His Nasty Virgin

JESSE

When I woke up, the first thing I saw was Vivian, her hair a mess, mouth hung open as she snored like a chainsaw. A spot of dried drool pooled at the corner of her mouth. She’d also managed to hog the blanket, her arms and legs tangled up in the sheets.

I smiled.

Gorgeous.

The clock on the bedside table read 7:42 a. m. I was usually already up and about by now, but I allowed myself a few selfish minutes. I admired Vivian for a little while longer, noting the three freckles scattered over her left eyelid. I hadn’t noticed them until now, and the discovery left a giddy bubbliness in my chest.

I eventually summoned the willpower to peel myself away and get dressed. It was the start of a new day and there was lots of work to do. First on the to-do list was to check the security footage from around the building’s perimeter. Nothing ever got past me. If the cartel somehow discovered Vivian’s location and was spending this time casing the joint before making a move, I’d know in a heartbeat.

When I walked into the kitchen, I was surprised to find Wally already there. He was seated at the head of the table, dark circles under his eyes. His fingers were threaded together in front of him, his chin resting on top. The frown he wore was deep.

“What are you doing up so early?” I asked, heading to the stove to make myself a cup of tea.

“We need to talk,” my son said flatly. “About what happened last night.”

I froze mid-reach. Did he know about Vivian and me? Were we not as quiet as I thought we were? I turned, leaning against the counter and gripping the edge. “Listen

-”

“No, you listen, Dad. I’m tired of you brushing off my wanting to go to culinary school.”

I exhaled, shoulders slumping. “Oh, that’s all?”

Wally glared at me. “What do you mean, that’s all? This is important to me, Dad.”

“It’s too early for this. We’ll talk about this later.”

“No, we’re going to talk about this now. This is exactly what I mean by you brushing me off.”

I rubbed my eyes. I didn’t feel like dealing with this headache. “You’re too smart to waste your life working in a kitchen.”Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

“What if I were stupid, hm? Would it be fine with you then?”

“You’re not making sense.”

“If I suddenly stopped going to classes and flunked out, would you finally get the point that medical school isn’t what I want?”

I clenched my jaw, molars grinding against each other so hard they squeaked. “Don’t you dare throw away your future like that?”

“I don’t want to be a doctor, Dad! I don’t want to spend the next seven years of my life working towards a medical degree. I want to be a chef.”

“What in God’s name for?”

“Because I love to cook!” Wally exclaimed, rising from his seat at the table. “I love food, Dad. I love trying new recipes and inventing my dishes. I love plating things in visually interesting ways. Being a chef is so much more than just flipping burgers and taking orders. It’s art.”

I scoffed. “When did you even learn to cook?”

“I taught myself,” my son said with a huff. “You wouldn’t know, though, because you’re never around. This is the most I’ve seen you in years, and you’re still technically on the clock protecting Vivian!”

“This is out of the question. I’ve worked too damn hard sending you to the best schools, hiring the best tutors. Are you telling me I wasted my time and money so you can become the next fucking Chef Boyardee?”

Wally’s face turned bright red. “Oh my God, this is exactly why Mom left you, you know that?”

I blanched his words with a slap to the face. “What the hell did you just say to me?”

“I said this is why Mom left. You never listen.”

“She didn’t leave me. I left her because she was cheating on me.”

“Because she was miserable,” Wally snapped. “Because you were always working, always going back to serve another tour even though you promised you’d spend more time with the two of us.”

“I don’t know what poison she told you, but I continued to serve so I could earn a paycheck to put food on the fucking table.”

“She didn’t want that. Neither of us did.” Wally’s eyes were wet with the threat of tears, but his lip was curled up with pure anger. “She was so fucking lonely, Dad. But you didn’t know because you were always gone. I can’t tell you how many nights I walked in to find her crying. She missed you so much, but you couldn’t be there for her because the job was always more important. It’s still the most important thing to you. You live at the office, and you don’t give a fuck about what I want.”

“How the fuck did we make this about me?”

“Because it’s always been about you, Dad!” he exclaimed. “It’s always been about what you want. You want me to go to medical school. You want me to become a doctor. Did you ever stop and think about what I wanted?”

“Listen here, you ungrateful little-”

“Jesse?”

I turned, startled to hear Vivian’s voice drift into the kitchen from the hall. She stood at the kitchen entrance, hiding behind the tall steel of the refrigerator. Vivian looked between Wally and me, concern written into the tight line of her lips.

“Did we wake you?” I asked softly.

She nodded.

“Sorry, Viv,” Wally mumbled. “We’re done talking now.”

I turned back to face him. “No, we’re not. Far from it.”

“Yes, we are.”

I inhaled deeply. I didn’t want to lose it in front of Vivian. “I didn’t work hard and come from nothing just so you could throw everything away.”

