The Forbidden Bond

chapter 4 his eyes on me

Elara pov

The café smelled faintly of burnt coffee and cinnamon bread, the kind of mix that usually soothed me, but today it only made my stomach twist tighter. My hands trembled as I cleared a table, the damp cloth slipping against the wood.

I had thought the morning rush was over. I had thought he wouldn’t come back.

But there he was.

Damian Hale.

The youngest billionaire CEO in the country. The man the news called ruthless, untouchable, dangerous. The man who had entered this cafe yesterday like a storm, and for some unexplainable reason, had looked at me as if I wasn’t just a waitress in a wrinkled uniform but… something else.

I tried not to look, but my eyes betrayed me, flickering toward the back corner where he sat alone. A black suit hugged his broad shoulders, expensive and sharp, as if the fabric itself feared to wrinkle. His tie was loosened just enough to reveal the strong lines of his throat, and his watch—worth more than my entire life—glittered under the dim light.

And his eyes.

Dark, unreadable, they were fixed on me.

Every time I lifted my gaze, even for a second, I found him watching me like a predator deciding whether to pounce or wait.

“Elara,” my manager barked from behind the counter. “Table six. Move.”

I nearly jumped. With a shaky breath, I forced myself to walk over. My sneakers squeaked against the floor, and I hated how loud it sounded, how weak it made me feel.

When I reached his table, my voice betrayed me with its tremor.

“Would you… like to order, sir?”

Damian leaned back in his chair, studying me with a slow, calculated gaze that made my skin burn. He didn’t answer right away, just let the silence stretch until I wanted to sink into the floor.

Finally, his lips curved—not quite a smile, more like a warning.

“You remember me.”

It wasn’t a question.

“Yes… I mean—of course. You were here yesterday,” I stammered.

“And you ran away from me.” His tone was lazy, but his eyes sharpened.

My heart slammed against my ribs. “I—I had work—”

“Lies don’t suit you,” he interrupted softly, almost gently, but the chill in his voice made me swallow hard. “I don’t like being lied to, Elara.”

Hearing my name from his lips felt like a forbidden secret being spoken aloud. My breath caught, and my fingers tightened on the notepad I held, as if that thin piece of paper could anchor me.

“How… how do you know my name?” I whispered.

His smirk deepened. “I make it a point to know the names of things I want.”

I froze. Things. Not people. Things.

The air thickened, and for a terrifying moment, I thought he would reach for me right there. Instead, he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table, his voice dropping lower, meant only for me.

“Sit.”

I blinked. “I—I can’t, I’m working—”

“I don’t recall asking,” he cut in, his tone edged with steel. “Sit.”

My body betrayed me before my mind could resist. I pulled out the chair opposite him and lowered myself into it, my pulse thundering in my ears. My manager’s glare burned into the back of my head, but for some reason, he didn’t dare interrupt.

Damian’s gaze swept over me, slow and deliberate. Not lustful, not yet—it was more dangerous than that. Like he was peeling back layers, seeing every secret I didn’t want anyone to know.

“You live with your adoptive family, don’t you?” he asked suddenly.

My eyes widened. “H-how do you know that?”

He tilted his head slightly, amused by my shock. “I know more than you think.”

Tears prickled at the corners of my eyes, humiliation flooding me. I hated how exposed I felt under his stare, like he had reached into my chest and yanked out my heart just to examine it.

His hand moved, and I flinched before realizing he was simply sliding a card across the table. A black card. Sleek, heavy-looking. His name printed in silver.

“Call me when you’re ready to stop pretending this little life is enough for you.”

My breath caught. My trembling fingers refused to touch the card.

He smirked again, leaning back as if the conversation was already over. “Don’t make me come looking for you, Elena. You won’t like how I take what I want.”

Then he stood, towering over me, his presence suffocating. Without another word, he walked out, leaving me with the card burning a hole on the table and my heart still thrashing in my chest.

I didn’t know whether I was terrified… or drawn to him.

Maybe both.