TEST DRIVE: A Night of Forbidden Desire

“Huh? Where are we going?”

Vonda asked Max when she realized that the steering wheel in his hands led them to a different destination. Instead of towards her apartement, as she had assumed. So, it’s only natural that Vonda looked at the guy with confusion now that he seemed strangely calm.

Without turning his head, Max looked straight ahead at the road. He glanced briefly at the sun as it began to set over them, making the shadows of objects appear to be longer than they actually were. Just as the clock was about to strike three in the afternoon.

“Um… we’ll grab a bite to eat before I take you back.”

“Eat?” Vonda asked reflexively, perhaps unsure of what her ears were hearing. “Another free meal? Where? How many free meal invitations do you have today?”

Max laughed at Vonda’s questions. “This time it won’t be a free meal, you’ll have to pay.” For now, he turned to her. “Where would you like to eat?”

A line of confusion formed on Vonda’s forehead. She was unsure of the meaning behind Max’s words.

“Are you inviting me to dinner again, or what do you mean? I don’t understand.”

“Um… you could say that.” Max looked confused as he tried to explain his intention. “Just think of it as me wanting to take you out to dinner. Well, how should I put it? I saw that you didn’t seem to be very happy with your meal at Lucas’ earlier. Hahaha! So, I kind of feel sorry for you. I’m afraid you’ll end up drooling on the way back.”

Vonda’s hand lifted and landed a half-hearted punch on Max’s arm. She reflexively could not believe what the guy was saying to her. As if Vonda was someone who had not eaten enough.

“Well, I feel kind of guilty,” Max continued. “I can’t just drop you off on an empty stomach. I’m a considerate guy.”

But no matter how Max expressed his intentions and goals, it inevitably caused Vonda to clutch her stomach.

“You’re right. I barely ate earlier, and this situation forced me to use my reserve energy. Ugh! Now I feel weak. What if I can’t walk later? Will I have to crawl?”

Max found this amusing. Vonda’s pouty expression and grimacing lips really made his stomach tingle. Though her expression might seem exaggerated, Max did not doubt its authenticity. A girl with a personality like Vonda’s would be terrified to face Lucas directly. And Max wondered. Why could someone as gentle as Velia endure Lucas’ terrifying face?

“So…” Max took a breath before continuing. “Where do you want to eat? Is there any food you would like to have right now?”

For a moment Vonda was silent. Although her eyes remained fixed on the road ahead, Max knew that her mind was scrolling through the names of restaurants or other places to eat. She was considering what kind of food she wanted to enjoy that afternoon.

“Do you know DuckTrend Bistro?”ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

Two seconds of silence from Max, then a bright expression spread across his face. A sign that he knew the restaurant Vonda was talking about.

“Do you want to eat there?”

“Absolutely,” Vonda replied enthusiastically. “The duck seems like a great choice to replenish my drastically depleted energy.”

A broad, amused smile appeared on Max’s face. He nodded. “All right. Let’s have duck!”

“Have duck!”

“Yay!”

“Woo-hoo!”

Cheerful exclamations filled the car, eventually culminating in laughter from both of them.

“Hahaha!”

“Hahaha!”

About thirty minutes later, Vonda and Max were comfortably seated in a traditional pavilion at DuckTrend Bistro. With a pleasant ambience thanks to the presence of lush gardens and trees, they seemed to be enjoying the Sunday afternoon atmosphere.

“What I like about eating here… try to guess,” Vonda said after a waiter had finished taking their orders.

Max looked like he was adjusting his crossed legs to get more comfortable before he guessed.

“The taste of the spices seeping into the bones?”

Vonda chuckled but shook her head.

“No, it’s the chili paste,” Vonda replied with narrowed eyes and a somewhat serious expression.

“Ah!” Max nodded in understanding. “Classic you, I should have expected that. I’m not surprised at all. You must love spicy sambal.”

Vonda blinked a few times, a little confused by Max’s comment.

“Classic me? What’s that supposed to mean? What is the typical type of a girl like me?”

Max grinned with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes that made Vonda feel the need to be on guard.

“Do you really want to know what the typical type of girl you are? Sure? No regrets?”

“Huh?”

