Page 11 of Harvest Maze

I had no idea what came over me.

No, that was a lie. I knew damn well what was going on. He was gorgeous. He was here because I asked him, and his focus was zeroed in on me. I never felt more alive.

“Well?” I asked, my voice huskier than normal.

Demyan stared at the cup. He stared at me. “Well, what?”

I gave him what I hoped was a friendly smile, but I could just as easily have looked like a lunatic. “Do you like it?”

“I’ve never had coffee before.” He spun the cup thoughtfully between his fingers. “I thought coffee was supposed to be bitter?”

A vicious delight surged through me. “Oh, my word! Do you know what this means?”

Those midnight blue eyes flicked up at me, making me gasp with the intensity of his gaze. “What?”

“I popped your coffee cherry!” I beamed. It was funny. It was supposed to be a joke.

But I would never know if he was going to smile back because at that minute, the spawn of the devil barged into the café, took one look at me, and barked, “Ivry! You didn’t answer your phone.”

Giuseppe Ravello might own most of the businesses in town, running them while his brother ran the assassin’s guild, but whereas Lucian had tact, this Ravello was a bull.

“Gio, there are customers,” I reminded him tightly.

Giuseppe barreled over, a pissed off look on his face.

My neighbor was out of his seat, glaring into the face of the underboss.

The amount of testosterone spraying from these two created a toxic cloud. They were the same height, both exuding a killing energy.

“You don’t talk to her that way,” Demyan snarled.

I raced around the table and put my hands on the tourist before he did something stupid. Like hit the don’s brother.

“It’s okay, big guy. He’s just my annoying younger cousin. No need to bite his head off, though he probably deserves it,” I added in a stage whisper to lessen the tension.

Giuseppe glared at me. But he wisely took a step back and began to roll up the sleeves of his flannel shirt. “Lucian’s looking for you.”

“I’m working,” I ground out through clenched teeth.

The underboss arched a brow. “So what?”

“So, you need to leave,” Demyan barked.

While I appreciated the newcomer’s concern, because it was nice to have someone stand up to the Ravello brothers on my behalf for a change, I also didn’t want him to ‘disappear’ in the woods. Hiking accidents happened all too often when Giuseppe was involved.

“It’s okay,” I said, running my hand up and down Demyan’s arm.

Madonna santa, those forearms are like rocks!

“Does Lucian need me to make a house call or can I handle it remotely?” I hedged.

Giuseppe took one look at Demyan and smirked. “I’m taking you to the manor.”

I knew in that moment that it was probably a minor incident. Something I could do on my laptop while sipping hot cider. But Giuseppe was an ass, and this was his way of getting even with the hulking tourist.

I sighed. “Let me grab my bag. I’ll meet you in the truck.”

Giuseppe looked like he wanted to argue.