Married with the Broken Hearted CEO novel Chapter 91

Chadwick had a guess that Adira might avoid him. And so, he told Neil to drop him off at the house and not to park his car in the garage. 
While waiting for Adira in the living room, his phone dropped on the floor so he bent down to get it. At the same time, he heard the door open. Without moving up, his eyes caught the image of Adira tiptoeing as if she does not want to wake up a monster sleeping in the place. 
He wanted to laugh. 
Chadwick couldn’t believe that the calm, composed and elegant Adira would tiptoe while walking and it made her look so cute in his eyes. 
Didn’t he say before that Adira is far from his ideal type which is someone who is cute and innocent? 
Chadwick realized that he was wrong. Maybe, he did not just make time before to know her better but Adira is a bold and fierce woman who’s hiding her cuteness and innocence.
‘Damn. The more I look at her, the more I fall in love,’ he said before he stood up. 
From behind, Chadwick followed his ex-wife while tiptoeing too. 
They look like two idiots tiptoeing inside their own house. 
When Adira stopped in front of her room, Chadwick also stopped behind her. Sneering, he crossed his arms and finally spoke. 
“What are you doing?” 
He saw her flinch and that made him chuckled silently. As Adira turned around, he quickly pulled the beam out and displayed a stern expression on his face. 
“Why are you tiptoeing before?” 
During this moment, Adira thought of the steps on how to deal with embarrassing situations. 
First, remain calm. It is easy to lose the nerve after a slip up but try to keep compose. Take a deep breath and collect yourself. 
Second, own up. Acknowledge the blunder before someone else does will alleviate the awkward tension that may arise. If she can address the situation in humorous way, that will be better. 
Third, make amends. If the accident affected another person, immediately apologize and take steps to ensure a similar mistake won’t ever happen again. 
And last, move on. Rather than dwelling on a misstep, focus on getting back on track. The faster one can recover, the less memorable the incident will be. 
Adira knows those four steps that she can use to get out of this shameful situation. She’s someone who’s quick to follow what her mind tells her but this it, it seems her body isn’t functioning well. 
Staring at Chadwick, Adira did nothing as she stood there without blinking. All she knew was that her blood is rushing in her ears, and she could feel her pulse pounding in her wrist and neck. She opened her dried mouth but closed it again and she swallowed nervously. 
If there’s one thing that she wanted to wish for, then make this scene a part of her dream. Or make her drunk again just like yesterday, so she can use the alcohol as her excuse. 
She prayed earnestly, maybe for the first time in her life. But nothing happened. 
She is still standing in that place, blushing in front of her ex-husband who caught her tiptoeing inside their house. 
“Why are you moving like a sneaky mouse just to get to your room?” Chadwick asked the silent lady who used to be talkative. 
Out of impulse, Adira answered, “I wanted to try how it feels to be a thief.” 
Shoot. 
She realized she just used the dumbest excuse ever! 
All will agree that it is challenging to win over Adira during an argument. Her brain works fast so she can think of things to rebuke. Yet she felt so odd that her ability to think well rarely works in front of Chadwick or Geoffrey. 
Sealing her embarrassment, Adira forced a smile on her lips. Then she added, “It’s fun being a thief for a moment.” 
If she cannot take her words anymore, then better be an idiot until the end. After all, Chadwick called her crazy ever since they started living together under the same roof. 
“What are you going to steal?” Chadwick replied. 
Adira opened her lips but couldn’t response because Chadwick spoke again. 
“You will steal my heart?” 
“...” 
“...”
The silence echoed, it rebounded all over the place and the noises went as far as they can, filling the spaces with nothing but emptiness. 
Adira swiftly blinked her eyes while looking at the man who just uttered a cheesy like that brought the creep out of her skin. 
Does love make you cheesy and weird? She asked that question in her head. 
Amidst the deadly silence, Chadwick felt his body temperature rise at a quick pace. He’s turning red, as red as Liberty apple which is one of the reddest apples in the world.
The table was flipped. 
Just a moment ago, Adira felt so embarrassed because he caught her tiptoeing. But now that he uttered the punch line, the embarrassment sided in his direction. 
Anyway, he’s used to embarrassing himself to Adira so Chadwick thinks he can cap it off. 
“Your joke is too corny.” 
But when Adira said those, he realized it is hard to play cool. 
Chadwick placed his fist on his mouth and forged a cough, “Ahem.” 
‘I should just change the topic instead,’ he thought. 
“I bet you haven’t eaten yet. So, I cooked you a dinner.” 
Adira, who moved on from embarrassment thanks to Chadwick’s punch line, answered, “You made dinner?” 
“Why are you looking at me with doubtful eyes?” Chadwick rebuked, putting his hands down. “You saw me cooked a lot before.” 
“I am not questioning your cooking skills. But what I wanted to ask is the reason why you had to cook for me. You never did that when we were still a couple. But suddenly, you are cooking for your EX-WIFE? This is so weird, Mr. McElroy.” 
“It is not weird,” Chadwick replied to her with serious voice. “I don’t think it is weird to cook for someone you like.” 
