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Chapter 5 - Adaline Seitz

Tannie shakes his fur in my lap, sticking out his pinkish tongue and staring at the swirl of steaming noodles trapped by my chopsticks. As soon as they are in my mouth, I regret the decision of taking a mouthful and fan my face to prevent my eyes from watering.

"I still don't have a relationship with Tan the way you do after spending only twenty minutes with him. Mind sharing your secret?" The man who owns the tiny ball of fluff asks between shameless slurps, voice smoother than red wine of the highest quality.

His features are angular, sculpted with utter precision of mischief itself as he stares at me with bewilderedness obvious in his sharp eyes. The mess of his ebony curls conceals the graceful line of his dark brows I'm certain are arched in a questioning manner.

His fierce appearance is softened by the rounded cupid's bow of his fuller upper lip, the natural downward curve of his mouth adorned by a minuscule beauty mark. The contrasting shape of his eyelids is coated with long, silky lashes and hiding another freckle on the waterline of his right eye.

The alcohol didn't give up on swirling through my bloodstream just yet, hence why I anchor my gaze on the third beauty mark decorating his nose to fulfil my irresistible craving and preserve this masterpiece of a man inside my mellow mind.

Nonetheless, the evening breeze that has some frost to it managed to reawaken major cognitive functions of my brain and help me not make a complete idiot out of myself, bringing the idiocy to around seventy percent.

I'm positive I can live with that without much shame.

"You're staring." He states, not bothered by the fact in the slightest once he notices my affirmative nod. Adjusting his turtleneck by dipping his long fingers under the taut fabric, he lets a devilish smile pull at his luscious lips to reveal his pearly whites. "Your eyes are stunning."

Managing a scoff, I tear my gaze away from him and focus it on Yeontan. "Du spinnst wohl. They are brown, nothing is exciting about them." My brows slant in disapproval while I stroke Tannie behind his ear, the muscles in my body loosening up as I give the pomeranian all the love I can muster.

"I'm not crazy, angel." The seriousness in his voice is thick like a blanket as he rests his chin on his large palm, the simplistic design of his wristwatch attracting my attention to it. "I'm just admiring. They make me think of mountains, subtle but beautiful in every form and season."

I try to camouflage the naked astonishment as if I'm a chameleon adapting its colour to the environment once it sees a snake creeping up the tree. "You understand German?" Maintaining the steadiness in my tone is a battle I don't let him see I'm losing.

He lifts his shoulders in a shrug, his aura seeping with indifference as he pouts. "To an extent." He stares at me with a hint of exotic spiciness in his irises, like the bittersweet aftertaste of finest cocoa beans. "So, can I ask what were you doing alone in the park so late in the evening?"

My fingers brushing through Tannie's fur become still while I attempt to swallow, my throat tightening and preventing the air from getting in my lungs. I feel tears welling up and effortlessly clouding my vision, chewing on my bottom lip to keep myself distracted.

"I got kicked out of my workplace," I trail off, a solemn tear escaping my eye and gliding down the expanse of my skin. "I know I should have said yes, but I just couldn't!" It's almost as if I'm spitting the words out of my mouth, wiping above my cheeks in a repeated, frustrated motion.

He clicks his tongue and glances up, his slender fingers gently tapping his cheekbone as he forms a sentence in his head. "You're not obliged to accept anything you're not comfortable with and you know that."