Page 8

I tookmy seat at the back of the restaurant, away from prying eyes. The room only held a few tables, ensuring a little privacy. I had made enough of a spectacle today. More than that, I wanted to spend quality time with Won-Ho and have a conversation that didn’t require speaking in code.

“Mr. Vex, it’s a pleasure to have you at K again.”

“The pleasure is mine.” The gentleman in a black button-down and dark red vest cautiously eyed the setting across from mine. “Yes, I have a guest coming.”

“Would you care for some rice wine while you wait?”

“Yes, that’d be lovely.”

With a slight bow, he exited the room. K was one of the hottest dining establishments in Vanguard. For most, it’d be impossible to get a reservation. Their fusion cuisine highlighted traditional Korean dishes. I thought it’d be a good icebreaker with Won-Ho. While most would consider me a monster, I wanted to make sure he felt comfortable for our first date.

Seconds later, he stood in the doorway. While I opted for a suit, he walked in wearing jeans and a t-shirt. At least he wore a sports jacket to dress it up. I’d just as soon see him naked, but I was surprised they let him in the door. But as I watched the blue light around his feet, I realized he skipped the front door.

As he walked toward me, I stood. It had been so long since I had been on a date, I didn’t know if I should offer a hug or a handshake. My indecision resulted in both a shoulder bump and a pat on the back. It reeked of the intimacy straight men exchange. At least we got the awkwardness out of the way.

“Not one for doors?” We both sat. I watched as Won-Ho inspected every detail of the restaurant. It was obvious that this wasn’t his usual evening out.

“Only if I wanted to be turned away.”

Won-Ho didn’t like to follow directions. Noted. I wonder how that affected his work in the courtroom. That got added to my list of questions for tonight. I wanted to hear about his school and about his credentials. If he let me, I wanted to revisit why he went into pro bono work. That certainly wouldn’t get him anywhere within his law firm.

“I was surprised you called,” he said.

“It’d have been gauche to ask you out with a text message.”

“Only gauche people use the word gauche.”

His chest stretched the fabric of his t-shirt. I appreciated a man who wasn’t afraid of owning his girth. My men needed to be bulky so they didn’t break in bed. I lived by the rule: if I could bench press them, they weren’t for me. With my powers, I’d need to modify that rule. Either way, Won-Ho made the cut.

The waiter returned with a small tray. Setting the small clear glass on the table, he offered us both menus. As soon as Won-Ho saw the menu, his eyes went wide. Did the prices surprise him?

“It’s on me,” I said.

“Of course, it’s on you. It’s in the rulebook, after all.”

I was about to curse this stupid book when he set the menu down. Turning to the waiter, he folded his hands. He let out a long sigh before speaking. “What type of food is this?”

“Korean fusion,” the young man answered. I could see the worry set in. He knew something was about to go awry. I had to admit I was curious about Won-Ho’s question.

“Is the kitchen staff…” Whatever the question, he seemed to know the answer before asking. “Are they all white?”

Oh. I didn’t expect this to be a conversation about race. Now that he asked, I wanted to know the answer as well. It added an additional layer to Won-Ho. Yesterday, he hadn’t seemed interested in talking about Korea, but perhaps I had asked the wrong question. I forgot I was talking to a lawyer. Mental note, don’t let him wiggle out of the conversation on a technicality.

“Uhm…” The waiter’s discomfort was obvious. “Some of them. I think?—”

“Are any of them Korean?”

He glanced in my direction, hoping for support. I held up my hands. There was no way I wanted to get into the middle of this conversation.

“I can check.”

“Please do.”

The waiter took a slight bow and then thought twice about it. Had he been told to bow or did he think it appropriate talking with Won-Ho? When he sped away, I couldn’t help but chuckle. My date knew how to command the room.

“You invited me here to make me feel comfortable. Am I wrong?”

“I thought food would make for good small talk before I pepper you with questions.” Honesty—something I didn’t offer much these days. I suspected the lawyer could detect lies better than most.

“There isn’t a single Asian in that kitchen. This whole place looks like somebody watched a documentary on Korea.”

“I’m sorry, I thought?—”

“It’s sweet of you.” Okay, not the reply I expected. “I appreciate the consideration.”

The smirk on his face made me smile. I had swung and missed. But at least he saw the effort. If I was going to tear down his defenses, it would only be fitting if I returned the favor. I folded my arms on the table and leaned forward.

“But…”

“If you wanted authentic, you will not find it here.”

Won-Ho Jung ignored K’s prestige much like he did with me. There was no arrogance in the statement, just simple facts. If anybody else shared such candid opinions on my choice of date night, I’d be offended. I couldn’t explain how he sidestepped my defenses and drew out my intrigue. Throwing caution to the wind, I let loose the reins.

“Show me.”

His eyebrow raised. “Show you?”

“I obviously got this wrong. So, let’s try this again. Show me authentic.”

He leaned back in his seat, arms crossed over his chest. I couldn’t blame him for distrusting the statement. It shocked me as well. I didn’t get asked out on dates; I did the asking. I didn’t go to a business to meet their CEOs; they came to me. It might work in business or getting laid, but maybe my motives were less sinister than normal.

