Accidental Desire

Chapter 4: Hey Bethany

Carter was on a date with Bethany, who seemed to be different from what he was expecting.

If his mother had known the kind of woman he had set up for him, she would not have been so confident that she was going to be his type.

He continued staring at the strange woman in front of him, who looked like a dressed-up ninja turtle.

“So, uhm, Carter. My mum told me so much about you." Her voice was coming off muffled. Carter blinked once, then twice, trying to make sense of her. He wasn't quite sure what she was trying to do.

She cleared her throat, still muffling her voice again, but decided to continue, "Before you ask, the cold also affected my throat."

Wow. That must be a powerful cold.

“Bethany, if that is the case, then we can have dinner first before talking about other things. Kindly make your order.”

Bethany shook her head. That would blow her cover. How was she supposed to eat with all these disguises on?

“I will just order something to take back home instead.”

Carter gesticulated by pointing at the staff that he had signaled over to, “Suit yourself.”

He wasn't quite sure who was in front of him, but at the same time, his suspicion was high. He was suddenly very curious.

Luckily for him, he received a message a few minutes after from his brother when Bethany was busy making her order.

“I managed to get your date’s photo from Mum’s phone. Do you need it?”

“Send it to me.”

“Promise me you will do whatever I want you to do.”

“Send it to me, Jeff.”

A few seconds later, his phone dinged. One glance at the photo, and Carter leaned back, a brief, amused smile playing on his lips.

It was her again. He couldn't believe it. Now he understood why she felt the need to cover up.

Well, nice to meet you again, Bethany.

“I’m sure you’re busy,” she said quickly, not quite meeting his eyes.

“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, I mean. I am sure you are a busy man, just like I am a busy woman, and you must have been forced to come on this date like I was forced to.” Carter folded his arms, studying her curiously.

If she was going through these desperate measures to hide her face, that would only mean that she was still aware of what had transpired between them years ago.

It was good that he wasn't the only one thinking about it.

“Yeah, we could end the date.” Carter offered, noting her extreme sigh of relief alongside a subtle smile.

“But I don't want to,” he added.

“Why?” She had snapped up, and she raised her voice, forgetting to muffle it. He didn’t miss the way her hands flew to cover her mouth, nor the cough that came two seconds too late.

“I don't know. I just want to see where the night will lead us.” Carter really wished he could see her face, but he could sense her disappointment from how her shoulders sagged.

He waved down a waiter and ordered, never taking his eyes off her. He let the silence stretch as he ate, feeling her discomfort thrum across the table.

“I don't know why my mum set up this blind date,” she started speaking, to keep the boredom and the anxiousness that she was feeling away.

“Hmm hmm.” Carter nodded along as he ate.

“But I can assure you, Mr Carter, that you don’t have to waste your time on me because I have a boyfriend.” Bethany declared. Carter nearly inhaled his water. He coughed hard. His eyes narrowed like she’d just flipped the table between them.

“I know it might come as a surprise, but we are pretty serious. I just haven't introduced him to my mum yet. I am scared she might not approve.” Bethany somehow managed to keep her voice muffled most of the time. She slipped up once or twice, but she got better at covering it over with coughs.

After calming himself, he didn't give her a response and simply ate to his satisfaction in silence while Bethany sat, probably wondering what on earth was going on and why he was not reacting the way she would have loved for him to.

“I'm so sorry for wasting your time. This date wasn't really necessary, but I hope you will understand me.”

“Sure, let's leave then.” Carter rose from the table, already slipping his jacket back on after he was done eating.

“Goodnight, Miss Bethany. Get well soon.”

“Thank you. Just give feedback that you don’t like me and you don’t think we are compatible with each other,” she quickly fixed in. Carter stared at her for a few minutes before nodding. He headed out without as much as a glance in Bethany's direction. She stood there for a while, wondering if he believed her lies.

It seemed like he did. He just left her there.

After settling into her car, her disguises came off one after the other.

“I can't believe he fell for that,” Bethany said as she laughed, giving herself a mental pat on the back. This was the best date ever for her.

By the time she got home, what she saw was different. Although she had planned on how specific her answers would get when her mum and grandmum would throw their questions at her but what she wasn't expecting was this.

Immediately after opening the door, her mother rushed towards her and hugged her, kissing her cheeks, which left her confused for a few seconds.

"Mum, what's the problem?"

"I knew you would make us proud. I knew I made the right choice this time around because there is no way you could have ended up changing your mind."

Bethany was confused for more than a minute as her eyes scanned her mother's but before she could give a response, a tall figure came out from the corner of the sitting room that caught her attention instead.

When her eyes landed on him, the bag in her hand dropped, and her eyes slowly widened as her heart dropped and her body's temperature turned cold.

"Car...Carter?"

Not only was Carter in front of her in flesh, but the man also had a mischievous smirk on his face as he looked at her.

"Hey, Bethany." He responded.

This had to be f*****g unreal, right? There was no way. How????