Chapter 16

Before starting the movie Eli went to the snack bar to get popcorn, snacks, and drinks for the both of them. He placed all the items on a tray along with a drink opener and then turned to take them to a small table that separated their chairs. Eli sat on the right while Helen sat on the left.

"We will be watching till death tear us apart. I was able to get a copy of it before its early release. We have to keep this a secret between the two of us. No telling friends about any details," He said, placing the tray on the table then took a seat.

Picking up a freshly popped buttery slight salty popcorn Helen replied."The secret is safe with me sir," She saluted him. Helen picked up a couple more popcorn and sat back in the comfort of the chair.

Eli pressed start for the movie to play and the room went dark. There was now only light being illuminated from the projector. They both sat in silence while the movie started off with a woman alone in a forest and once the movie introduction was over, Eli started back their conversation from earlier.

"I hoped my photo for your advertisement was a jackpot. The restaurant is opening soon, are you nervous?" He questioned keeping his focus on the screen. To invest a lot of time and money into a new business you had no idea if it would be a success or failure was scary. Not everyone could start off with a hit.

Helen placed another popcorn in her mouth then spoke, "Super nervous but I want to remain positive that it'll work out. If this doesn't work out it might just have a negative effect on my plans to open more businesses. And I wouldn't have liked to waste so much money just for it to fail."

"Did you take out a loan?" He asked considering her past and the amount of money it might've taken to pull off this venture. She mentioned she was an orphan until an older couple adopted her. Unless they were rich, he wondered where she would've gotten the money to purchase the land considering it was expensive and still had more left to build up the restaurant.

He didn't believe in luck when it came to gaining money magically.

"Dear Eli, are you asking that because I'm an orphan?" Helen mused. She had a habit of catching on to things quite fast. Not many people had questioned her finances. It was always a couple of compliments for beating the odds and doing something good with her new life.

"Yes," He bluntly answered, gazing at her side profile. There was no reason to deny it. Any other person would be curious to know.

Resting her right arm on the edge of her chair, Helen turned on her side to face Eli appearing almost alluring with her facial expression and pose. "I stole it," she stated amused at what Eli might be thinking but when he remained unphased she chuckled and added, "I'm joking. I thought you like to joke around too Eli?"

"I feel like I shouldn't believe this is a joke," Eli admitted while trying to read her. There might've been a little truth to her stealing money but where would someone like her steal enough money to buy the land?

"It truly is a joke, Eli. Mary and Samuel gave me money when I thought about creating a small business and I invested it. They also have a small restaurant of their own and that's why I started off with the restaurant because I have experience working with them. You can make a lot of money when you pay attention to the market. I'm not a thief I promise," She clarified before the man misjudged her. "You can't take a joke, Eli King. That doesn't sit well in my book."

"I can take a joke however you'll find you won't like my kind of humor. I'll take your word about the joke," Eli said, directing his gaze back to the screen again. It wasn't like he feared or cared about whatever she needed to do to survive in the past. He wasn't an innocent person either.

His past was scarier than what she could ever do in the past or present. Eli wondered how she would react when she learned she was sitting next to what was considered a monster.

Also focusing on the screen now, Helen's smile faltered once Eli looked away. She slowly placed popcorn in her mouth tasting the saltiness. She hoped he truly believed it was a joke and didn't plan to snoop around to find things about her that would ruin the fun. But people were just so nosy.

"What about you Mr. King? How does it feel to be so successful at your age? And what is the reason you stay out of the spotlight? As you can see the public has been enjoying solving the mystery of who you are," She commented changing the subject.

"I prefer you call me Eli. Mr. King reminds me of my father. I have to hear it on the outside. I would prefer it if I didn't have to hear it inside my home," Eli urged, feeling agitated the more he thought about his father. He truly considered changing his last name.

"But to answer your question I don't feel anything in regards to being successful at this age. Not being cocky but it feels different when you've grown up with everything handed to you. For the spotlight, I am not a celebrity where I need the spotlight. My businesses or investments don't need the public to see my face. I would prefer to live my life in peace and silence. I've been in the spotlight before and it was irritating."

"Hmm..." Helen pondered over what he said. It really was shooting down a lot of what she thought of him. She expected him to be a little bit cockier? You really could not judge a book by its cover. She was also very hypocritical to sit here and judge him considering her past. She knew not to believe the tales which came out the mouths of others but yet did it tonight.

At least she got the chance to see a small piece of who Eli King was. But she could see why people were so interested in finding out more about him. Just like her, Eli was a fun party bag. What could she possibly find out about him next?

She was so preoccupied thinking about Eli, Helen accidentally cut herself on a bottle opener Eli had on the tray. She mistakenly squeezed the bottle opener when she was going for more popcorn but wasn't paying attention to where her hand was going. "Ugh," She groaned, feeling the slightly painful jab.

Eli clutched the edge of his chair feeling enticed by the smallest drop of her sweet blood. This was the cherry on top of her temptations. His fangs trembled at the thought of taking a bite in her neck. He gritted his teeth, calming down the sensation in his body which was rapidly building up. If only Helen knew what she was doing to him.

"I don't have bandages, unfortunately. It's small so just press the napkin against it for now," He said, regaining his composure. It was the first time in years he almost did something irrational.

"You should really get bandages in your home. What would you do if you ever got hurt?"

"I'll place some in every room tomorrow," He responded. 'And human proof the entire house,' he thought. Now that he got a whiff of how delicious her blood smelt there was no way he could leave her alone.

Helen had completely enticed him in every aspect.