Chapter 12

TWELVE

O live's heart raced as she stepped into the dimly lit Italian restaurant, the scent of garlic and herbs enveloping her. Chaos's hand rested lightly on the small of her back, guiding her, and she could swear she felt the heat of his touch even through the fabric of her dress.

"I hope you like Italian," Chaos murmured, his breath tickling her ear and sending a shiver down her spine.

Olive turned to him, a smirk playing on her lips. "Are you kidding? I'm pretty sure pasta sauce runs through my veins instead of blood."

Chaos chuckled, the deep sound making Olive's stomach do a little flip. "Good to know. I'll remember that for future reference."

Future reference? Olive's mind latched onto the phrase. He was already thinking about future dates?

The ma?tre d' led them to a secluded corner booth, and Olive slid in, hyper-aware of Chaos settling in beside her rather than across from her. The proximity was both thrilling and unnerving.

"So," Chaos said, his hazel eyes intense as they locked onto hers, "tell me more about yourself, Olive."

"I am the chairwoman for my family's charitable foundation. That's my full-time job and I absolutely love it. For fun, I do romance vlogging."

"What made you decide to become a romance vlogger?"

Olive took a sip of water, buying herself a moment to collect her thoughts. "Well, I've always been a hopeless romantic at heart. Even after..." She trailed off, then shook her head. "Let's just say, life tried to beat the romance out of me, but I'm stubborn."

Chaos's brow furrowed slightly. "Someone hurt you," he said. It wasn't a question.

Olive shrugged, trying for nonchalance. "Show me someone who hasn't been hurt and I'll show you a unicorn." She paused, then added with a wry smile, "Though given recent revelations about shifters, maybe I should rethink that metaphor."

That startled a laugh out of Chaos, his eyes crinkling at the corners in a way that made Olive's heart stutter. "Fair point. But I hope you know not all men are like that."

"Oh, I know," Olive said, her tone light but her eyes serious. "It's just... hard to let my guard down sometimes, you know?"

Chaos nodded, his expression understanding. "I get it. Trust isn't easy to come by, especially in our circles." He hesitated, then added, "That's part of why I've been single for so long. It's hard to know if someone wants me for me or for my money and status."

Olive's eyebrows shot up. "You? Single for long? I find that hard to believe. I mean, look at you." She gestured vaguely at his... well, everything.

Chaos grinned, a hint of wickedness in his eyes. "Like what you see, Ms. Russo?"

"Oh, shush," Olive muttered, feeling her cheeks flaming. "You know you're hot. No need to fish for compliments."

"Maybe I just like hearing them from you," Chaos replied, his voice dropping to a low rumble that made Olive's toes curl in her heels.

She cleared her throat, desperately searching for a change of subject. "So, um, what about you? Why have you been single?"

Chaos's expression turned thoughtful. "Honestly? I hadn't met anyone I truly clicked with. Not until..." He trailed off, his eyes boring into hers with an intensity that took her breath away.

Olive's heart pounded in her chest. This was moving so fast, but it didn't feel wrong. It felt... right. Scary, but right.

"Until?" she prompted, her voice barely above a whisper.

Chaos leaned in, close enough that Olive could see the flecks of gold in his hazel eyes. "Until recently. Very recently. The intensity of my attraction for this stunning woman is hard to understand."

Olive's breath caught in her throat. Part of her wanted to run and protect herself from the intensity of what she was feeling. But a larger part, the part that still believed in true love and happily ever afters, wanted to dive in headfirst.

"That…can be daunting," she said, her voice shaky. "And terrifying."

Chaos's hand found hers under the table, his touch gentle but grounding. "I know. And I want you to know, Olive, that I'm not going to push you. We can take this as slow as you need. I just... Don't overthink it and instead give it a chance."

Olive looked at their joined hands, then back up at Chaos's face. She thought about Gerri Wilder, about the knowing twinkle in the matchmaker's eye when she saw Olive at the gala. Had Gerri known this would happen? Olive was almost positive she had somehow engineered this intense, immediate connection between them. But how?

"Okay," Olive said finally, a small smile tugging at her lips. "Let's give this a shot. But fair warning - I come with a lot of baggage and a tendency to overthink everything."

Chaos grinned, squeezing her hand. "Bring it on. I happen to be excellent at heavy lifting."

Olive groaned, rolling her eyes even as she laughed. "Oh god, was that a muscles joke? I might have to rethink this whole thing if you're going to subject me to puns."

"Too late," Chaos said, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "You're stuck with me now, Ms. Russo. Terrible jokes and all."

And as they fell into easy conversation, punctuated by laughter and lingering glances, Olive found herself thinking that being stuck with Chaos Amato might not be such a bad thing after all.

