CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE~ Stephano“You okay?” Isabella asked, sipping her wine like everything was peachy.“Need to use the restroom,” I muttered, already standing.I didn’t wait for a reply. I slipped through the back of the restaurant, ducking Elvis’ view like a goddamn shadow. I couldn't raise any suspicion. The hallway was narrow and quiet, candlelight flickering against the walls like it knew what was about to go down.And then I saw her. The curve of her ass. The sway of her hips. She reached the ladies’ room door. Her hand touched the handle.“Has he fucked you?”She froze.Just like that, still as stone, breath caught, like my voice hit her spine and melted her bones. I took slow steps toward her, my voice a low growl behind her. “Elvis. Has he had you?”She turned, face twisted in disbelief, rage written in every sharp line on her face. “What the hell are you doing here?”I didn’t answer. I didn’t need to. I pushed the door open, gave her the chance to walk in.She did.I follo
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT~ Stephano’s POV“You got a problem with that, Stephano?”Elvis's voice pierced through my ear like a butterknife trying to act like a dagger. A pathetic attempt, really. I smiled.I had a problem, alright. A very tight, dripping, slick, warm kind of problem, standing just a few feet away from me, wearing guilt like perfume, her thighs pressed too tight together for someone who hadn’t been properly wrecked in hours. And he was standing beside her like he owned her.Owned what? My goddamn leftovers?I adjusted my cuff, not because it needed adjusting, but because if I didn’t do something with my hands, I’d reach over the table and throttle him or worse, drag her right back against one of the tables and ruin her all over again.I kept my grin in place, polished, professional, devil-approved. Isabella was tucked neatly on my arm, playing her role to perfection. My occasional headache. The reason I couldn’t say a damn thing out loud.“Oh, not at all,” I said smoothly,
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN ~CamillaHoly, his words wrapped around me like a blanket, pulling me in. This was... a lot. More than a lot, really. I couldn’t even wrap my head around everything he was saying. All those feelings, those words, the way he was looking at me, like I was someone worth caring about, someone he wanted to be with. It was like a pressure building up inside me, a dam that could burst at any second.I shifted in my seat, feeling suddenly very exposed. My hands tightened around my glass, but it didn’t do anything to steady me. Hell, the last thing I should be feeling right now was this… warmth, this flicker of hope that maybe, I could have something better than everything that had been dragged across my life.I was here, sitting across from a man who was genuinely kind, who cared for me. Who looked at me like I was more than just a body, more than a temporary distraction. And then there was Stephano. The fucking bastard who’d taken everything from Elvis, the one who had
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX ~CamillaElvis didn’t look convinced. His fingers tapped lightly against the steering wheel, his gaze flickering to me again, but he didn’t push. He just nodded, a small, reassuring gesture.I focused on the road ahead, breathing in through my nose, out through my mouth. I could not fall apart right now.This was supposed to be a normal night.A normal date. And for once in my life, I was going to have it.Elvis noticed the way my hands were clenched in my lap. His lips curved into a soft smile."You know," he said, his voice low and warm, "I don't bite, right?"I let out a small, surprised laugh, nervous, but it was a laugh. Something about the way he said it made me feel a little less like I was suffocating."I know," I muttered, though I wasn’t entirely sure I believed it. How could I just forget about everything? How could I pretend like I wasn't torn apart inside?He glanced over, his eyes kind, but a little concerned, as though he could see through my act. "
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE~ CamillaI paced around my apartment, staring at my wardrobe like I was about to face a damn life-or-death situation. As if picking out an outfit for dinner was going to make everything right again. But no, it wasn’t the clothes that had my mind spinning—it was that damn conversation with Stephano.What the hell was I doing? I tried to focus on the hangers in front of me, but all I could see was his smug face, his words ringing in my ears like a goddamn echo. I could practically feel his presence.I grabbed a dress off the rack, not really paying attention to it, and tossed it on the bed. It didn’t matter what I wore, did it? Stephano’s voice kept creeping into my thoughts, his tone, that dark, manipulative bastard. "Does your date know what kind of woman he’s dealing with?" The way he said it—like he owned me. Like I was some toy he could control whenever he felt like it. Fuck that.I grabbed another dress, this one red, but then the thought of Stephano's hands a
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR~CamillaI sat at my desk, staring at the screen, but my brain was doing anything but focusing on work. The clock ticked slowly, each second feeling like an eternity. My mind kept replaying Elvis’s words: “I was wondering if maybe we could get drinks, maybe have dinner together later tonight.”Was he really asking me out? Was I hearing things? I mean, Elvis? I blinked a couple of times, trying to shake off the weirdness, but it was like my brain had decided to press replay on that conversation like a broken record. “Dinner?” I whispered to myself under my breath, making sure no one was around to hear my stammering. I didn’t even realize I was grinning like an idiot until I felt the weird warmth creep up my neck.What was I even supposed to say? Should I have just hung up, pretending it was a mistake? That probably would’ve been the best move. But no, I couldn’t. Instead, I found myself saying something totally absurd, “Uhm, sure, I'd love to.” There, I’d said it.