Red Deception {Book Two}

13

Riah POV

I could sense Demitri had something up his sleeve since we left Alfonso's warehouse. I don't know what it is, but I know it's nothing good.

Sneaking a look at him as he drove, I bit my bottom lip at the view in front of me. His frame was relaxed as he weaved through traffic, the veins in his arm pulsed at every movement. His perfectly trimmed beard beautifully complimented his cheekbones and the memory of his full lips all over my body stained my mind.

Letting out a low chuckle, Demitri placed his hand on my thigh and squeezed lightly.

"What are you thinking about, love?" His voice was low as his hand reached the top of my thigh.

Shivering at his touch, I cursed at myself for not being able to hide the effect he has on me. "Nothing, love." I shot him an innocent smile as if he didn't already know.

Shaking his head, he let out a sexy chuckle. The heat radiating from between my thighs was beginning to overwhelm me, and I knew there was no way he didn't feel my arousal.

"You better stop thinking about whatever is on your mind, because we're here and if I can sense you're arousal, Nora will be able to, too."

Fixing my posture, I slapped Demitri's hand away and wiped my sweaty palms on my dress.

I barely had enough time to decompress and re center myself before Alyssa and Nora were in the SUV and chatting on and on about their day.

"Riah, I have a new friend." Alyssa's sweet voice pulled me from my thoughts.

Turning to face her, I raised my brow. "Yeah? What's your friends name?"

"His name is Armando and he beat me at water tag like ten times."

Watching her talk about how much fun she had with her new friend made me happy, but it hurt at the same time. I couldn't be there with her when she had these experiences because I'm so busy keeping the business above water.

I'm watching her grow before my very eyes yet I'm not there to grow with her.

I sighed, "I'm glad you had so much fun today. Are you ready to go have some dinner?"

Alyssa's eyes went wide as she rubbed her stomach, "Yes I'm so hungry."

Chuckling, I turned back to the front of the car and put the restaurant's address into the GPS.

Demitri and I decided on a restaurant in Menfi called Da Vittorio, I've always wanted to try their fresh seafood dishes, specifically pasta con i ricci di mare alla Vittorio (pasta with sea urchin). A certain Bratva member has been teasing me about how I've never tried it, never mind the fact that I've never been to Sicily. So to shut him up, I'm going to try it and see what the fuss is all about.

"The fact that you want to go to Menfi because Kabinov keeps teasing you about never trying their pasta is great." Demitri chuckled as he drove.

Crossing my arms, I huffed in annoyance. "Every time we go to his house to have dinner with him and his wife he never fail to mention that damn pasta."

Demitri laughed so hard that a tear streamed down his cheek, causing him to wipe it and sigh. "I'm sorry my love, but he always gets on your nerves and I love it."

He's right, too. I don't know what it is about Kabinov, but he pushes all my damn buttons. I love him like I love the rest of my Russian family, but shit he's like a damn older brother determined to constantly fuck with me.

It took awhile to get to Da Vittorio, but once we found a parking spot and made our way to the front entrance, I gasped at the view before me.

It had a classic Sicily feel with lights strung up dazzling the glasses placed on the tables, beautiful music playing in the background and the most beautiful thing of all, a balcony overseeing a gorgeous beach on the ocean.

With the sun setting and the amazing weather, we had no choice but to get a seat right off the balcony.

As we all sat down and took a moment to appreciate the beauty of it all, I noticed the sound of the waves crashing against the shore creating the most amazing feeling that overcame me.

"This place is gorgeous." Nora beamed.

I nodded, "Yeah, Kabinov recommended it."

"Of course he did, he does nothing but eat." Nora chuckled lightly.

Demitri cleared his throat, "Where's Alec, Marcel, Petra and Aleksandra?" He questioned, scanning the extra seats we made sure we had.

"They're almost here, Petra just texted me to let me know they're coming."

"Good, good." Was all Demitri said before excusing himself from his seat and disappearing into the restaurant.

Nora furrowed her brows, "What was that about?"

I shrugged slightly, "I have no clue, he's been acting weird all day."

In an attempt to push away the thought that Demitri is hiding something from me, I changed the subject. "So, before they get here. What the absolute shit is going on between Petra and Aleksandra?" I whispered the last part so Alyssa didn't hear me.

Nora's eyes widened as if she had something she needed to tell me. "I don't know for sure what's going on, but I was walking by Petra's hotel room this morning and overheard them fighting. I didn't get much out of it but what I did hear was odd."

Pursing my lips, I nodded, urging her to continue.

"It was Aleksandra shouting 'What makes you think this is any easier for me?" Nora stopped for a moment to check if they were around before continuing. "And Petra replied with 'Yes, because you're not straight.' I ran off after that because I was afraid they heard me."

Furrowing my brows, I rubbed my temples in confusion. What in the world would they be fighting about if Aleksandra's sexuality was a part of their argument? I can't even fathom what is going on.

As I was about to say something about the situation, a group of people rushed to us when I soon realized it was Petra, Aleksandra, Marcel and Alec. Thank the goddess I didn't say anything right when they were approaching our table.

"Hey guys." I smiled at my family as everyone sat down and got settled in.

Marcel returned the smile and crossed his arms behind his head. "What's up? You seem a bit frazzled."

Raising my brow at his choice of wording, I chuckled at his goofy attitude. "Interesting choice in vocabulary. Nothings up, just waiting for Demitri to return."

As soon as I said his name, I could feel him making his way back to the table before I even saw him.

Placing a kiss upon my forehead, he sat down and I couldn't ignore the wide smile spread across his lips.

"What?" I asked in a hush tone, gripping his hand under the table.

He shook his head, "Nothing. The food has been ordered, it's just being prepared now."

The group of people around us nodded in unison and continued to talk amongst themselves.

With the sound of the waves, the warmth of Demitri's skin on mine and the view of my family in front of me conversing and laughing together, I couldn't help but weep.

Placing my hand over my chest, I managed to calm my silent sobs to a halt. But of course, Demitri caught a glimpse of the tear streaming down my cheek.

"My love, what's wrong?" He questioned, leaning closer to me so I could feel his breath on my ear.

Sighing in happiness, I shook my head. "Nothing at all. Everything is perfect." But deep down, I knew it could be so much better. "I just wish Devitt could be here to experience this amazing moment."

Looking up into Demitri's eyes, I noticed the tears threatening to spill over as he smiled at the memory of Devitt.

"He is Riah, he's always here with us. We just can't see him anymore."