Falling for the enemy || 18+

CHAPTER 8 : PREY

I had many parties like this before-grand, luxurious gatherings where power was displayed in the form of designer gowns and tailored suits, where everyone smiled but their eyes held secrets and unspoken threats. But tonight was different. The tension in the room was palpable, and I knew why.

Eryx Cancio.

I had heard his name whispered in dark corners, always with a mix of fear and fascination. He was the son of the family my father had destroyed, the one who had risen from the ashes with a vengeance. I had spent years wondering what kind of man he was, picturing someone cold, ruthless, maybe even broken by the loss of his family.

But when I finally laid eyes on him, he was none of those things.

I saw him the moment I walked into the room. He was standing near the bar, his broad shoulders tense, his sharp eyes scanning the crowd like a predator sizing up his prey. He was tall, easily the most imposing figure in the room, dressed in a sleek black suit that looked like it was made for him. His dark hair was pushed back, and his jawline was sharp enough to cut glass.

For a moment, I couldn't help but admire him. He was handsome, dangerously so, with an intensity that drew attention without him even trying. But there was something about the way he carried himself, a kind of controlled anger that simmered just beneath the surface. It was clear he didn't belong here, not in the same way the others did. He wasn't playing the game of fake smiles and forced charm.

He was here for something else.

I took a deep breath, trying to shake off the strange feeling that settled over me. I couldn't afford to be distracted by him, not tonight. This party was a show, a stage where alliances were on display, and my father had made it very clear that my role was to be seen and not cause trouble. Eryx Cancio might have been intriguing, but he was still the enemy, the man who had every reason to hate me simply because of my last name.

As I moved through the room, pretending to be interested in shallow conversations, I felt a shift in the air. When I looked up, my eyes locked with his.

And in that instant, everything around me went quiet.

He was watching me, his gaze dark and intense, as if he was trying to figure out what I was doing here, standing in the same room as him. I couldn't read him-not fully-but there was something in his eyes that made me pause. Not just anger or bitterness, though I was sure those were there too. No, it was something else. Something like curiosity, or maybe even surprise.

I straightened, holding his gaze, refusing to be the one to look away. I wasn't going to be intimidated by him, no matter what stories I had heard. My father had raised me to be strong, to never show fear, even when the walls were closing in.

Eryx started walking toward me, his movements slow, deliberate. The room seemed to shift around him, people parting as if they instinctively knew to stay out of his way. He stopped a few feet in front of me, his eyes never leaving mine, and for a moment, I felt the weight of who we both were. Two people on opposite sides of a battlefield, bound by history and blood.

"Bianca De Luca," he said, his voice low and rough. There was a dangerous edge to it, a darkness that sent a shiver down my spine.

"And you must be Eryx Cancio," I replied, forcing my voice to stay steady.

He nodded, his gaze still piercing. Up close, he was even more striking, his features sharp and almost too perfect, like he had been carved from stone. I hated that I found him attractive. It was infuriating. This man was everything I had been warned about-dangerous, unpredictable, driven by a need for revenge that had consumed him for years. I had no business being intrigued by him.

He took a step closer, and my pulse quickened, though I did my best not to show it. "What have you heard about me?" he asked, his tone daring me to speak the truth.

I raised an eyebrow, refusing to be rattled by his presence. "Enough."

His lips curved into something that wasn't quite a smile, more like a challenge. "I'm sure your father had plenty to say."

I tilted my head, studying him. There was something about the way he spoke, something that told me he wasn't just the cold-hearted killer people had made him out to be. But I wasn't about to let myself be fooled by whatever charm he thought he had. "And I'm sure you've heard things about me too, Eryx. What stories have you been told?"

He paused, his eyes narrowing slightly, and for a moment, I wondered if I had struck a nerve. But then he leaned in just a fraction, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Not enough."

I didn't flinch, didn't pull back, even though his presence felt like a storm waiting to break. I wasn't sure what I had expected from him, but it wasn't this-this strange tension between us, this push and pull that neither of us could quite define.

He was watching me, waiting for something. What, I wasn't sure. Maybe he was testing me, trying to see if I would back down, if I would crumble under the weight of his presence. But I wouldn't. I had been raised for moments like this, to stand strong no matter who was in front of me.

Still, there was something unsettling about the way he looked at me. It wasn't just anger or hatred. It was something more dangerous, something I couldn't quite place.

"You know," I said quietly, my voice cool but steady, "I'm not the person you want to face tonight, Eryx."

His eyes darkened, but there was a flicker of something else-something that almost looked like understanding. He wasn't used to being challenged, not like this. Not by someone who wasn't afraid of him.

"I'm not here for you, Bianca," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "But that doesn't mean I'm not paying attention."

There it was again, that unspoken tension, the feeling that we were standing on the edge of something neither of us had anticipated. But I couldn't afford to be distracted by him. Whatever he thought he saw in me, whatever he was hoping to find, it didn't matter.

I wasn't going to fall into his trap, no matter how attractive or intriguing he was. He was still Eryx Cancio, my father's enemy, and I knew better than to trust anyone in this world, least of all him.

I straightened my spine and gave him a small, cold smile. "Then you'd better keep watching."

And with that, I turned and walked away, feeling his eyes on me the entire time.

Attractive or not, Eryx Cancio was still the enemy. And I wasn't about to forget that.

I walked towards the table and took a whiskey.