Secretly Mine-Chapter 152: Apprentice

A few minutes later, I heard the water shut off. I didn’t dare turn around again, but my brain had a mind of its own and decided to picture how he looked with water droplets slowly flowing down his chest.

You need help, Leslie.

I scolded myself for being so indecent and let out a sigh. Before having a taste of how wonderful sex could be, I never had such devious thoughts, but now I understood what the term ’sex addict’ referred to.

A slight knock brought me out of my thoughts. I turned around automatically, meeting Lucas’s eyes. He seemed to be a little embarrassed and only partially peeked out from behind the door. There was only a white towel around his waist, while his upper half was still naked.

I felt my cheeks heat up. Though he didn’t show himself fully, my earlier peek gave me enough information to fill in the blanks.

"I’m so sorry to bother you, but I just realized that I left my spare clothes right beside you. It’s a brown leather bag. Could you hand it to me?" he asked, pointing his finger to a spot in front of me.

I looked down beside my feet, noticing the brown leather duffle bag he was referring to.

"Sure, no problem," I replied, doing my best to remain collected. I was the one imposing on his room. If it weren’t for me being here, he would have the freedom to walk around as freely as he wanted.

I hopped off the bed and picked up the leather bag before walking it over to him. The entire time, Lucas remained hidden behind the bathroom door as best as he could. I could tell that he was putting in a lot of effort to prevent me from feeling uncomfortable around him.

"Thank you, Leslie," he said warmly, accepting the bag from my hands.

I nodded, blushing slightly. "Mmm, it’s no problem at all."

He smiled back at me, "I’ll get some clothes on and I’ll be right out. I was thinking about ordering some room service. Could you help me pick out a few dishes? I heard the restaurant in this hotel is very good."

Before I could reply, he closed the door.

It was only after I walked back to the side of the bed that I realized how hungry I was. My stomach let out a loud growl, making me so thankful that Lucas was still in the bathroom and didn’t hear it.

I opened the drawer in the nightstand closest to me and pulled out the large menu of services that guests staying in this hotel could enjoy.

There were actually a few in-house restaurants that you could order from, and I spent a few minutes flipping through the menus of each of them.

This is probably the restaurant he was talking about.

The last of the three menus was to an award-winning steakhouse that had many honors written out below the title. My stomach rumbled even more after turning the page to see some of the images of the various dishes served there.

I was so focused on the menu that I didn’t notice Lucas glancing over my shoulder.

"Did you find anything you like?" he asked, startling me.

"Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you!" he said apologetically.

After catching my breath, I shook my head, "No, it’s not your fault. I was simply too mesmerized by the delicious-looking food on the menu."

He walked over and sat beside me, keeping enough distance between us that it didn’t feel inappropriate. "Oh, wow. The food really does look good. Let’s order a bit of everything and have our own tasting panel. We can see if they’re deserving of all of these fancy awards they brag about."

By this point, I was too hungry to act coy. Nodding, I smiled and agreed to his suggestion.

"Okay, then point out whatever you want to try. We can order the entire menu if you want."

"The entire menu is too much! There are mostly different cuts of aged steak, and I couldn’t possibly eat that much. I’m interested in these dishes right here," I said, pointing to a few appetizers, a steak, and a seafood dish.

"Oh, great choices. Let me call in the order. One second." He reached for the phone on the nightstand, accepting the menu from me. He didn’t bat an eye as he ordered over ten different dishes, remaining confident and calm.

"I’m so excited. The refreshments at the event weren’t great, so I’m starving," he said, turning to me after hanging up the phone.

"Especially after your workout in the stairwell. I’m sure that worked up a hunger, too," I giggled.

He smiled, nodding. "Yes, you’re completely correct about that. There’s nothing better than a nice run up multiple flights of stairs to get your appetite going."

We both laughed before I glanced at the time. "Looks like the event still has a few hours before ending. How were the sales? Did you get to see your painting being sold?" I asked.

Lucas looked into my expectant eyes and smiled. "I did, I left right after it sold," he said proudly.

"Well? Don’t keep me in suspense! How much did it sell for?" I asked excitedly.

He leaned back against the headboard. "Guess!"

I looked at him, seeing his proud expression.

It must have sold well if he’s looking so smug. Let’s see...

Using the little art knowledge I had, along with information from previous charity auctions, I looked up at him, "One million!"

One million would be a very good price for a small painting by an unknown artist. I would have originally said a smaller number, but his painting was truly one of the best, if not THE best.

My guess caused him to grin, showing off his white teeth. "Very good guess, but you’re wrong!"

"Higher or lower?" I asked, ready to attempt a second guess.

"Higher!" he said. His eyes were shining brightly as he enjoyed watching me take another guess.

Higher? Wow! That’s a very successful painting!

I mentally complimented him and took another guess. "Hmm, two million!" I said with excitement.

He chuckled but shook his head, "Getting closer! It’s higher!"

"More than two million! Wow, Lucas! That’s amazing! If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were a famous artist!" I said with surprise.

His eyes twinkled as he looked at me.

"Let’s see... Surely it can’t be more than three million?" I asked, this time with a bit of hesitation.

"Very good guess! It was over five million," he said as he looked directly into my eyes.

I gasped, "Five million?! That’s incredible!" There were only a few famous painters I knew of who could sell a small painting for that much. I looked at him with even more awe, "You’re so talented! As a successful painter, I would be honored to learn from you!"

Lucas looked at me intently, raising his brow. "Sure, but I’m a strict teacher. Will you be able to handle it?"

His words caused me to giggle. I pretended to think about it very carefully. "I can handle it! Please teach me!"

I saw something flash in his eyes, but it was too quick for me to notice. "Very well, Leslie. You’re officially my first apprentice!" He smiled brightly, looking directly into my eyes.

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