Chapter 309: Do You Have Any Male Models?
After canoodling in the car for a while, Damien Vaughn drove with one hand on the steering wheel and the other holding Cecelia Archer’s, taking her back to the Vaughn family’s old residence.
"I’ll have dinner with you first, then I’m going to the funeral home to hold a vigil for Grandpa. I’m sorry, I won’t be able to be with you for the next few nights. Once this is all over, I promise I won’t leave you alone again, okay?"
’Just earlier that day, Cecelia had been thinking it was inappropriate.’
’They had rushed off to get their marriage certificate right after the old man passed away—it felt so disrespectful to the dead. So this was his plan all along.’
"We’re married now. How can I just lie around at home while you’re holding a vigil? I’m coming with you."
By rights, Cecelia was now the old man’s granddaughter-in-law, so it was only natural for her to go. But Damien Vaughn was reluctant to let her.
"Your health isn’t great. You’d be up all night. You should stay home. Besides, we haven’t made our marriage public yet. Carter and Simone won’t be going either."
"That’s because they don’t know. If they knew, they would definitely go, even if it was just for appearances. I was there when it happened, how could I not go? Besides, is my health really that bad? Back at Windmount..."
Damien Vaughn recalled all the trouble he had gone through just to be with her, and he felt that getting to this point truly hadn’t been easy. Since she wanted to go, then so be it.
’She won’t need to work anymore anyway. Worst case, she can just catch up on sleep during the day.’
"I’ll have to trouble you then, wife."
Hearing him call her "wife" for the first time in her life sent a shiver down Cecelia Archer’s spine, raising goosebumps on her skin.
And so, for the next three days, Cecelia Archer accompanied Damien Vaughn to the vigil every night.
She was fine; after pulling an all-nighter, she would rest during the day. Damien Vaughn, on the other hand, was miserable. He stayed up all night and still had to go to the company during the day.
By the fourth day, Cecelia was worried he was going to collapse.
"You should rest. Don’t go again tonight. The departed are gone. Even if we stayed up for three years, or thirty, it wouldn’t help Grandpa. Don’t run your body into the ground."
Although Damien Vaughn had always been a poor sleeper, at least he had forced himself to lie down and rest. After four consecutive sleepless nights, he was truly at his limit.
"Alright. I won’t go tonight. I’ll stay home with you. Are you full?"
They were at the dinner table when he said this, and Cecelia, missing his hidden meaning, answered honestly.
"Yes, I’m full."
"Then let’s go to sleep. I’m dead tired."
With that, Damien Vaughn swept her up into his arms.
Back in their room, Damien Vaughn placed her on the bed and leaned down, pressing his body against hers.
Cecelia’s face flushed and her heart pounded as she pushed against him.
"Are you trying to kill yourself? You haven’t slept in days, shouldn’t you be resting?"
Damien Vaughn’s lips grazed her ear. "I can rest from anything else, but how can I rest from this? You have no idea how much I’ve missed you."
"Hey, hey, hey, wait a minute!"
"Don’t worry. I’ve been carrying the condoms they gave us on the day we registered our marriage."
’It wasn’t their first time, anyway. They were married, anyway. And she didn’t dislike him, anyway. This was bound to happen eventually.’
Cecelia didn’t protest much. Damien Vaughn turned off the light and held her tightly.
Just as the atmosphere in the room was growing more and more intimate, Damien Vaughn’s phone began to vibrate at the most inopportune moment.
"BUZZ—BUZZ—BUZZ..."
Damien Vaughn had no intention of answering, but whoever the tactless person was, they kept calling relentlessly.
"You should probably get that. Is it Ryan calling about something important?"
Cecelia couldn’t stand it anymore. The incessant buzzing felt like an intrusion, as if they were being watched.
Annoyed, Damien Vaughn climbed out of bed, snatched his phone, and glanced at the screen. His pupils constricted.
Cecelia slowly sat up and craned her neck to see.
"What’s wrong? Why aren’t you answering? Is it Ryan?"
Damien Vaughn quickly locked the screen and tossed the phone back down with a CLATTER.
"It’s Brandon Jacobs. He’s definitely calling me out for drinks. I can’t be bothered with him."
Having known him for so long, Cecelia had some idea of Brandon Jacobs’s and Wyatt Wynn’s usual antics. She didn’t think much of it and instead teased him.
"Do you want to go? If you want to drink, just go. I won’t be angry."
’Look how far we’d just gotten. How could I possibly be in the mood for drinks?’
Damien Vaughn turned his head, his inscrutable gaze fixed on Cecelia as he slowly placed a hand on her waist.
"What do you think?"
The two of them fell back onto the bed, but not even two minutes later, the phone rang again.
An impatient look on his face, Damien Vaughn got up again.
"I’m sorry. You go ahead and sleep. That flake must have gotten into some trouble again. I have to go check on him."
"Don’t worry, I won’t drink. I’ll be back as soon as I can."
It wasn’t that Cecelia didn’t trust him; she just felt bad for him. He hadn’t slept in days, and now he had to go deal with some stupid mess.
"Why don’t you rest at home and I’ll go? It’s not like I don’t know them."
Damien Vaughn lovingly stroked her face.
"The people they hang out with are a shady bunch, hardly any of them are good news. How could I let you go? If you can’t sleep, just read in bed and wait for me. I’ll be back as soon as I can."
After quickly getting dressed and settling into his car, Damien Vaughn’s face darkened as he immediately dialed the number back.
"Haven’t I told you not to call me?"
A young, pleasant female voice answered from the other end, speaking fluent English.
"If you had answered my messages, do you think I would want to call you? You haven’t been here in days, Mr. Vaughn. You haven’t fulfilled your promise to me, either. You’re not thinking of backing out of our deal, are you?"
"Didn’t I tell you the other day? Something urgent came up. I’ll be over when I’m done with it."
"Sorry. You didn’t do it, and that’s that. Don’t give me your lame excuses, I’m not listening. If you don’t bring me alcohol and a man tonight, I’m walking right out of here. Don’t say I didn’t warn you."
She was incredibly forceful and domineering. Damien Vaughn rubbed his forehead in frustration as he drove.
"The alcohol is fine, but a man..."
"I don’t fucking believe you can go months without touching a woman! I’m a normal person with normal physical needs! You’ve had me locked in this room for months without seeing the sun. You won’t let me drink, you won’t let me touch a man. You might as well just kill me!"
"So you can’t live without sleeping with a man tonight?"
"That’s right. I’m about to go crazy. If you don’t want me to cause any trouble, then do as I say!"
With that, she hung up.
Damien Vaughn’s expression was grim as he sped off. After thinking it over carefully, he called Brandon Jacobs.
"Well, well, Vaughn. This is a surprise. What made you think of me at this hour? What can I do for you?"
Damien Vaughn didn’t bother with pleasantries and got straight to the point.
"Do you have any male models at your place? I need someone young, inexperienced, discreet, and reliable. I need him to come with me tonight. Price is negotiable."
What?!
Brandon Jacobs was so stunned on the other end of the line that it took him a moment to speak.
"Holy shit! Vaughn! I never knew... so you’re..."
"Think whatever you want. Just tell me if you have someone or not."
"Of course I do! But my guys all service rich ladies. They’re straight as an arrow! Damn, you..."
"I need him to be straight," Damien Vaughn cut him off.
"Cut the crap. Pick one for me. I’m on my way to get him now."