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RAVEN
“Another, miss?”
I looked up at the waiter and nodded. I was on my second glass of wine, but what was one more? Sitting alone in the hotel restaurant, I tried to push the anger on Nicholas’s face from my mind. He was so pissed at me and I couldn’t blame him. After everything we’d been through, I should have stuck around. Then he would be across the table from me instead of God knows where.
I thanked the waiter and took another drink of my wine. Seconds later, my meal came out, but despite the delicious smell, my stomach rolled at the thought of eating anything. I grabbed another slice of bread from the basket and tore off a piece, stuffing it in my mouth. Hopefully, the bland flavor would ease the cramping in my stomach.
“Smells delicious.”
I craned my head to look at the stranger beside me. He was tall and handsome, but something about him was off. He had a sinister look in his eyes that I knew all too well from years of wandering the country and encountering the worst of humanity.
“And you are?”
Without waiting for an invitation, he took the seat opposite me and signaled to the waiter.
“Sir?”
“Scotch, please.”
“Yes, sir.”
I wanted to berate the man for taking this stranger’s order without first asking if he was joining me. It looked like I didn’t have a choice in the matter.
The man sitting across from me smiled slightly, crossing one leg over the other as he leaned back in his chair. “So, you are the beautiful Raven.”
I kept my mouth shut, not wanting to encourage conversation. My spine tingled with anticipation as he continued to watch me. I needed to get out of here, but I had no idea how to accomplish that without this man following me.
I quickly glanced at the exits, noticing men standing sentry as if they were guarding someone. My eyes flicked back to the stranger.
“You will not be able to escape.”
“Who said anything about escaping?”
The waiter returned and set the glass on the table. “Will there be anything else, sir?”
“Give me the special for the day.”
“Yes, sir.”
The waiter bowed as if this man were royalty. If he was well known around here, I had certainly never heard of him.
“Is there a reason you’re inviting yourself to my dinner?”
“You looked lonely.”
“I was perfectly fine on my own.”
“No gentleman allows a woman to sit by herself in a restaurant.”
“As I said, I was fine.”
“I’m sure you were.” Again, he sat there and stared at me.
It was unnerving to say the least, but I forced myself to behave normally as if he wasn’t bothering me at all. Picking up my fork, I twirled the pasta around the tines and swallowed down the nausea swirling in my stomach. The flavor soured in my mouth, but I chewed and swallowed, not allowing this man to see the effect he had on me.
“Aren’t you the least bit interested who I am?”
“I’m sure you’ll tell me whether I’m interested or not,” I retorted.