Wally didn’t scream. He didn’t raise his voice. Instead, an intense calm took hold of him. “You know what? I’m done.”

“Done? What do you mean you’re done?”

He gestured vaguely about the space. “With all this. I’m going to pack some of my things and stay with a friend.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I think you’ll find that I am.”

I crossed my arms. “Fine. Leave. About damn time you moved out, anyways.”

“I’m glad we can at least agree about that.”

“Good luck paying rent on a fry cook’s salary.”

Wally’s mouth dropped open like he was about to throw back another snipe, but he closed it and stomped past me. I heard him shuffling in his room, no doubt stuffing a bag – which I wanted to mention that I technically bought for him – before trudging to the elevator and getting inside.

“Sorry Viv, but this is exactly what I told you he was like. Good luck dealing with him.”

The penthouse, once consumed with noise, was now uncomfortably quiet.

Vivian stood there staring at me.

“What?” I grumbled.

“He could do it, you know,” she whispered.

“What are you talking about?”

“Average rent in Chicago is about two grand, depending on the area. The average annual salary of a fry cook is just shy of forty thousand. If Wally finds himself a roommate

and splits living costs, he’d get by just fine.”

“How do you know all this?”

“I work -worked- for an investment firm, remember? It’s my job to understand what people earn and how they can maximize their dollar.”

I shook my head. “I don’t want my son to get by just fine, Vivian. That’s no way to live. I just want what’s best for him.”

“By pushing your dreams onto him?” Vivian asked quietly. “Look, this is none of my business. Or maybe it is, I don’t know. I get that you think you’re doing the right thing, but if you don’t stop and put yourself in Wally’s shoes, you might push him away forever. I don’t want to see that happen to you. To either of you.”

As much as I hated to admit it, Vivian had a point. Maybe I was pushing my dreams onto Wally.

“I grew up with nothing,” I said. “I don’t want Wally to know what that’s like.”

Vivian stepped forward and entered my space, reaching up to brush her fingers across my jaw. “You’re a good father, Jesse. Take it from someone who knows firsthand what a shit parent is. I understand you’re trying to protect him, but at some point, you need to let Wally make his own choices.”

I kissed her palm. “How’d you get to be so wise?”

She shrugged. “I read a lot.”

“I’ll talk to him. But I think we both need to calm down first.”

“That’s a good idea.” Vivian turned toward the stove, hands on her hips. “Now. How about some pancakes?”

“I don’t have pancake batter.”

“Okay. What kinds of cereal do you have?”

“Raisin Bran.”

She wrinkled her nose in pure disgust. “What is wrong with you?”

I chuckled. “How about you get back into bed and I’ll order us something for breakfast?”

“Alright,” she said coyly. “But don’t you dare feed me something weird like tofu toast?”

“I know a fantastic spot that has that on the menu.”

“Not.”

“It’s delicious.”

“You’re wrong.”

“Have you ever tried it?”

“Nope, and I don’t have to. I’d like eggs benedict or bust.”

I kissed the tip of her nose. “I guess I can brave runny eggs for you.”

“My hero,” she said dryly, but her bright smile gave her away.

I was about to tell her to lose the clothes when my phone started to ring. I didn’t want to answer, not with the promise of Vivian naked in my bed dangling before me, but I answered the call off muscle memory alone. “Hello?” I greeted gruffly.

“I ran into an error while implementing the new server,” Devin said, launching into his spiel without so much as a How do you do? “I had to do some overhauling last night.” “Good for you?”

My brother clicked his tongue. “No, not good for me. Now I need you to come in and give me final approvals for all the changes I made.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Vivian tossing off her shirt and bra, leaving it behind her in the hall.

“You have my approval for everything, bye.”

“Wait!”

“What?”

“What’s gotten into you? You’re normally breathing down my neck about stuff like this.”

“I’m busy.”

“With?” Devin scoffed. “Look, I need to show you these changes before I launch the server. Just because I’m head of cyber security doesn’t mean you leave everything to me. You’re the head of the whole firm, so you need to know what’s going on.”

“Fine, fine. I’ll be there in half an hour.”

Vivian re-emerged from my bedroom in nothing but those stupidly sexy pink shorts, leaning casually against the door frame. She raised her eyebrows at me expectantly.

“Second thought, make that an hour.”

“Okay. I’ll see you then-”

I hung up and marched to her, picking her up and slinging her over my shoulder in a fireman’s hold. She giggled brightly, the sound of her laughter ringing in my ears.

“Change of plans, angel. We’re grabbing breakfast on the go. I’ve got some work at the office.”

“And you want me to come with you?”

I set her down on the edge of the bed. “How else am I going to keep an eye on you?”

She tapped her nose. “Gotcha. But do you think we still have time to-”

I kissed her firmly on the mouth, sucking on her bottom lip until it came away red and swollen. “Definitely,” I answered before diving back in for another kiss.