“Okay, okay. Since I’m feeling generous, I’ll tell you,” Max smiled and took a quick breath before continuing. “You’re the kind of girl who acts before she thinks. Energetic and enthusiastic, especially when it comes to matters of style-”

Vonda jumped up in an instant and covered Max’s mouth before he could finish his sentence. Meanwhile, Max burst out laughing in Vonda’s embrace.

His laughter was not loud and boisterous, but the look in Max’s eyes was more than enough to convey his amusement. Vonda stared at him; her eyes wide.

“What kind of guy talks about styles in public places like this?” Vonda asked in a low voice, but with great emphasis. “Do you lack common sense?”

Max lowered Vonda’s hand from his mouth and grinned playfully. “Oh my, miss. I was just about to talk about your sleeping arrangements.”

Vonda’s eyes widened again and Max quickly raised both hands to his chest and continued quickly.

“I mean your actual sleeping habits. You’ve fallen asleep at my place twice now, haven’t you? So, I kind of understand your sleeping habits.”

Vonda narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean?”

“Uh-huh.” Max rubbed his chin. “You seem to talk in your sleep.”

A small snort escaped Vonda’s nose as she remembered last week’s incident. “Yeah, yeah. You mentioned that I was sleep-talking in front of Mom that time.”

“Oh, oh, oh. Actually, you were sleep-talking the first time you stayed with me.”

The way Max’s eyes twinkled, the expression on his face, and the grin on his lips made Vonda instinctively grab a menu and point it at him. Her eyes widened, giving off a threatening air.

“That wasn’t sleep-talking! If you keep bringing that up, just wait!”

“Hahaha!”

Max burst out laughing again, the kind of laughter that annoyed Vonda.

“Why are you suddenly so mischievous today? And why are you bringing up that subject again?” Vonda’s eyes narrowed again. “Only an unethical person would talk about that in public.”

“Because that’s the only thing on my mind,” Max grinned, making Vonda even more irritated.

“What?! You…”

“Just so you don’t keep thinking weird things. I feel like you’re carrying some heavy thoughts from Lucas’ house with you. Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like you’re thinking about your future love life.”

Max’s interruption left Vonda speechless. Especially when she heard the rest of his statement.

Thinking about my love life? What girl would not feel a pang of envy when she saw displays of affection right in front of her? Well, maybe they did not mean to make others jealous, but still, right? As if that was not enough to make me jealous, here in this duck restaurant, people are being affectionate too.

But Vonda would not be herself if she allowed Max to enjoy the confirmation of his assumption. She simply put the menu back on the table, tucked her hair behind her ear with one hand, and raised her chin.

“Acting omniscient!”

Max would not be Max if he didn’t know how to deal with Vonda’s actions. So, he just proudly flashed his grin and decided to stop teasing. Fortunately for both, two waiters arrived, apologized for the interruption, and served their orders.

“Wow! Wow! Wow!”

Vonda’s eyes sparkled as a large portion of duck was placed in front of them, accompanied by various side vegetables and, of course, the super spicy chili paste that was the hallmark of the duck restaurant. It was accompanied by two lemonades, which looked tempting on this sunny afternoon.

“Um.”

The aromatic spices soaking into the duck’s flesh made Vonda sigh contentedly. Her moans sounded melodious, as if she was enjoying the most delicious meal in the world. Max grinned between his own bites, savoring each mouthful as well.

Max’s hand reached out and separated a duck leg, then placed it on Vonda’s plate, causing her eyes to light up.

“You really are a deity, Max.”

Max grinned and ruffled Vonda’s hair with the clean palm of his left hand.

“Eating a lot, huh?”

Vonda’s smile brightened.

“Well, searching for a soul mate takes a lot of energy,” Max continued playfully.

“You naughty boy!”

But Vonda did not seem annoyed at all. On the contrary, she looked quite relaxed. In fact, she seemed ready to playfully tease Max in return.

Vonda’s hand reached out and grabbed a wing and breast from Max’s plate. She took a bite with a grin on her face, then placed the rest of the piece on her own plate.

“Huh?”

Vonda dipped the cucumber into the chili paste and chewed. “Remember? I need a lot of energy.”

This time it was Max who answered with an amused expression. “You cheeky!”

*