He leaned forward, pushing the glass of rice wine to the side. “Can the great Damien Vex handle slumming it?”

I reached out, my hand resting on his. “We’re going to find out.”

The blueish light started over his shoulder and enveloped his arm. It swirled about until the blur turned solid. Had he summoned a literal dragon? Was this a manifestation of his powers? No matter how much I spoke with Won-Ho, the list of questions only lengthened. The light poured down his arm and enveloped my hand, and I bathed in the warmth.

“Time to?—”

* * *

“—go.”

Unlike my abilities, we didn’t jaunt through a dimension filled with light or dragons. One moment, we were sitting in K, and the next, we were standing in a… kitchen? It wasn’t the large industrial equipment I’d expect in a restaurant. If anything, it was barely an upgrade from an apartment. Where had Won-Ho taken me?

“Where are we?”

“You wanted authentic Korean food.”

Won-Ho hadn’t let go of my hand. His grip tightened, pulling me behind him as he exited the kitchen. He had teleported us to a small restaurant somewhere in Vanguard. Dragging me into the front of the house, I realized it was no bigger than my bedroom. There were four empty tables and a small woman sitting on a chair reading the newspaper.

“Ha-Yoon.”

“Won-Ho.”

She didn’t put the paper down. It grew awkward as we waited for her to finish reading. She didn’t care that two large men stood in front of her. Like Won-Ho, she controlled the room with her silence. I was starting to wonder if they might be related. Normally, I had people tripping over themselves to see to my needs, but both of them treated me no differently than a commoner.

Folding the paper, she slid her glasses to the top of her head. When she stood, she barely reached his chest. She gave him a curious glance before looking at the front door.

“Still too good to use the door?” I snickered at her comment. “Don’t encourage him.” Ha-Yoon didn’t look at me when she spoke. Her voice didn’t hold animosity, but it commanded respect.

“My friend took me to a Korean place downtown?—”

“White men?”

“All white.”

“Not Korean.”

“Not even a little.”

“Say no more.”

She jabbed a finger in his chest. “Won-Ho, I expect you to visit more. You work too much. You can’t save everyone.” She might be talking about his job, but she stared at me when she spoke.

“Yes, Ha-Yoon.”

The standoffish attitude faded as she wrapped her arms around his chest. His entire demeanor softened as he returned the hug. Up to this point, I had only experienced Won-Ho in a vacuum. A simple gesture exchanged between them anchored him. Was she his grandmother? How had they met? Like always, I had questions, but this time I had context.

She let go and shuffled past us. “Take a seat. I’ll be out shortly.”

“Are there menus?” I asked.

Won-Ho laughed. “No. You eat what you’re given.”

“The white man is funny,” Ha-Yoon said as she vanished into the kitchen.

I followed Won-Ho to a small table and took a seat opposite him. The dining room would have been crowded with a dozen people and hardly room to move. I couldn’t imagine a business like this thriving.

“I feel like we’re in her house.”

He pointed to the ceiling. “We’re under it. Ha-Yoon is my oldest friend. She lived on the same block as me when we went to primary school.”

“Primary school? Exactly how old are you?”

He leaned back in his chair. I wasn’t sure he was going to answer the question. If I had to describe Won-Ho, past the intriguing elements, I’d use the word conflicted. I couldn’t tell if it was because we shared a similar penchant for alter-egos or because he had yet to get comfortable with himself.

“You don’t?—”

“Eighty.” He let out a long sigh. “Give or take a year.”

“It’s not your son at the club, is it?”

“Grandson.”

He wouldn’t be in the club if he had parents. If it were a boardroom, I’d have lunged for the kill. I’d use the morsel of information to gain a foothold and go until he begged for forgiveness. But I couldn’t do that to Won-Ho, not with the sorrow in his eyes.

“We don’t have to talk about it.” I spoke the words, but I hardly recognized the man who said them.

“His mother passed away recently. A chemical fire in one of the plants in Southland.”

“How are you holding up?”

He gave a light shrug. The conversation had gone from playful cuisine and jabs at my ignorance to discovering Won-Ho had recently lost a child. I might be curious to know the details, but I wasn’t a cruel man… not for him.

“You’re old as dirt, can summon dragons, and work at a law firm. Don’t get me wrong, quite the stud for eighty, but I’m going to need you to connect the dots for me.”

Won-Ho snorted. “Stud, huh?”

“It’s the least raunchy word I could think of.” He blushed. Good.

“My powers come from my father. Nobody knows their origin or which generation discovered them. They’ve been handed down through the men of our family ever since. When our sons become men, we transfer them to the next. But I never had a son, so they stayed with me. Up till now, there had never been a situation where we held onto them long enough to discover they slow the effects of aging.”

“Consider me lucky then.” I had every intention of laying it on thick. I wanted to feel his body pressed against me again. Yes, I wanted to kiss him. I could only hope it’d lead to something other than no. “I’m fairly well versed in the heroes of Vanguard. I don’t remember any being this handsome.” Very thick.

“Who said anything about being a hero?”

I raised an eyebrow. Things just got a lot more interesting. “Do tell.”