“...”
Now there came another punch line that did not embarrass either of the two.
He is serious. 
Chadwick’s eyes, which had always been cold to her before, peered straight into her eyes with affection. 
And how strange it was, that gaze. 
His blue eyes had a certain intensity to them. 
Adira’s eyes shook. Without realizing it, her mouth was dry, and she swallowed repeatedly. 
“Let’s go and eat before the food turns cold,” Chadwick offered, pointing to the dining room. 
“I am not hungry,” Adira murmured. 
At that exact moment, there was thunder growling inside her stomach. Both looked at her tummy. 
‘What’s wrong with me today? Really!’ Adira complained inwardly while keeping the nonchalant expression in her face. 
Chadwick rolled his eyes and chuckled huskily. 
“Oh yeah? That’s what you called not being hungry?” he asked while approaching her. Next, his hands fell on her shoulder, and he pushed her towards the dining room. “Stop acting like a spoiled brat and just eat.” 
Adira was dragged towards the dining room against her own volition. She really wanted to say no in his offer but the smell coming from the table made her forget her resolution.
Chadwick pulled the chair and gently pushed Adira to sit on the chair. As soon as she perched down, a Tomahawk steak welcomed her. 
Her mouth watered at the sight. The Tomahawk steak is one of the most expensive meats available, but it’s worth the price. Yet, Adira won’t just praise the well-cooked huge meat in front of her but the presentation too. 
The steak was basted with butter, roasted garlic and served with full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignan red  wine and a veggie side, recreating this classing steakhouse. 
‘I know that Chadwick can cook too but this is really…’ Adira praised inwardly then gulped. 
She wanted to escape. 
Sitting here made her feel like she was residing at the huge spider web. A trap where she had to avoid. 
‘Well, I cooked for him before so I think I can consider this as his payment,’ She defended herself, nodding her head. 
“How is it? It’s pretty cool, right?” Chadwick complimented his own works. 
“I will agree that this looks so cool,” Adira agreed, picking up the cutlery. “But this is large enough to feel several people.” 
“It’s okay if you cannot eat them all. I just wanted to make sure that you are full.” 
One arrow hit straight into Adira’s heart. 
It still feels awkward to see Chadwick acting gentle and considerate all of a sudden. 
Adira washed off the uneasy feeling inside her chest by taking a deep breathe.
“How did you cook this anyway?” she asked.
“I seared it on pan then finished it in the oven. Then I basted it with butter, roasted garlic, and fresh thyme.” 
“I see,” Adira murmured, cutting a piece of the tender piece of the meat and tasting it. It’s juicy and flavorful, Adira is awed. But that won’t stop her from getting curious about one thing. “Then, why is there Cabernet Sauvignan red wine?” 
While chewing the juicy meat, Adira lifted her eyes to Chadwick. 
Chadwick glanced at the bottle of wine on the side. It is one of the most popular wines in Wine&Vibe company, because it is perfect to partner with red meats. However, Adira doesn’t mean to point out that Chadwick brought wine from his company but the existence of itself on the table. 
When Adira cooked a pasta for him, she brought a non-alcoholic drink on the table. Then after that, the two of them kissed in the kitchen, using drunkenness as their excuse. 
So, if Chadwick brought a wine on the table, isn’t that the same way of saying that he doesn’t care what will happen to them after this? Or whether it is okay to repeat the mistake in the past? 
“I am seducing you,” he said with voice like melting honey. “This is my other way of saying that I am seducing you, Adira.” 
Adira gulped the meat down. Even though she chewed it well, there’s a feeling of uneasiness in her stomach up to her throat. 
Something is burning inside as she cannot take her eyes off the man in front of her who is smiling sexily. 
“You sure… went crazy,” Adira said after the long silence. 
Chadwick chuckled, his Adam’s apple vibrated, then he slowly set his deep eyes to her side. 
“You should blame yourself. I lived with a crazy woman for months.”
He placed his elbow on the table and rested his chin on the back of his hand while gawking at her, as if he were a beast looking at his prey. 
“Don’t you know how much I endured suppressing the desire to fall in your temptation?” he added with eyes that seemed to devour his ex-wife’s entire being right here and then. 
“I’m glad you did not,” Adira didn’t shy away as she responded. “I seduced you just to get pregnant.” 
“Yeah,” Chadwick agreed, nodding. “That is why your case before, and my case now are different.” 
Adira stared at her with eyes that ask: What do you mean?’
 To her gaze’s quest, Chadwick answered her. 
“Because you are seducing me before just for your goal to get pregnant. But for me…” 
He cut a piece of the meat and before putting it inside his mouth with a fork, he looked at her and continued. 
“I am seducing you because of love. It’s way too different.” 
Adira’s expression remained nonchalant. But when she put her hand down and rested them on her lap, it clenched hard. 
Just now, when Chadwick said that he is seducing her because he loves her, her heart feels like it was on fire and like she might spontaneously combust at any moment. 
Immediately, fear set in. 
What if just like Chadwick, she is also slowly giving in to his temptation?