Page 12 of Shadows of Obsession

Our usual corner spot - courtesy of our friendship with Alfonso, the owner - gives me the perfect vantage point. The lighting's low, but I can see everything. Since she walked in with her friend, I haven't been able to tear my eyes away from those cinnamon-blonde curls, those scattered freckles. But it's more than that. Something about her eyes keeps pulling me in. She smiles, laughs, goes through all the motions, but none of it reaches those green eyes. They stay distant, guarded. And for some reason, it's driving me crazy.

“You're done staring, or should I just talk to myself?” Niko smirks, knocking back another shot of tequila.

Alfonso always keeps our Don Julio ready - knows we're coming before we do. Niko's here for the booze, but me? I come to watch people. Usually, nobody catches my eye. Usually.

"Not yet, but you can keep talking. Unlike you, I can multitask. You were saying the furniture supplier wants twelve percent more to finish the order on time. Give him seven percent. With how much furniture he makes for us, he can't afford to lose allour business. Anything else?" I ask without lifting my gaze from my new attraction.

It's been a while since I've felt this chemistry toward any woman. They've all become too simple, too boring, too desperate.

"Poor thing has no idea who she's caught the attention of," Niko laughs beside me, though I notice him analyzing her too.

He knows better than to say anything wrong about her, and although he might be interested, we've never fought over a woman, especially when he knows one has captured my interest.

Unlike me, he's the type of man who prefers multiple women at once and always has been. I'm the type who prefers to focus on a single target, and those green eyes have become exactly that. I can't see her completely, but her face is heart shaped, her nose small and slightly upturned. Her mouth is round with light pink lips that perfectly complement her hair color, and when drops from her drink linger on them, I freeze.Damn.

I feel warmth coursing through my entire body. What the hell is happening to me? I'm not some kid who can't control himself in public when it comes to a woman.

The beast in me studies her, and with each passing moment, her smile grows wider.

I watch her as she heads to the bar while her friend remains hypnotized by her phone. I bet if the place exploded, it would take her half a minute to realize she was left alone among the ruins. That's how absorbed she is in the screen in front of her while my future target waits patiently at the bar to be served.

I stand up abruptly, ignoring Niko, who's telling me about a shipment that arrived safely in England, but his voice fades as my steps carry me toward her.

I spot her silhouette and have to hold myself back. Those jeans should be illegal - doesn't she realize what kind of attention she's drawing? Every lowlife in here is probably undressing her with their eyes.

The women I usually entertain could've walked off magazine covers, but this one? She's different. Tall, yeah, but with curves that would make those runway models weep with envy.

Some guy - built like a brick wall, about my height - starts moving her way. I lean against a pillar, watching their little dance. The moment he steps toward her, her whole body goes rigid. Interesting. Sure, the guy's intimidating, but her reaction...that's not normal. That's learned behavior.

Something dark shifts inside me when I catch the fear in her eyes. As if I needed another reason to be fascinated by her - that look just threw gasoline on an already dangerous fire. I watch her grab her drinks and bolt from the bar like she's running from death itself, completely ignoring the mountain of muscle beside her.

He doesn't take the rejection well. The moment he starts after her, my body moves on pure instinct. I can't hear what he's growling at her, because of the music, but I see those meaty fingers wrapping around her delicate wrist, threatening to snap it.

How fucking dare he touch her? Touch what's mine?

I shove that last thought aside and cut through the crowd, every step calculated.

The guy's wasted, and yeah, maybe I shouldn't start something in a packed restaurant. But that look of pure terror on her face hits something primal in me, unleashes a rage I can't bottle up. I don't bother with warnings - just grab the bastardby his collar. When he turns, I make sure to give my fist enough room to rearrange his face.

Between the punch and all that tequila in his system, he goes down hard. Alfonso's gonna have my head if I wreck these tables - his precious imports from Guadalajara. But he'll live. Consider it durability testing.

"Learn to take a hint when a woman's not interested, pal," I tell him, feeling the fury radiating from me.

Control yourself, Roman. Stay in control.

It’s the same mantra I've chanted since losing my parents, the one that's kept me breathing all these years.

But my demon's already loose, hungry for more violence. My foot finds his ribs - and by 'finds,' I mean I feel them crack under my shoe. When I turn back to her, she's staring at me like I'm something from her nightmares.

"Are you alright?" My voice comes out softer than intended.

I reach for her shoulder instinctively, but she backs away like I'm made of fire. The rational part of me gets it - after what that piece of garbage just pulled. But my darker half? He's fighting for control, desperate to touch her, to make sure she's whole. Still, with that animal whimpering on the floor behind me, I know better than to push it.

“Luna! Oh my God, are you okay?" Her friend's voice could shatter glass, but I can't tear my eyes from her face.

She's studying me, trying to work out why I stepped in, what angle I'm playing. Something about the way she looks through me - like she can see past all my carefully constructed walls - it throws me off balance. Maybe that's just my beast trying to justify this growing obsession with her.

"I'm fine," she says with that same empty smile that never touches her eyes.

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