“When I started, things were simple. Bad guys did bad things. Good guys followed the law. Eventually, bad guys did bad things, but the law let them get away with it. Good people went to jail for crimes of ignorance. I chose to ignore those rules.”

“Vigilante justice.”

“I preferred to follow my gut. After some time, I realized my moral compass didn’t adapt with the times. According to some, I became the villain. Instead of fighting the law, I became the law.”

“It’s borderline poetic.”

He gave a slight shrug. “I haven’t put on that costume in decades. It seems to have shrunk right in the middle.” He gestured to his stomach. It happened to all of us when we stopped the vigorous workout routine of battling supers. “I had all but forgotten it in the back of a closet.”

“Why take it out of retirement?” His head cocked to the side as if the answer should be obvious. “Mind reading is one of the few skills I don’t possess.”

“It’s one thing to spy on Damien Vex and his league of uppity socialites. A Damien Vex with powers? I thought it prudent.”

“You expected to fight me?”

His cheeks turned red. Making Won-Ho blush had become my newest superpower. “You were lucky I tailed you, or you’d be behind bars again.”

I was about to make light of the situation when Ha-Yoon appeared with a tray. As she moved the stone bowls to the table, I could hear them crackling. She quickly added two large spoons and small ramekins with red sauce. The egg on top sat somewhere between crispy and runny. Every dish smelled delicious.

“You’re a big boy,” she patted Won-Ho on the chest. “You get extra veggies.”

“Bibimbap with gochujung sauce,” Won-Ho said while glaring at Ha-Yoon.

I nearly choked at the jab. “It smells wonderful.”

“I know.” There was no arrogance in her statement. Simple facts. Ha-Yoon had the utmost confidence in her abilities in the kitchen, and I couldn’t wait to confirm her skill. I started by adding a small spoonful of the red sauce and gently stirring it into the meat and rice.

Ha-Yoon smacked my hand. “Wrong.” She dumped the chili sauce into the bowl and gave it a hearty stir. Rice, meat, greens, and mushrooms; I couldn’t wait until she gave me permission to eat my meal.

“Now you can eat.”

“So, you’re school chums?” I didn’t wait for an answer as I shoveled a spoon into my mouth. It wasn’t a pristine presentation like I expected from K. There were no tricks or fancy techniques, just— “This is amazing.”

“I know,” she repeated. “Won-Ho was a year behind me. Horrible at math. My mother made me tutor him. He got less annoying with age.”

He hid his face as he dove into his food. I appreciated her candor. She didn’t pull any punches. This tiny hole in the wall moved up my list of future dining options. If not for the terrific food, then for the company.

“He got smart, went to law school, got married. Saved the city once or twice. Normal stuff.”

“Married?”

She nodded. “Such a shame. I did not like Min. She wasn’t right for Won-Ho. But then she?—”

“Enough,” Won-Ho said. Knowing each other for that long, there were no skeletons left in the closet. If he hadn’t stopped her, I’m sure she’d have continued laying his entire life on the table.

She wrapped an arm around his neck, kissing him on the top of his head. “I’m sorry to hear about Jin-Ae.” He gave her arm a pat, but said nothing in response. Lingering, she gave him another squeeze before letting go and walking into the kitchen.

We were left with an awkward tension hovering between us.

“Sorry,” he said.

“Don’t be.”

“It’s just…”

“You can tell me when and if you’re ready.”

I took another bite of food as he stopped to watch me eat. This food wouldn’t get cold on my watch. I scraped the bottom of the stone bowl, piling in more food before I swallowed the previous bite. If he wasn’t impressed by my good looks or charm, I’d make sure I impressed him with my love of food.

“You are not the man I expected.”

“I think that’s a compliment.” Did I answer while chewing? Yes? Did I care that I broke social etiquette? Not in the least.

“I’m… happy to have met you.”

Married and with a child who passed, I was getting a better picture of who sat across from me. How long had he known that he preferred the company of men? Was that the key Ha-Yoon alluded to? It’d make sense with how quickly he shot me down after our kiss. This might have started as an attempt to lure Won-Ho into bed. Now, I thoroughly enjoyed the chase. Only a part of it was because I wanted to see him naked.

“Likewise,” I said. If this had been about sex, it’d be when I interjected a less-than-subtle advance, suggesting we go back to my place. My cock jumped at the idea, but I wasn’t done peeling back the many layers of Won-Ho.

“Do you think she’d make more?”

“Nobody leaves Ha’s kitchen hungry.”

“Ha-Yoon,” I shouted. “What’s next?”

Won-Ho smiled, and I reached across the table. I let my hand rest near his arm. I opened the door, but it’d be up to him to walk through it. Patience might not be my strongest virtue, but I’d make an effort. This morning I took the first steps toward destroying Bernard Castle, and now, I sat across from a man hoping this would be the first date of many. He gave my hand a pat, and I swore I felt a jolt of electricity at the contact.

“You know all about my alter ego’s attempts at grandeur. What about you? Favorite memory in the suit?”

He wasted no time dropping the spoon in his food. He cleared his throat as he prepared his tale. “Have you heard of the Speedy Slug?”