Semua Bab Wanted By The Mafia Lord; Attracted to the Bad Boy Nextdoor : Bab 71 - Bab 76

OCTAVIA'S POV My eyes met Aaron's from across the room, and the buzz, the murmurs, and the quiet conversation—all of it faded to the background. He was leaning casually against the back wall, arms crossed over his broad chest, his face, as usual, was unreadable and stoic, as though nothing in the room interested him. But then, his mouth quirked ever so slightly into the faintest hint of a smile. I blinked, taken aback by the subtle change in his expression. Something flickered in his eyes, something very similar to...pride? Approval? Whatever it was, it made my heart race. For a moment, it feels as if the weight of the day has lifted; I don't feel the stares of the people looking at me; I feel at ease. I held his gaze, the corners of my lips tugging upward instinctively. The room and everyone in it blurred into insignificance, and for a fleeting moment, it felt like it was just the two of us in the world. Wait! What was that?I broke the eye contact, looking around the room to make

OCTAVIA'S POV The first thing I remembered when I woke up was Zion's text from yesterday; I had completely forgotten to reply to his message after I got home. The sunlight streamed through the curtain, and I checked the clock on the wall, and it was already past nine am. I didn't know I still slept in till this late; it's been a while. I blinked and sat up, rubbing the drowsiness from my eyes, and groaned as I stretched out across the bed. I grabbed my phone from the bedside table, and I opened my messenger app and saw the text. I started typing a reply, "Good morning, Zion. I'm sorry I didn't," I deleted the whole thing and decided to give him a call instead. I took a deep breath, dialed his number, and pressed the phone to my ear. The dialed twice before he picked up “Octavia?” Zion’s familiar deep voice came through, and my heart squeezed slightly; hearing his voice stirred up a mix of emotions. We have spoken properly since… well, since things fell apart between us. "Hi," I

CTAVIA'S POVEvery person we passed as we walked by stopped what they were doing, and nodded their heads in respect to my father. Lionel walked ahead with his usual commanding presence, and I followed closely, Aaron walked silently to my left like an unshakable shadow, while Mikel trailed slightly behind. It was hard not to notice the curious, borderline scrutinizing stares of everyone. They weren’t even trying to be subtle. I told myself it wasn’t personal and held my head high not betraying my nervousness. I'm just an unfamiliar face in a world where everyone is practically like family. But still the whole attention made my skin prickle, and this is just the start, I almost laughed to myself. The man leading us, he is a huge man and he had a complicated tattoo that covered his arms and part of his jaw, he was the one that welcomed us and he seemed to be the head of the warehouse. His eyes kept darting to me, and I'm not sure if it is just in curiosity. Either way, it made me want