Page 98 of Ruin Me With Lies

“Green…it’s your color,” he says, voice rich and low, a tone he’s never used with me before.It slides down my spine like silk, leaving a trail of shivers in its wake.“You should wear it more often.”

“Eh.”I feign indifference, even as my pulse spikes.“I’ll stick to my nondescript rags.We can’t have you getting any more obsessed with me than you already are.”

One corner of his mouth kicks up in a jagged smile, eyes darkening with something I feel in the pit of my stomach.“Why do you dress to hide?”

“Because I’m a simple girl.Not an attention-loving narcissist like you.”

“Simple,” he repeats, almost to himself.Followed by a light scoff.“I’ve run background after background on you, certain your story was all bullshit.But…” He pauses, gaze sharp.“Ask me what I saw when you walked out with Wendy earlier.”

The flutters in my stomach stills in anticipation… “What did you see?”

“Royalty,” he breathes.“You knew all along how to shine.You just choose to keep it hidden.”

He pulls me in.Flush against him.So close I feel the heat of his breath against my mouth.His head dips, lips a whisper away from mine, his voice a velvet snare.“Tell me, little liar.Who are you really?What are you hiding?”

My heart is thudding so hard, it drowns out the music.“Overthinking creates delusions,” I return, damn near breathless.“You should give your brain a break every now and then.”

His fingers find my spine, bare and exposed, and begin a slow, deliberate ascent.Featherlight.Torturous.Awakening every nerve ending in my body.

“Swear to God…” he rasps, his dark gaze roaming every inch of my face.“You make me so—”

He stops himself.Just like that, pulling the moment tight, taut, before snapping it.

“Let’s go,” he says, voice suddenly cool again.“Our guests are here.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Raya

DINNER WITH THEKOREANS—two animated brothers and one stone-faced uncle—is long, loud, and fun.

At least, for me.

The brothers’ passionate love for food reels me in like a fish on a line.They’re expressive, joyful, and endlessly entertaining, which only seems to further irritate both Stefano and the openly unimpressed Uncle Kim Hwan.

The brothers and I hit it off immediately, gabbing about restaurants we’ve visited and exotic dishes we’ve tried on our travels.They pull out their phones to show me photos and videos of extravagant meals.One even pulls up a clip of himself weeping over the perfection of a truffle ramen in Tokyo.We laugh until we wheeze, then go on to order nearly everything on the menu.Each dish is treated like an episode of a food competition show, with us pretending to be stern, pompous, cutthroat judges and assigning ridiculous scores for flavor, plating, and “mouth feel.”

Stefano is sparing with his words all throughout, observing with a cool, unreadable expression.While the uncle emanates pure negative “I hate being here” energy.

But I’m having a blast.

By the time we’re exiting the restaurant two hours later, the brothers and I are pleasantly stuffed and bubbling with post-meal bliss.

“As long as your lovely adviser is around, I think we will get along very well,” one of the brothers says to Stefano, flashing a grin.“She’s adelight!”

Stefano’s smile is polite, distant.“Ah, that she is.I don’t know what I’d do without her.”

My head whips in his direction, brows lifting.Oh?

The other brother chuckles.“Appais going to love her.This was good.We will meet again in a few days and get the ball rolling.”

“Looking forward to it,” Stefano replies, firm and diplomatic.

Strange.Given the reason for tonight’s dinner, he’s unusually reserved.Stefano Castello is many things, but reticent in business isn’t one of them.He’s acloser.Extremely sociable when it comes to business.Warm when he needs to be, smooth with a joke and a glass of whiskey.An expert at sealing strong business relationships.

Is he just not vibing with these men?Or is there something else?

Each of the brothers bow slightly, placing gentlemanly kisses on the back of my hand.I return the gesture with a courteous half-bow.