Chapter 191 JUST DINNER.
\~~~LUCIANO.
I stood by the door of the kitchen, my arms crossed over my chest, leaning against the frame as I watched Raina move around the space. The chefs were busy chopping vegetables and stirring pots, but my focus stayed on her.
She pointed at a mixing bowl here, tasted a sauce there, her voice steady and sure.
For the first time since the hell with Marco and Talia, she smiled at other people who weren’t me. A real one that crinkled her eyes and brightened her face. It hit me like a warm wave, easing the knot in my gut.
“I think we should make chocolate cake also," she said to the head chef, her tone light. “My sister-in-law likes it.”
The butler, holding a tray of ingredients nearby, chuckled. “You just said vanilla and red velvet were okay, ma'am.”
Raina scrunched her nose in that cute way she had when she was playing around. “I think I am the one craving the chocolate cake,” the kitchen filled with laughter, warm and easy, echoing off the tiled walls. Even the sous-chef shook his head, grinning as he grabbed a bag of cocoa powder from the shelf.
I couldn't stop the smile spreading across my face. It grew wider as I watched her, my heart swelling with relief. She was loosening up, coming back to me bit by bit. The woman I loved, the fire in her eyes flickering alive again. It made everything we'd endured feel worth it, just for moments like this.
Earlier that day, she had come to me in the study, her hand on my arm as she suggested the dinner. “We need to have people over,” she'd said softly.
“Just the close ones. Gabriel, Alessia... Viktor. To thank them properly.” I'd agreed right away, no second thoughts. Anything to see her engage, and to pull her out of the isolation that had wrapped around her since the hospital. Planning this had lit a spark in her, and now, watching her direct the kitchen like it was her domain, I knew it was the right call.
As night settled in, the clock hit quarter to eight. Raina had gone upstairs to get ready, and I followed soon after, loosening my tie in the mirror. When I stepped into our bedroom, she was slipping into a short dress that clung to her curves perfectly. A deep blue, elegant with a hint of playfulness. She turned her back to me, lifting her hair. “Zip me up?”
I moved close, my fingers grazing her soft skin as I tugged the zipper up slowly while enjoying the feel of her warmth.
“You're acting as if we're having more than three people over,” I teased, my voice low.
She met my eyes in the mirror, sparkling with mischief. “Well, a hundred or three, what exactly is the difference?” She leaned in, her hands reaching up to fix my collar, her touch light and familiar.
“Ninety-seven?” I tilted my head, sliding my arms around her waist, pulling her back against me.
“Oh, shut up,” she giggled, turning in my hold to loop her arms around my neck. The sound of her laugh wrapped around me, chasing off the last bits of tension from the day.
I leaned down, pressing my lips to hers, soft at first, then deeper, savoring the sweet taste of her. When we pulled apart, I murmured against her mouth, “You look so ravishing tonight.”
“Right?” She drew back a little, her cheeks pink. “I've been wearing just pajamas these past weeks. I look like I'm going through hell. How were you able to put up with that?” We both laughed.
“Sunshine, you look hot as fuck in anything,” I said, my hands resting on her hips.
“Even in those pajamas? Those oversized ones?”
“Especially those ones, baby.” Her laughter bubbled up again, bright and genuine.
“If you had said otherwise, I'd have killed you,” She smacked her lips playfully and rose on her toes to kiss me once more, her body fitting against mine.
“Uhm…” She broke away, chuckling softly. “Time for dinner, hubby.”
I groaned in pretend annoyance but let her tug me toward the door, my hand settling on the small of her back.
The house buzzed with life tonight, warm lights glowing, and the scent of roasting meat and fresh bread drifting from below.
Raina had poured herself into this, and it showed. It was her way of taking back some control and shaking off the grip of what had happened.
We reached the foyer as the front door swung open. Gabriel walked in, right on time, his grin broad under the chandelier. “I guess I am the first here,” he said, waving his hands with a dramatic flourish.
“I knew you'd be first,” I replied, clapping him on the shoulder.
Raina added, “Viktor doesn't come off to me as someone who would want to be present at such a gathering.”
Gabriel laughed, shaking his head. “That's not true.”
“We both know that,’' I added, keeping it light.
“I hope he'll be here, in fact,” Raina said.
Viktor had been rock-solid through it all, loyal to a fault. But social stuff like this? He stuck to the edges and handled the shadows while we pretended to be normal.
Gabriel started to reply, but a voice interrupted from the doorway.
“Do you usually badmouth people behind their backs?”
We all turned. And there she was, Alessia, standing at the entrance but she wasn’t alone.
My eyes shifted, slowly and deliberately to the man beside her, Viktor.
Their arms were linked together, not loosely, or casually but firm and intentional like they belonged there.
Gabriel raised his brows, glancing between them and then at me.
“I thought we were having just dinner tonight.”
I breathed out slowly, nodding. Guess who is tired of hiding behind the shadows now?
A small smirk tugged at the corner of my lips, but I didn’t let it grow.