Husband With Benefits
Chapter 488: A Dinner Or A Trap?

Chapter 488: A Dinner Or A Trap?

Vivienne Dempsey sat at the table with the candle light flickering over her face, as she nervously smoothed down her dress. She wondered if he would come or if he would ghost her.

However, int he next moment, she scoffed inwardly. No one had ever ghosted her to this day, so of course he wasn’t going to be doing that. And he’s gladly accepted her invitation so he should be here.

As she glanced at her watch for the umpteenth time, the soft chime of the doorbell echoed through the room. Her breath caught in her throat as she watched him step into the restaurant. He really was a beautiful man. If only he had not been Sebastian Frost’s assistant, she would have asked him out for a date instead of a simpe dinner to thank him. What a waste.

She felt a surge of pleasure when she his eyes widened for a fleeting moment as they met hers. Of course he was not immune to her beauty. She’d carefully chosen this champagne colored dress. It always complemented her features well.

As he neared her table, she smiled at him, "Thank you for coming, Mr Rosette." and extended her hand for a shake.

He took her hand in his and she could almost feel the electricity running up her arms. Gosh, the man had strong hands. He quickly let go of her hand, making her feel disappointed, as he waited for her to take a seat first. " It’s my pleasure, Miss Dempsey. And I must admit, you look stunning tonight."

Vivienne smiled at the compliment,inwardly happy but outwardly modest as she shook her head," You flatter me, Mr Rosette. Call me Vivienne or Viv."

The man smiled and Vivienne almost lost her train of thought. How was he so beautiful? "Then you can call me Drake, Vivienne."

"Drake. You have a nice name. It is better than being called Rosie. How could you let that Sebastian call you by such an atrocious name?"

Drake shrugged," I don’t mind. It is actually quite funny to see the expressions on people’s faces when Sebastian refers to me as Rosie and people expect a delicate woman instead of me. It is quite fun to see them all flustered."

Vivienne stared at him for a moment, speechless, before shaking her head," No wonder you work for Sebastian Frost. You also have a weird sense of humor like him. Doesn’t it bother you to work for a man like him?"

She watched the change in the demeanour as Drake’s eyes sharpened. It seemed she had offended him somehow. Just then the waiter arrived with a bottle of wine she had ordered previously, while placing the menu in front of them and leaving discreetly after sensing the weird atmosphere.

As the waiter left, Drake spoke softly," Miss Vivienne. I am well aware of the animosity between my boss and yourself. However, I would appreciate if he would not be the topic of our discussion this evening. It would feel too much like you trying to pry into someone else’s business. Whatever your reasons may be, Sebastian Frost is a good man, whom I respect for his professionalism as well his personal and professional ethics. So, I feel we would be better off to agree to disagree."

Vivienne felt a mutter of irritation at this. On the one hand she did not want to offend this man. She had invited him here to thank him and not to pry. But on the other hand, she did not like Seb and wanted to...

With a deep breath, she controlled the urge to rant against Seb, and sighed, " Of course. Let us not discuss this. I invited you to thank you for saving me that night and for hosting me in your house."

Drake nodded in acknowledgement of Vivienne’s attempt to steer the conversation away from Sebastian Frost. He poured them each a glass of wine, his movements fluid and precise, before raising his glass in a silent toast.

"To new beginnings," he said with a faint smile, his eyes meeting Vivienne’s over the rim of his glass.

Vivienne returned the smile, clinking her glass against his before taking a sip of the rich, velvety wine. However, on the inside she was seething. While of course her main motive had been to thank this man, she needed to get close to him to get more information about Seb. There was something fishy going on there.

Was he really close to that woman, Emma? And who was the one that had attacked her for a picture that was so misguided that it showed her being close to Seb. Eww.

"So, Vivienne, what do you like to do in your free time?"

Vivienne shrugged," Nothing much. I like collecting art. I am quite fascinated by Roni Horn’s paintings these days. I’ve tried acquiring one of his recent paintings but it seems impossible."

Drake looked at her in surprise. "Are you talking about his most recent painting called ’Untitled’?¹

To say Vivienne was shocked was an understatement. She had not expected this man to be someone who would know...

"You know about him? Have you seen the painting?" She asked in excitement, forgetting her main goal had been to pry more information about Seb...

Drake looked at her carefully and nodded," I haven’t seen the painting but I have heard about it." Of course he did not mention that the painting was something that Seb had shown an interest in as well.

Vivienne’s excitement bubbled over as she leaned forward, eager to delve into a discussion about art with Drake. "This is wonderful. Do you also visit art galleries in your free time? Does Sebastian even let you have free time or are you always cleaning up after him? I saw the way he simply ordered you to put me up in your house. I wanted to say something but I was so scared that I was simply thankful to you for letting me stay."

In her excitement, Vivienne failed to realize that she had inadvertently brought Seb back into the conversation...

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