The Taste Of Revenge (War of Sins Book 1)

Noelle

It's not a dream.

I'm forced to acknowledge that fact over dinner, staring into that beautiful face across me and willing myself not to break into a sweat.

When I'd woken up this morning, I'd almost managed to convince myself it had all been just a dream—a rather intense and exciting dream but one, nonetheless.

Now?

I try to keep a straight face as I look at the man from last night.

Rafaelo.

Cisco proceeds to do the introduction, adding a few other things as he goes on a long soliloquy. I don't really care, though.

Not as my whole attention is channeled on him.

I hadn't imagined it. He's just as beautiful as last night. The only difference is the lighting that makes his features stand out more, the blue of his eyes an even more compelling shade. His hair is swept back, giving him a harsher look. If the other night he'd looked a little boyish with his unruly locks, now he looks all man—threatening, intense...alluring.

The urge to squirm in my seat is strong, and it takes everything in me to meet his gaze head on. Especially as he looks at me with such animosity, I have to wonder if I hit him too hard last night. Because that's the only explanation why his gaze would be this chilling and unfeeling, pinning me to the spot with a promise of sweet retribution.

'Pleased to meet you,' I nod, suddenly feeling under the microscope as he narrows his eyes at me.

He's holding a butter knife in his hand, his grip so tight the tip seems to be bending. And it's all while he's staring at me.

I blink rapidly, a little disconcerted by the hostility I see in his demeanor. But as my brother engages him in conversation, the man seated next to him, Carlos, tapping him on the shoulder, he finally wrenches his eyes from me.

I breathe out relieved, the pressure inside of me decreasing slightly.

Maybe I should apologize for hurting him.

But why should I when he was the one invading my personal space in the first place?

Armed with a new resolve, I tip my chin up, silently observing the conversation around the table and the way charm seems to ooze off Rafaelo when he's not glaring at me. There's a compelling quality to his voice as words flow from his mouth, a certain innate musicality to the way he pauses after certain words. His sentences are characterized by an odd fluidity, one that calls to my trained ear.

It's without realizing that I simply close my eyes, taking a deep breath and focusing on that lilt of his, my entire body covered in goosebumps at the raw yet gentle sound. There's a deep bass that reverberates in the room every time he speaks, and the hairs on my arms stand up.

Lips parted, I feel almost in a trance as I focus purely on the sounds and their nuances.

For a short while I'm transported to a different time and place, and everything seems to fade away as I feel at peace for the first time in forever. Like a lighthouse beckoning me to safety while the storm rages on, there is a comfort in the way his words are spoken with such assurance, pure confidence drips from them. There's...

'Noelle!'

My eyes snap open to see Cisco scowling at me with mild annoyance.

'Stop being rude when we have guests,' he chides. 'You can't just doze off at the table,' he shakes his head at me, his fingers drumming on the hard wood of the table in that restless manner of his.