Riley sat with her hands folded neatly in her lap, watching Daniel. When the waiter came, Daniel ordered for both of them without glancing at the menu, his voice a flat, disinterested monotone. "We'll have the steak, medium rare, and the salmon salad," he said, dismissing the waiter with a wave of his hand. The young man, sensing the strange tension at the table, scurried away.
The silence stretched, becoming heavy and awkward. Riley, desperate to fill it, leaned forward slightly. "Daniel," she began, her voice soft and hesitant. "If you wanted to eat here, why didn't you get a private room? We could have at least had some privacy away from… all this." She gestured subtly around the cozy, bustling restaurant, her nose wrinkling almost imperceptibly.
Daniel's eyes, which had been fixed on a point across the room, flickered back to her for a second. "I felt like eating here," he said, his tone offering no further explanation.
He's trying to show me off, Riley thought, a warm flutter of pleasure replacing her confusion. He wants to be seen with me, even in a place like this. Satisfied with this reasoning, she fell back into her patient silence.
When their food arrived, she brightened, picking up her fork with delicate precision. A soft, sincere smile touched her lips as she looked at Daniel. "The tour in Valoria was simply divine," she began, her melodic voice warm and full of feeling. "But being away made me realize how much I missed home. I missed our grandmothers, and the comfort of being near family." Her expression grew thoughtful, a faint hint of nostalgia in her eyes. "So I've decided to come back to Edrilda for good. Though I must confess," she added with a light, tinkling laugh, "it all feels rather new to me. So much has changed. I can't even remember the places or much of anything from growing up here anymore. That's truly why I wanted to come back—to really stay and find my home again."
Daniel said nothing. He was watching Lina. Her food had arrived, a simple bowl of pasta, and she was eating with a contented focus that made his jaw tighten. She looked so carefree, so innocent, so utterly happy with her cheap meal in this shitty restaurant. It pissed him off. She shouldn't get to be that way—not after everything. His expression darkened, a cold, icy mask settling over his features as he watched her enjoy a moment of peace he was determined to shatter.
Riley, misreading his dark silence as deep interest, gently swirled the wine in her glass before taking a small sip. "I've decided to start my own production company here," she said, her voice soft and sweet. "I want it to feel fresh—all glass and light, you know? Nothing stuffy or old." She set her glass down, looking at him with gentle, hopeful eyes. "I'll need to find just the right location, though. I was hoping... perhaps you could help me look? Everything has changed so much, and I've always valued your taste more than anyone's."
Daniel just said "Hmm." He wasn't really listening.
Riley took his quiet hum as a good sign, a small, hopeful smile touching her lips. "I don't really know any areas anymore," she admitted softly, her tone light and slightly helpless. "Every neighborhood seems so new and unfamiliar to me." She looked at him with trusting, earnest eyes. "That's why I only feel comfortable if you help me, Daniel. I know I'll be in good hands, and wherever you suggest will be just right."
"Hmm"
"I even have a name for it. 'Ley's Records'. It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"
Daniel didn't answer. He was too busy watching Lina laugh softly at something on her phone. The simple, happy sound, though he couldn't hear it, seemed to amplify her ease, and it felt like a personal provocation. His fingers tightened around his fork. He couldn't fucking stand seeing her so content.
Riley finally noticed his food was untouched. "Daniel? Is everything alright? You haven't touched your food."
He blinked, as if coming out of a deep, dark thought. "I'm fine," he said, his voice a low gravel. "Just not hungry." But his attention was immediately stolen again, his gaze returning to Lina with a chilling intensity.
"Daniel? Please, you must eat something," she coaxed, her voice dripping with sweet concern. "You'll waste away."
Just then, Lina stood up and headed toward the restroom. Daniel's face settled back into its usual impassive mask. He pulled his phone from his pocket, his thumbs flying over the screen for a few seconds. He sent a single text, a cold, satisfied smirk playing on his lips as he hit send. He slipped the phone back into his pocket, and as if a switch had been flipped, his mood seemed to lighten. The icy anger dissipated, replaced by a calm, almost cheerful demeanor. Almost. He picked up his fork and finally began to eat.
Riley beamed internally. He's listening to me. He's eating because I asked him to. He does care. "So, you'll help me then?" she pressed, her voice full of sweet hope. "With the property search?"
