Taleela's POV

   My heart lurches as soon as Susan's gaze lands on the cuffs laying carelessly inside the last drawer compartment. I blame myself for my carelessness for not putting them in order.

   Now, Susan has seen it and is going berserk. I prepare myself for extremely weird questions.

   " I am so jealous!" Susan cried. "I wish I had a thing for sadomasochism."

   Frowning, I crawl to the open drawer and push it to shut before sliding my feet forward and leaning back against my dresser. "Jealous, why?"

   "People who practice BDSM are unique and seem to have gotten to another level of pleasure," Susan explains. "For someone like you who hates being controlled by anyone and loves being controlled, all you need is a partner who you can submit to and dominate at the same time. Crazy fun in my books."

   I shake my head like I am the least interested in what she's saying. I don't find it comfortable talking about my sexual fantasies with a lot of people. And no, it's not because of the judgemental looks and slight gasps or fake interest that people display. I don't just find it comfortable talking about it.

   So, I change topics. "How's Achilles? You look so bright this morning. What did he feed you?"

   "His dick." As soon as those words leave her mouth, Susan gasps and clamps a hand over her mouth. I burst into laughter, enjoying the flush of embarrassment that coats her face. "I mean, he—he" Susan stutters and this makes me laugh harder.

   Susan chucks a bottle of my serum at me and it hits my lap. "Stop laughing at me, Taleela."

   Raising my hand, I nod. "Okay, okay. Not laughing. So, are you going to tell me what went down between you two?"

   Susan shrugs. "I would love to but since you have refused to tell me yours, I think I'll pass."

   Susan is trying to be mean and I can see through her. I frown and stand to my feet, going over to where she's sitting on my bed. I plop into the bed and give her a pleading look.

   "I promise to tell you everything once you're done with yours."

   Susan gives me a look of unbelief. "You fraud. I know you're not going to tell me shit."

   "Cross my heart, baby girl."

   "Okay, fine." At those words, I sit up, giddy to hear all the juicy tale.

   "Achilles is something else. The way he fucks me like he's a maestro. I nearly cried at one point. He's so sweet, so gentle. Making sure we get into a conversation about our preferences. Transactional. I enjoyed every moment. It's hard to come by men like that. A lot of them are self-absorbed and only hustle for their orgasm. But Achilles did more than that. Damn."

   I see emotions swirling in Susan's eyes as she speaks. That's when I know how gone she is. She's smitten by Achilles and I don't know if it's a good thing or not. Anyway, I feel happy for her.

   "Remember we were supposed to go out together on a date. It got canceled."

   "Why?" I ask. It doesn't seem to be much of an issue but I am curious anyways.

   Susan shrugs and toys with the tip of her hair. "He stood me up. I thought he did. We were supposed to meet at this restaurant he picked and when I got there, he was nowhere to be found. I tried calling his number to no avail."

   "How many hours did you wait?" I ask, getting mildly angry and beginning to question Achilles' interest in my friend.

   "I waited till nine tonight," Susan replies, her voice really low. She knows how much I hate people riding over a person I take dear to heart and Susan is one of them.

   "What the hell? Are you nuts? Were you nuts? What stops you from returning home and spending time binge-watching movies and eating with me?"

   "I was afraid that you were going to laugh at me for a failed attempt at getting a man to stick to me."

   My face immediately softens and I take her hands in mine, squeezing reassuringly. "No, Susie. I'll never do that. Okay, maybe I will and I am sorry for making you think such a way."

   Susan smiles at me and nods, squeezing my hands in return. "Anyways, he came for me. He lost his phone and had to get another. When he got to the restaurant in search of me, he realized that his phone was missing and had no way to contact me. So, he got a new phone and all. He apologized, took me to the cafe, and explained all that had happened to me."

   Nodding, I understand what she's talking about. "But, you shouldn't have waited that long."

   "The deed has been done," Susan says dismissively and stood to her feet with a mighty sigh. "What are we eating tonight? I feel like making pasta."

   Feeling relieved that she has forgotten about my experience with Kal, I engage her sharply before she remembers that I have to tell her something important. "Yeah, I haven't had homemade pasta in a while. Prepare it, please?"

   Susan, being the type to love cooking nods at me. "Sure, I'll do the cooking. I've been craving pasta for quite a while now. Having it for early dinner isn't a bad idea, is it?"

   I shake my head. "Not in any way a bad idea. You should begin cooking now."

   Susan nods and stands to her feet, making her way to my door. She stops, a hand pulling the door knob.  "I haven't forgotten about it. Once I'm done making dinner, you're giving me the full gist, okay?"

   Stifling a groan, I nod and as soon as Susan is out of the room, I flop on my bed and scream into my pillows while I think about what I am going to tell Susan.

   A few minutes later, I leave my room. My laptop is still running. I remember that I totally forgot about it as I hurried into my room to put my things in order which later turned out futile.

   I can hear the sizzling of soy oil as Susan stir-fries her ingredients in a pan. The aroma tells a tale of an amazing dinner I'm going to have. I plop into the seat that my laptop is seated on and continue with what I am doing. Nikolai sent some documents for me to sign and also an invitation to the gala that was to hold in two months.

   I am honestly hyped up. And the main reason is to see the extreme shock on Kal's face. Though the Elite Gala is holding in Italy, Kal might be invited and even if he isn't, there's a probability that news about a certain Crete University student being the CEO of BSL will circulate the whole of Greece. I am sure of that.

   My phone buzzes on my thigh. It's Nikolai calling. I pick up immediately.

   "Nikolai, what do you want from me this time?"

   Nikolai chuckles. "I just called to tell you that our company has successfully donated funds to the Elite Gala account. So, we're officially sponsors."

   I nod, smiling. It had gone well. The payment. Easier than I had thought. The other times had been really tasking. Having to follow protocols and even encounter corrupt officials who expected you to pay more than you were expected to.

   "I need to buy you a drink, Nikolai," I say, extremely impressed at how good he is doing his job. "Probably when I get to Milan."

   "Milan? Why are you going to Milan?"

   I nearly jump out of my seat. I hadn't seen Susan coming over to where I was seated and listening to what I was saying. A hand flies over my chest as I sigh.

   "Nikolai, can I give you a call later?"

   "Sure," He replies. "We'll talk later."

   Ending the call, I give  Susan a look. "Why did you sneak up on me?"

   "I did not," Susan say frowning slightly. You were looking at me as I walked towards you. "By the way, I came to tell you that I added meatballs."

   I glare at her. "That's why you came to disturb my call?"

   Susan laughs. "Of course! You said you didn't like the meatballs I added the last time. That was why I came to ask if you wanted me to add some."

   I roll my eyes. "But you just said you already added them meatballs. Susan, admit that you were eavesdropping on my call."

   Susan sighs in defeat and plops into the space beside me. "Okay, fine. Yes, I was eavesdropping on your call. Not really eavesdropping. But I heard you talk about the Elite Gala holding in Milan and got quite interested. Are you going to be attending?" She squeals.

   I have to lie about it. I feel bad, but I really have to. I know that shows like these gets Susan really excited because of the high fashion and celebrity presence.

   "Nah. I am not a celebrity. I was just talking about stats with a friend."