AUTHOR’S POV.

    “Well… let’s get that cup of coffee, shall we?” She said, forcing her tone to match his as she silently prayed Lucian would get there fast.

    They ordered their coffee, and Alina intentionally picked a seat by the ss window so that Lucian could easily spot her.

    “Again, I want to thank you for the other day.” She said, her hand wrapped around her cup. The heat radiating through the ceramic to her palm, helped calm her nerves.

    Alina had no idea why she was suddenly anxious around Louis. It wasn’t like this the first time they met. Or was it because Lucian had warned her to stay away from him?

    “Again, it’s fine,” he joked, mimicking her words. “You’ve bought me a cup of coffee, so we’re even.” He assured her, raising his cup in a yful toast.

    “Alright then, if you say so.” She shrugged, unsure of what else to say.

    “There’s one more thing you can do for me, though.” He added, tapping his chin, his ever-present smile curving on his lips, one that was beginning to get on Alina’s nerves. !--

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    God, no, Alina thought. She was supposed to be done after this. She didn’t want to owe him any more favors.

    “What?” She forced out in a tight-voice.

    “Well, I’m new to the area, and I could do with a friend.” He told her in a casual tone.

    “I’m sorry, but that won’t be possible.” She replied without missing a beat.

    “Why?” He frowned, his hand tightening slightly around the coffee mug.

    She gave him a look as if to say ‘Are you serious?’

    He already knew Lucian didn’t like him, so why the hell was he asking her that?

    “Because my fiancé wouldn’t appreciate that.” She told him tly.

    “I see.” He muttered, leaning back in his chair. “So he controls who you’re friends with?” Louis pushed, in a calm but probing

    tone.

    “He doesn’t.” Alina had to bite her tongue to keep from snapping. “But if he isn’tfortable with something, then I avoid it.” She finished in a cool voice.

    Her leg bounced under the table, nerves constricting painfully in her chest, and she could feel her palm beginning to sweat and it wasn’t because of the heat from the coffee cup.

    She lifted the cup to her lips and took a slow sip, an attempt to upy her mouth so she wouldn’t say anything else.

    But Louis waited patiently for her to set the cup down, his gaze never leaving her face. He was starting to make her ufortable.

    “Are you okay?” He asked, noticing the slight gloss of sweat on her forehead.

    “Yeah… it’s just a little hot.” She replied in the most casual tone she could muster.

    “Do I make you ufortable?” He asked again, eyes fixed on her as he studied her reaction.

    “What?” Alina feigned confusion, doing a good job in keeping her emotions in check.

    “Do you think I’m a bad person, and that’s why you can’t be my friend?” He questioned, his grin returning, this time it Alina out.

    crept

    “What are you talking about? I already told you the reason I can’t be friends with you is because my fiancé wouldn’t like it.” Alina said, trying to keep the exasperation from her voice.

    “Well, what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.” Louis said, a mischievous glint shing in his eyes.

    “Excuse me?” Alina red at him, a look of disbelief on her face. “Are you asking me to lie to my husband-to-be?”

    Anyone who could ask her to lie to Lucian wasn’t someone who deserved to be called a friend.

    “Rx. I was just kidding.” He chuckled, raising his hands in surrender.

    But Alina didn’tugh. There was no humor in his words, and she wasn’t amused.

    Her hands wrapped tightly around the cup in annoyance.

    “Loosen up, Alina. I would never ask you to lie to your man.” He said again in a light tone. “Besides, you act like your fiancé would know even if you did lie.”

    “He would.” Alina replied, matter-of-fact.

    “How would he know if you don’t tell him, huh?” Louis pushed, in a yful tone, but the edge in it gave him away.

    Although Alina was too anxious to notice.

    He may have been pretending to joke, but in reality, he wasn’t.

    This wasn’t Louis’s first rodeo. On many asions when he had chosen the friendly approach, his charming and cheerful personality had been enough to draw women into secret friendships with him, but Alina wasn’t like the others. And that frustrated him.

    “You’re new here, so you probably don’t know, but this is Lucian we’re talking about. He knows everything.” Alina told him, lifting her cup to her lips again, it was more to keep herself grounded than for the coffee.

    “So you’re telling me that, right now, he knows you’re here, in this café, having coffee with me?” Louis asked in disbelief, amusement twinkling in his eyes.

    “Yes, he knows.” Lucian’s voice came from behind him as he approached their table.

    Louis’s eyes widened in shock, and Alina couldn’t help the huge smile that spread across her face. Her whole body flooded with relief at the sound of Lucian’s voice and the tension that had gripped her for the past fifteen minutes washed away the instant his hand rested on her shoulder.

    “Mr. ckwood.” Louis greeted, quickly standing.

    “What are you doing here?” Lucian asked Alina instead, not even sparing Louis a nce.

    “I bumped into Louis and decided to buy him coffee to thank him for the other day,” Alina exined, grinning up at him.

    Lucian could see the relief in her eyes from the moment she noticed him in the room. He noted how tense she had been,

    and even though he kept his expression nk, he was annoyed he hadn’t arrived sooner.

    “You’re done, yeah?” He asked, eyes never leaving her.

    “Yeah.” She replied without hesitation.

    “Let’s go then.” He gently pulled her to her feet, then turned to Louis. “I’m grateful to you for helping my wife, but please stay away from her in the future, Louis Grey.”

    Louis’s eyes widened at the mention of his full name.

    Lucian had clearly done a background check on him, but Louis wasn’t all that worried, he knew he wouldn’t find anything concrete. If Lucian wanted to discover the real Louis Gray, he’d have to dig deeper, much deeper..

    Without another word, Lucian led Alina out of the café.

    Louis watched them go, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. The fake smile slipped from his face.

    “Oh, Lucian ckwood,” he muttered under his breath, dark eyes following them. “The more you want me to stay away, the more interested I am in Alina.”

    Then his lips curved into a slow, sinister smile, “I’ll be seeing you again soon, Alina.”