Olive took a bite of her caprese salad, savoring the burst of flavor from the ripe tomatoes and fresh mozzarella. "So, Mr. Tech Genius," she said, gesturing at Chaos with her fork, "tell me more about what you do. And please, dumb it down for us mere mortals who think coding is some kind of secret language."

Chaos chuckled, his eyes lighting up with enthusiasm. "Well, at its core, we're working on revolutionizing the way people interact with technology. Imagine being able to control your entire smart home with just your thoughts."

Olive's eyes widened. "Seriously? That's... wow. Although, I'm not sure I want my house knowing what I'm thinking. It might judge me for binge-watching trashy reality TV at three in the morning."

"Don't worry," Chaos said with a wink, "we'll build in a ‘judgment-free' mode just for you."

Olive laughed, shaking her head. "My hero. But really, that's incredible. You must love what you do."

Chaos nodded, his expression softening. "I do. There's something exhilarating about pushing the boundaries of what's possible. Creating something that could change people's lives for the better."

"I can see why," Olive said, genuinely impressed. "It's like... writing a book, I suppose. You're creating whole new worlds, just with circuits and code instead of words."

"Exactly," Chaos agreed, looking pleasantly surprised by her analogy. "Speaking of books, what's the last great one you read?"

Olive paused, considering. "Oh! There was this book called Toxic by Milly Taiden that I picked up recently. I wasn't sure about it at first – it's not my usual type of romance – but it ended up being amazing."

"What's it about?" Chaos asked, leaning forward with interest.

"It's this dark romance about a woman who gets involved with this dangerous, powerful man," Olive explained, her hands moving animatedly as she spoke. "At first, you think she's this like innocent girl, but as the story goes on, you realize they're kind of perfect for each other. There's this intense, dark attraction, and it's just... weirdly hot. It's got some pretty steamy scenes and a lot of tension."

Chaos raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing on his lips. "Weirdly hot, huh? Should I be worried about competition from dangerous, powerful men?"

Olive felt her cheeks heat. "Oh, stop it. Unless you're hiding some secret dark past under that fancy suit, I think you're safe."

"Well," Chaos said, his voice dropping to a low, teasing rumble, "I do turn into a giant cat sometimes. Does that count as dangerous and powerful?"

Olive nearly choked on her wine, caught between laughter and a sudden, intense wave of attraction. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but... maybe?"

They both burst into laughter, the tension breaking. As their giggles subsided, Olive found herself marveling at how easy this felt, how natural. She couldn't remember the last time she'd clicked with someone so quickly.

"You know," she said, twirling a strand of pasta around her fork, "when Gerri Wilder said she'd find me my perfect match, I didn't exactly expect... well, you."

Chaos tilted his head, curiosity flickering in his eyes. "Oh? And what did you expect?"

Olive shrugged, a hint of her earlier vulnerability creeping back in. "I don't know. Someone safe, I guess. Predictable. Not a super-hot tech billionaire who turns into a lion and makes me laugh so hard I almost snort wine out my nose."

"Super-hot, huh?" Chaos grinned, clearly latching onto that part of her statement.

"Oh, hush," Olive said, rolling her eyes even as she smiled. "Don't let it go to your head. Your ego's big enough as it is."

"Can you blame me?" Chaos asked, his expression softening as he gazed at her. "I'm sitting here with the most beautiful, intelligent, and funny woman I've ever met. A man's allowed to feel a little proud of that."

Olive felt her breath catch in her throat, overwhelmed by the sincerity in his eyes. "Chaos," she said softly, "I... I'm not used to this. To feeling this way. It's a lot."

Chaos nodded, reaching across the table to take her hand. "I can definitely understand that. But I need you to know, I'm not going anywhere. A shifter knows when he meets the right woman."

The weight of his words hung between them, heavy with promise and possibility. Olive looked down at their joined hands, then back up at Chaos's face. She thought about all the romance novels she'd read, all the love stories she'd swooned over in her vlogs. None of them had prepared her for this – for the real thing sitting across from her with hazel eyes that seemed to see right into her soul.

"This is scary," she said finally, a small, brave smile tugging at her lips. "I guess we can see where it goes. But fair warning – if you ever leave the toilet seat up, I reserve the right to sic my romance viewer fanbase on you. They're surprisingly vicious when their favorite vlogger is wronged."

Chaos laughed, the sound rich and warm. "Duly noted. I'll be on my best behavior, Ms. Russo. Wouldn't want to risk the wrath of the romance readers."

As they continued their meal, trading stories and jokes, Olive felt something unfurling in her chest – something that felt a lot like hope, and just maybe, the beginnings of love.