his voice a bit stiffened.

I drifted into dreamland after a while, dreaming of a pyramid of money, situated on a floor made of gold. "Damian." I heard his voice. I snapped my eyes open. "Yeah?"

"My shoulders hurt, and I want to lie down," he said. I raised my head for him to rest. "There’s no other couch here. Is it okay for us to share?" I asked. He nodded. "Sure."

"Thank you," I said, resting my head on his chest, my feet squeezing in between his.

He gasped, his heartbeat increasing slightly. "Can you read it to me?" I asked, gazing at him with sleepy eyes.

"Y-Yeah!" he replied, a faint shade of red on his cheeks. "I hope I’m not making you feel uncomfortable?" I asked.

"No, no, it’s fine," he replied quickly, panic evident in his tone. "I’ll read it out loud," he said, burying his nose in the pages. He read to me, his soft voice portraying the emotions in the romance novel vividly.

I listened to his racing heartbeat, gradually slowing down. I guess he’s calming down now. I’ll have to apologize for my odd behavior toward him after this week. I drifted off into a deeper sleep, his soft skin acting as a cushion.

***

I gave Dominic the check the next day and promised to submit the report after seven days.

Bentley was back early again. This wasn’t a coincidence; it was all Dominic’s doing. I’ll have to ask him to stop overworking Bentley after the deal is done.

I invited him to my room in the evening to watch a movie, expecting him to turn down my sketchy invite. I raised my head; the door slid open, and he entered, dressed in white pajamas. "I’m here," he glanced around. "Where’s the snacks? You brought snacks, right?"

"Hmm... no," I answered, rubbing the back of my neck. How could I forget? I spent so much time thinking about the kind of movie that would suit his taste.

"I’ll ask Alpha to make something real quick," he turned back, heading for the door.

"Where are you going?" I raised a brow. "To the kitchen. I just said that," he replied.

"You don’t need to," I chuckled, then cleared my throat. "Alpha, a large bowl of popcorn and two sodas."

A rectangular box on the wall opened, a white robotic hand stretched to my bed, dropping a tray containing my order. "Enjoy your snacks," an automated voice said. It retracted into the hole before the space closed.

I stared at his stunned expression. "See? You can make your commands from anywhere in this house, and Alpha will attend to you."

"That’s cool," he whispered. Bentley climbed onto the bed, maintaining a reasonable distance as we watched the movie.

He got up immediately after the film ended. "I liked the movie, thanks," he flashed a smile.

"You’re welcome," I answered. An awkward silence settled between us. "W-We have work tomorrow. I should get some sleep. Goodnight," he stammered, walking briskly to the exit.

I exhaled, closed my eyes, and went into my head. These clingy behaviors are obvious now. He must be disgusted by them. It won’t be long before he gets frustrated and calls me out on it. Please, hold on for a few days—I don’t have a choice.

Author's note:
I'm so sorry, I was so tired and slept off yesterday. I also received good news this afternoon.

The first book of the series I released earlier this year in March was featured in the Quick Fantasy reading list: Love Potion and Magical Strings. You can check out the 'Run' series on my profile.

Don't forget to vote, comment, share, and add this book to your reading list.❤️