Chapter 6

ELENA'S POV

LOOK AWAY, ELENA!

I repeated the words in my head over and over again, yet I couldn't pull my eyes away from his enchanting blue eyes.

“Tell me, Elena." He began, leaning fully over the table. “Why did you leave without even the least thing as a goodbye?"

I shrugged, pausing briefly to think of an answer other than ‘I regretted sleeping with you’. “What? Was I supposed to dress up in one of your oversized shirts and whip you burnt pancakes?" Avoiding the question was a better resort.

“Burnt?" He choked lightly. “Are you that bad?"

I scoffed, taking another long sip from my coffee. “Quite shocking, even to me. I never got the hang of it."

He nodded lightly. “I can teach you."

Cocking my head to the side, I raised my brows. “Oh really?"

“Well, that is, if you'd take up the offer. It's free." He added.

My lips curled up into a smirk. “And why would you do that?"

It was his turn to shrug. “I don't know. If I could sit for hours at the restaurant where you work, waiting for you to show up, then at this rate, I might be able to do anything just so I could spend some time with you."

“Anything?" I blurted out.

His voice was unbelievably sincere, even I felt it. It made me smirk even wider.

Oh, Luca Moretti! You have no idea what's coming, do you?

“Of course, I'll take up your offer. I'd love to learn." I simply said.

He nodded. “Isn't that beautiful! Well, that being agreed on, when do you think you're free so your cooking lessons can begin?"

A chuckle escaped my lips. “It's just pancakes. And how are you so direct?" I said, sincerely humored.

He looked away, leaning back into the seat. "It's something my job requires me to be. Pardon me if it's too much for you, I'm just trying to say I'm not willing to let you go so easily. Like I said earlier, I'm not done with you, not yet."

His eyes remained fixed on me as he spoke. It sparked this sensation in me that I couldn't explain. Aside from the fire for revenge already burning hot inside of me, it seemed that this man had managed to light another fire, and I couldn't tell what it was. Although it was burning low, wavering, and under the threat of quenching, I felt its heat, and it was weakening.

I leaned back into the seat, not taking my eyes from him either. “It's funny. Does all your one-night stands get speeches like that?"

He chuckled. “Nahh. There is just something about you."

Sitting here, conversing with the man who killed my blood—the only person I had left in this world—was a test of my self-control. Sitting here, listening to him speak so casually, so effortlessly, while the weight of my brother’s absence pressed against my chest like an iron cage, was unbearable.

And yet, I sat still, and it surprised me how I didn't have to force a smile.

When Conner came back with the news that the man I had spent a passionate night with was, in fact, Luca Moretti, I knew immediately what I had to do.

That, I am doing now.

I can't tell this will be so much fun. I had intense pleasure the night before but this—this is the real pleasure.

The slow, deliberate execution of my plan—the gradual unraveling of his confidence, watching the certainty in his eyes flicker, then shatter, step by step, until the very last moment—the final blow.

That was the real fun.

A smiley waitress approached us at that point, a notepad in her hand. “Sir, would you like to order anything."

He nodded. “Sure. I'll have what she's having."

I swirled the last bit of coffee in my cup, watching the way Luca leaned back in his seat, his piercing blue eyes fixed on me like I was the only thing worth looking at in the entire café.

The waitress nodded, bouncing away.

“You’re staring,” I pointed out, raising a brow.

He smirked. “I know.”

I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t help the way my lips twitched. Before I could say something sarcastic, she appeared again.

“Here's your order, sir." She said, placing the small tray in front of Luca.

He gave her a small smile. “Thank you."

We expected the waitress to walk away but she didn't. “Hey, I just wanted to say, you two make a beautiful couple,” she said, beaming at us.

I nearly choked on my coffee.

Luca, on the other hand, didn’t even blink. He turned to her with an easy grin. “You think so?”

“Oh, definitely,” she gushed. “You just have that… vibe, you know? Like, the way you look at each other—it’s so natural.”

I glanced at Luca, expecting some smug response, but instead, he looked at me with a kind of amusement that made my stomach flip.

Was he enjoying this?

I let out a soft laugh, shaking my head. “Well, that’s a new one.”

Luca chuckled, running a hand through his hair. “We’ll take the compliment.” He glanced at me again, eyes twinkling with something unreadable. “Right, sweetheart?”

I kicked him lightly under the table, making him smother another laugh.

The waitress giggled. “See? Adorable.”

“Adorable,” I echoed, fighting back my amusement. If only she knew.

The moment she walked away, I sighed dramatically. “I think we just got relationship certified by a stranger.”

Luca shrugged, that damn smirk still in place. “Guess that means we have to make it official.”

I scoffed. “You wish. You might wanna step on your brakes now, sir.”

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. “I don’t know, Elena. I think you secretly love the idea.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re insufferable.”

He grinned. “And yet, here you are. Agreeing to come to my place.”

He had me there.

I sighed, finishing off my coffee before standing up. “Oh come on! You promised me a cooking lesson, and I plan to hold you to it.”

His smirk softened just a little as he stood, reaching for his keys. “Let’s go then.”

And just like that, I was following him out the door, my heart beating a little too fast for my liking.

God help me.