[BL] CRAVING HIM: Addicted to His Voice Chapter 242: The Taste of Restraint

~Zayn’s POV~

In the morning, Kai dressed in casual neat clothes, grabbing his wallet. "I’m going to see a friend," he announced, heading for the door.

"Are you eting Evric today?" I asked.

"No, until tomorrow," he replied. "I’ll see you for dinner."

"Okay," I said, and Kai left ho.

I was alone until the afternoon. I waited, tense, for the anonymous number to call or text again, but Nicki didn’t show up. Finally, I couldn’t stand the stillness anymore. I dressed and headed straight to my restaurant, needing the distraction of work.

It was evening when Dean showed up at my restaurant. He took a seat and waved over.

"Hey, man," Dean said, looking genuinely tired. "Sorry, I haven’t been around. Work’s been absolute hell lately."

We talked for a while about everything and the general chaos of the city. Then Dean’s expression softened. "So, how are you doing, Zayn? And how is Evric doing, really?"

I gave the standard, protective answer. "I’m fine, and Evric is doing fine also. Busy as usual."

After we talked for a while longer, Dean invited out for the weekend. "It’s been too long since we just hung out, man. Let’s hit the bar Saturday night, catch up properly."

I agreed, a small part of welcoming the normalcy. "Sounds good. Text the location."

Dean left soon after, and the rest of the day passed quickly. But the silence from my phone was the loudest thing in the room. Nicki hadn’t shown up all day.

The next morning, I was finishing my coffee when Kai ca out, already dressed.

"Hey, I’m heading out," he said.

"Where to?" I asked casually.

"To Draeven Holdings, for my initial eting," he said. "I think you should co with , Zayn."

"Why?" I asked, looking up from my coffee.

Kai walked over, lowering his voice in a pleading tone. "Because you’re familiar with the CEO," he insisted. "It would make my initial access smoother. You could introduce , or at least be there. Please, Evric is your man, just co with ."

I shook my head firmly. "No, I’m not going." Even if I wanted to, I needed to keep my distance, it was the only way to protect myself.

"Okay," Kai said, hearing the firmness in my voice. Then he quietly left on his own.

I stayed ho for a while longer, but the apartnt was too quiet. Later, I also went out to check on my second restaurant setup. Things were moving fast; only a few final decorative touches remained.

That evening, I arrived ho to find Kai in the living room, buzzing with energy from his workday. He launched into the details of his etings at Draeven Holdings.

"You won’t believe my day, Zayn," Kai began, settling back on the sofa. "I saw your boyfriend. You seriously undersold him. He is the definition of handso, tall CEO—rich, young, and commands the room. And he slls so good, like so rare oud and amber blend."

I was in the kitchen, preparing our dinner, and simply nodded. "Indeed?" I said, surprised. Kai rarely fixated on soone’s appearance this much.

"Really!" he insisted. "But it’s more than the looks. He was so nice, Zayn. Calm and attentive in the eting. He took my project seriously. I’m telling you, your man is so fine."

"He’s nice and calm," I repeated wryly.

I was finishing up the dinner when the front doorbell rang. Since my hands were covered in seasoning, Kai stood up to answer it.

"I’ll get it," he called out.

I heard the door open, and at that mont, Kai’s way of speaking changed, he stopped talking like a relaxed friend and started speaking more formally and politely.

He first called out, "Evric!" before quickly correcting himself. "Mr. Draeven! Good evening."

The cooking spoon slipped from my hand and hit the counter with a loud sound.

Caught off guard, he hesitated for a mont, then added, "I didn’t realize you were coming over," as he stepped aside and opened the door wider.

I walked toward the kitchen entrance. Evric stood in the doorway, calm as ever, but I could see the surprise on his face, Kai, the man he’d t earlier at work, was now standing in my house. The tension between them was so strong you could almost feel it in the air.

Evric recovered instantly, walking toward and pulling into a hug that was both warm and possessive. "Babe," he murmured, his gaze sweeping past to Kai.

I pulled back. "Evric, this is Kairos. Kai, this is Evric, my—"

Evric cut in smoothly, extending a hand to Kai. "Evric Draeven, Zayn’s boyfriend, and I believe we had an excellent eting at my office today, Mr. Kairos."

Kai shook his hand, clearly flustered. "Y-yes, Mr. Draeven. It was excellent."

I invited Evric to join us for dinner. He accepted imdiately. I knew his original plan was likely a quick, intense emotional check-in, but seeing Kai had changed his agenda. He was going to stay, subtly mark his territory, and figure out exactly what kind of relationship Kai and I shared.

The dinner was tense but polite. Evric was gracious with Kai, asking professional, focused questions about his project at Draeven. When the al ended, Kai, sensing the shift in atmosphere, offered a polite excuse.

"Well, I’ve had a long day," Kai said, standing up. "It was a pleasure eting you, Mr. Dreaven. Goodnight, Zayn."

Kai went inside his room, leaving Evric and alone.

Once the door closed and Evric was absolutely certain it was just the two of us, he stared at across the table, the professional mask finally dropping.

"Who is Kai?" he asked, his voice low and direct.

I smiled, unable to hide my amusent. "You know how to ask questions now, Evric," I teased.

He frowned slightly. "What do you an?"

"In the past, you wouldn’t have asked," I explained. "You would’ve either started a fight, hurt yourself, or tried to demand the answer through anger."

Evric smiled sheepishly, looking like a relieved child. "I’m trying to grow up for you, babe."

I stood up to start packing the plates, but before I could move, Evric quickly closed the distance. He pulled my waist closer, wrapping his hands firmly around .

"You told you don’t want a boy, Zayn," he whispered into my hair. "So I’m learning to be that real man for you."

My heart gave a painful little thump, but I had to hold the line. I looked down at his hands on my waist. "Who told you you can hug my waist?"

Evric released imdiately, his hands flying up in surrender.

"I haven’t forgiven you yet," I reminded him, my voice firm. "So don’t think because you grew up a little that’s all it takes to erase all you’ve done."

"Evric’s head dropped. He apologized imdiately, his voice quiet, and stepped back. He looked tired again. ’I just ca to check on you, Zayn. I’ll take my leave now.’"

"Okay," I said, watching him closely. I caught the flash of pain in his eyes, a mix of rejection and his desperate need to obey. But I ignored it. I had to.

Evric gave a brief nod. He thanked for the food and walked out of the house.

After the door clicked shut, the silence returned, and my resolve started to crumble. I was too harsh. I hadn’t even answered his simple question. I imdiately picked up my phone and texted him the answer.

Kairos is my friend from ho.

Almost instantly, the reply ca back:

EVRIC: Okay, baby.

I finished doing the dishes, the silence amplifying the loneliness now that Evric was gone. It had only been a few minutes since he left.

Then, the doorbell rang again.

I froze, almost certain Evric had forgotten sothing and co back. I quickly dried my hands and walked to the door.

I threw the door open, ready to smile and chide him...

But it was not Evric.

The person standing on my doorstep, dressed in a sharp, casual outfit and wearing a smirk that made my blood run cold, was Nicki.