Page 51 of Devoured


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“What happened between you two?”

“We dated but we were teenagers. She’s a friend of Lucy’s and has chased me forever. I was never really that interested, but Lucy wanted me to take her out, so I did. It was brief, and I broke it off before she could think we were going somewhere with it. I’m pretty sure she was more interested in my family name than me.”

“I think she hates you.” She gives a low, slow whistle. “If looks could kill.”

“I know.” I rub the knot in the back of my neck, tension tightening my muscles. “Trouble is coming, Peyton.”

“Trouble?”

“Trouble in the name of Aurora, Lucy, Maria, Emma and Bianca.”

She leans toward me, clutching her napkin. “You think she’s going to tell your sisters?”

“Is she on her phone?”

She looks over my shoulder and grimaces. “Yeah, looks like she’s texting.” I shake my head, my appetite gone as Peyton wrings her cloth napkin. “Want to get out of here?” Peyton asks.

“Only if you do.”

“Why don’t we get our food to go and eat at the park. Somewhere private?”

“Okay.” I call the server over and tell him our change of plans. Ten minutes later we’re walking the downtown streets and heading to the park for a picnic. My phone has been going off in my pocket for the last five minutes, but I just ignore it. I can’t answer them until I figure out what it is I’m going to say. We grab a seat at a picnic table, and I hand Peyton her take-out container with her penne chicken. I settle in beside her and I dig into my ravioli as she stabs a piece of pasta.

With her fork halfway to her mouth, Peyton says, “You’re going to have to answer them, Roman.”

“I know, but I’m going to need a full stomach for the wrath that is about to come down on me.” She nods and my mind races as we eat in silence for a few more minutes. The sun dips lower in the sky, and the streetlights begin to flicker on.

“This food is delicious,” Peyton says, breaking the quiet.

“I know, right? That’s why it’s my favorite.”

She lifts her head when a family of four saunters by. A smile touches her mouth. “Your family has other properties here in Malta?”

I nod. “I have some really fond memories from my childhood here.”

Her smile widens and she sets her fork down and pushes her container away. “That’s so nice.”

“Come on, let’s walk.” I gather up our trash and dump it into a nearby garbage can.

We head down the street, busy with tourists, and pass by all the lovely outdoor cafés. We stop by an alleyway and I gesture with a nod. “This is my old stomping grounds. Right there, that’s where I lost my virginity,” I tell her with a smirk.

Her brow arches. “Really?”

“Yup.”

“Romantic.”

I laugh at that. “I was seventeen.”

Her arm slides through mine as we walk, and I’m not even sure she realized she did it. Being together like this is just so natural for both of us. “Young.”

I give her a wink and hold her tighter. “She was eighteen.”

“Ooh, a cougar,” she teases, and I laugh, leading her to the walkway along the bay. We stop and stare out at all the boats bobbing in the water. She inhales, breathing in the salty air, and lets it out slowly. “I love it here.”

“I do, too,” I say, and give her a little bump with my body.

“What made you stay in the States when you could have this every day?” she asks, and waves her arms around.

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