"Hmm," he said, but this time it was accompanied by a slight, almost imperceptible nod. To Riley, it was a resounding endorsement.
Lina returned from the restroom. She gathered her things, ready to leave. Suddenly, a woman's angry voice shouted: "You! I'm talking to you, you little slut!"
Lina kept walking. The voice was unfamiliar and couldn't possibly be meant for her. She didn't think the woman was talking to her. But then the woman grabbed her wrist, yanking her backward. Lina stumbled, turning in confusion.
The strange woman didn't wait for an explanation. "This is her!" the woman shouted to the room, her voice ringing with theatrical fury. "Everyone, look! Look at this bitch who thinks she can sleep with married men!" She turned back to Lina, her eyes blazing. "I've seen the texts! The dirty pictures!"
The restaurant, which had fallen silent at the first shout, now erupted into a low buzz. Forks hovered mid-air. A few people in the back, sensing a spectacle, already had their phones out, screens glowing as they started recording. The woman, feeding off the attention, grew louder.
"Think you're young and pretty so you can have any man you want?" she sneered, her voice dripping with venom.
Lina, utterly bewildered, could only stammer, "I-I don't know what you're talking about! I don't know you! Or your husband!"
Her denial seemed to incense the woman further. "Liar!" she shrieked, and before Lina could react, the woman's hand swung through the air, landing a stinging, open-handed slap across her face. The sound was like a gunshot in the quiet room.
A wave of gasps and murmurs swept through the crowd.
"Look at her, playing innocent," a woman at a nearby table muttered to her friend, her voice laced with disgust.
"These young girls of nowadays have no shame anymore," another hissed, not even bothering to lower her voice.
"Get it on video," someone else whispered excitedly. "This is going viral."
Daniel watched the scene unfold, the smirk returning to his face, wider this time. It was all going perfectly.
Riley, disturbed by the vulgar noise, finally glanced over. She saw the scuffle, the screaming woman, and the younger one trying to shield her face from the phone cameras. She sighed with profound disdain, turning back to her plate as if swatting away a gnat. "This is the sort of unpleasantness one expects in a place like this," she murmured, her honeyed voice now cold and dismissive. Then she saw Daniel's expression. He was smiling. A real, genuine smile. Her heart melted. He's smiling at me, she thought, and she smiled back, a shy, adoring look, completely misreading the source of his amusement.
"Is the noise making you uncomfortable?" Daniel asked, his voice now smooth and attentive.
"It's too loud," Riley admitted, preening under his perceived concern.
"Then let's go." Daniel stood up, throwing a few large bills on the table. Riley was overjoyed. She quickly stood and hooked her arm through his, clinging to him as they moved toward the door.
They were passing the epicenter of the commotion. The crowd of onlookers had grown, forming a loose circle around the crying Lina and her furious accuser. Daniel stopped. "Riley, go wait for me in the car. I'll be right there."
She just nodded, giving him a shy smile before gliding out of the restaurant, oblivious to the human wreckage she was leaving behind.
The moment she was gone, the air around Daniel seemed to change. The crowd, recognizing him, instinctively parted like the Red Sea. The well-dressed woman, who had been about to launch another verbal assault, froze mid-sentence. Her eyes widened as she took in the imposing figure of Daniel Thorne walking calmly into the center of her chaos.
Daniel raised his eyebrows, that cold, amused smile still plastered on his face. "Am I interrupting?" he asked, his voice a low purr that carried through the silent room.
No one answered. They all just stared, the accuser's confidence evaporating under his gaze.
He looked from her to Lina, who was holding her stinging cheek, her head down. She was unaware of Daniel's presence, but he saw her—this picture of humiliation—and his smile grew wider as he held her in his gaze for a long, terrifying second.
He shrugged, a gesture of utter boredom. "Don't stop on my account," he purred, as if granting a favor to subordinates. "You may continue."
With that, he turned on his heel and walked out. The crowd parted for him without a sound. Just as the door began to swing shut, Lina's downcast eyes caught a fleeting glimpse of black leather shoes stepping out of the restaurant. But she ignored it, her attention seized by the furious, excited whispers that were now rising around her—harsh, unkind words that were not meant to be quiet. She didn't hear him speak; she only heard the crowd. To her, the black shoe belonged to just another bored watcher, or simply someone passing by. She was left completely alone in the circle of strangers, the weight of their judgment more crushing than the slap had ever been.