Chapter 293

Nico shoved a forkful into his mouth, chewing mechanically; silence stretching between us for a minute had me thinking I must have hallucinated his question.

Picking up a napkin, he dabbed the side of his lips, then placed it beside his plate before looking up at me for the first time since I arrived at the dining area.

"Elena,"

Quite different from the way he had called my name from the last few nights, I swallowed hard. The half-chewed food had me praying I didn't choke, not here, not right in front of him.

"You stopped eating," I could see his fingertip drumming against the table, "What did you say you wanted to do at La Belle again?"

I forced my mouth open, but my damn voice still came out with a croak, "Char called me over, and uhh..."

"I called your office," his voice remained collected. At this point, he wasn't looking at me anymore, had his eyes on the plate while the chair felt hot against my ass, "Joey said he hadn't laid his eyes on you, and a