Sheffield snickered, "We used it last night, remember? I'd bought some more condoms on my way here." He had come to sleep with her the previous night, so of course he had prepared in advance.
Evelyn pushed him away and threw the condoms he brought in the trash.
Confused, he looked at the can and asked, "Do you want a kid then?"
"No way!" Evelyn opened the door to the apartment. "Wait for me here," she said.
"Where are you going?" Sheffield was completely confused by her behavior.
"Out. To buy something."
His brows furrowed tightly, a miserable look on his face. He was already burning with lust. He was so hard it hurt. How could she just leave the house now?
When Evelyn walked out of the apartment, Sheffield was about to follow her, but she held out a hand to stop him. "Stay here. Tayson will go with me," she demanded.
"Um...fine," he nodded helplessly. Anyway, this was her home. She couldn't run off, could she? He obediently waited for her in the apartment.
He decided to use his time wisely, and take a shower.
After she entered the elevator, Evelyn's thoughts became complicated. She had no idea why she had an accidental pregnancy last time. She didn't really feel like asking Sheffield about it, nor did she even want to bring it up. They were going to have sex again, and so it was more important than ever that she protected herself.
Thinking of this, she went to the convenience store down the street and bought something she needed.
Evelyn came back to her apartment and opened the door. She stood in the doorway and hesitated for a moment. Then she turned and told Tayson, "You don't need to stay here. Take the evening off."
Tayson knew what she meant. He nodded and answered, "Yes, Miss Huo."
He watched Evelyn enter the apartment and waited outside a while longer. After making sure there was no skulduggery, he left.
When she came back in, Sheffield was still in the shower. She looked at what she was carrying and sighed.
Soon enough, Sheffield walked out of the bathroom, wrapped in a bath towel. When he saw the condoms Evelyn had bought, he was stunned. After a short pause, he asked, "So what was wrong with the ones I got?"
"Oh, you know." She didn't want to explain so she gave a perfunctory reply.
He nodded, as if he had an epiphany all of a sudden. 'I see!' He mentally crossed off that brand of condoms in his head. He would buy no more of them.
It was Evelyn's turn to take a shower. In the meantime, Sheffield looked around her apartment. It was almost the same size as his own. It was mostly grey and white, not the pink or purple favored by most girls. There was very little of those last two.
He found a family photo on her cabinet. There were seven people in the frame; in the background was the gate of a courtyard.
Two elderly people were in the front row. Those must be Evelyn's grandparents. Evelyn and Terilynn were sitting next to them.
It seemed to be a photo taken a few years ago. Evelyn still had a baby face, and she was dressed in a pink, fashionable dress.
Carlos and Debbie were in the back row. Next to Debbie stood a young man in a white shirt, who resembled Carlos a lot. He looked very grown-up, despite the fact that he still was quite young. There was no doubt this young man was Evelyn's brother, Matthew Huo.
Sheffield took out his phone, aimed it at the family photo, and zoomed in to take a picture of the young Evelyn. Then, he put the picture back and kissed Evelyn's face on his phone screen.
'My Evelyn is so pretty, ' he thought.
When Evelyn emerged from the bathroom, Sheffield was talking on the phone with Gifford. "You always appear and disappear mysteriously; how do you know what's going on?" the doctor snorted.
Gifford smiled gloatingly and said, "That's none of your business. I have my ways. You and Joshua are still under thirty years old. Don't forget our agreement."
"Hey, is it too late to back out of this?" Sheffield regretted having made such a stupid oath with his friends.
"Of course... No way! Bruh! I'm looking forward to your wedding. Or Joshua's, if he gets there. I wanna see you and another woman make the beast with two backs on the night before the wedding," Gifford smiled.
"Fuck off!" Sheffield yelled, feeling a little gloomy.
But when he saw Evelyn coming out of the bathroom in pajamas, his gloom disappeared at once. He interrupted Gifford's nagging. "Dude, I'm going to sleep. Talk with you later."
"Hey, wait... Hello? Sheffield?" The call was ended in an instant. Looking at his phone, Gifford muttered to himself, "Why did he hang up so soon?"
Sheffield turned off his phone, tossed it aside and held Evelyn in his arms. "You took a while in there. But you're mine, at last."
Evelyn took the towel off her head and wiped her hair. "I tried to make it quick." Sometimes, it would take her at least two hours to bathe.
"Is it because you can't wait to make love to me? Are you as eager as I am?" he asked with a wicked grin on his face.
Her face was already a little red after the hot bath; now, it was as red as a tomato because of his flirting. She pinched his face hard to vent her anger. She felt a bit better when she saw his handsome face distort some.
He gave in and said with tenderness, "Okay, I'll stop now. Where is the hair dryer? Let me dry your hair."
Evelyn cast him a sidelong glance and raised her brows. "I thought you were in a hurry. Think you can wait until I finish drying my hair?" It took a woman a lot of time to manage her hair.
"Even if I can't wait to make love, I can't let you sleep with your hair wet, right?" said Sheffield, kissing her on the lips.
Evelyn was moved by his considerate words. She turned around to hide the smile on her face. "I'll get the hair dryer."
Standing in front of the mirror, Evelyn was going to dry her hair herself. She didn't think Sheffield knew how to do that. But he insisted on offering to help. "Let me. I have a lot of things to learn in the future," he said.
Evelyn looked at him in the mirror, saying nothing.
She wondered if they even had a future. Would he blow-dry her hair for a lifetime?
Eventually, her long black hair was finally dry. Before Evelyn could put away the hair dryer, Sheffield embraced her from behind. He kissed her ear and whispered, "Evelyn, look at yourself in the mirror."
She looked at the mirror and saw him running his fingers over her body.
In the dead of night, the breathing of the two became heavier. Romance and passion filled the room. From the mirror to the balcony, Sheffield passionately kissed her and removed her pajamas. Under his guidance, Evelyn relaxed and indulged herself in the sensual pleasure.
The next morning, Evelyn was roused by her ringtone again. And this time, Sheffield was still here. At first, he wanted to reject the call for her, but when he saw the caller ID said "Dad" on the screen, he put the phone in her hand.
Evelyn opened one of her eyes. When she saw her father's phone number and met Sheffield's gaze, she was completely wide awake. She felt guilty, like she had done something wrong. She cleared her throat and answered, "Dad."
"Evelyn, just curious... It's already ten o'clock. Why haven't you come to work yet? Are you okay?" Carlos asked with concern.
"I'm fine, Dad. I just... I've been pretty beat recently. I want to sleep a little longer." The quilt slipped from Evelyn's body, exposing the flush of desire.
This scene draw Sheffield's attention. He couldn't take his eyes off her body. Evelyn looked so seductive now.
He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled up the quilt for her. Then, he held her in his arms.
"Well, if you feel tired, I'll reduce your workload. Catch a nap and come in. I'll talk with you then." Carlos didn't suspect anything. He was thinking how he could make things easier on Evelyn. She'd been working hard, after all.