CHAPTER-10

LENA

One month has passed since that shooting incident, and one month has passed since I started working for Alarik. Oh my god! He is a workaholic to his very core. That guy does not leave his office at all. Only once a week does he have dinner with family; otherwise, he eats breakfast, lunch, and dinner in his office. He is either at the company's office or at home.

He does not rest on weekends; not only that, he thinks that since I am living in his house, I am available at any time. That guy is a monster when it comes to working. He never spares any mistakes his employees make. I watched four people being fired, which he made me do. I have to accompany him in every deal he makes, from proofreading to contract-making to civil cases. He works me to the bone.

Not only that, I never find him with any women, and he never leaves his office until he has gone to meetings. Now I understand why he never contacted me; I mean, that guy never even came to his wedding. If this goes on, I will die from overworking. That just proves my plan A is not going to work.

On the other hand, his family, especially Mary, never stops questioning my background. Sebastian sometimes joins in with the interrogation. Sebastian is someone I never understand. One time he will flirt with me, and the next he will start questioning me. They ask me about my mom and how she died, where I lived after she was gone, or why my father is not in my life. One time I really thought I got caught, but thanks to Clara, they left me alone.

Clara and I are turning out to be good friends. We went shopping together. From her, I got to know many things about this family. I learned Victoria is on a world tour for charities she participates in, so she is not going to be here for at least four more months. She also hinted that Alarik is married.

They are aware of the marriage. When I asked her where his wife was, she said she was with Victoria on tour. From her behavior, I don't think she lied, but I was with her, not on the tour.

Did Victoria lie about me to the family? Is this why none of them contacted me? I never pressed for more questions to avoid seeming suspicious. I feel like something in this family is not right.

Everybody is a liar, or they are being lied to.

Listening to the car sounds at three-thirty at night, I just decided to go for a night walk. I watched Alarik, Richard, and Sebastian, among a few other people, get out of the car. They are all covered in blood. Alarik is completely submerged in blood. His white shirt is not white anymore but red with blood. His hair is dripping with blood, and that is definitely not his blood. All the others do not appear to be this vile. Even his footsteps leave an imprint of blood. I don't know what happened tonight, but I don't want to know either.

My heart is beating rapidly. I have seen blood before at my mother's accident. Watching Alarik like this just confirms I cannot live with this man as his wife. I could not imagine my future with this man. I am afraid if he finds out about it now, what will be my punishment? Working with him, I can tell he is a man without mercy.

Grabbing a bottle from the kitchen, I decide to shorten my walk and go to sleep. Someone grabs my shoulder from behind. I flinched, but my reflexes worked faster. I grabbed the imposter's wrist to twist it.

I gasp; the imposter is none other than Alarik. His hair is dripping wet, his chest is exposed, and all he is wearing is a towel around his waist. He must have taken a shower. He is so close to me again. I can feel his breath and smell his shower gel and oranges; he smells like oranges. My body is forcing me to swallow down something, and if I do, he will know how much effect he has on me.

"Are you going to continue grabbing my hand?" I let go of his hand that I had clutched reflexively and tried to step back, but I was standing in front of the fridge. If I step forward, I will touch his chest. I don't want to do that after watching him covered in blood.

"Can you move aside? I have to go back to the room," I try, but Alarik is still intensively staring at me, and I am doing the same. I am not breaking eye contact until he steps aside.

"Sebastian told me you have had trouble sleeping here for the past month. You are here; can I ask why?" He questioned. He is aware I am having trouble sleeping in this mansion of his.

Although I can't tell him the real reason that I feel someone is watching me, even in sleep, I can feel eyes on me. I tried to find cameras in my room but didn't find anything. I tried to search this house one night, but Sebastian caught me and told me never to go to the third floor of the mansion; only those with permission can go. It is odd, though, only the third-floor elevator and stairs have security guards. But one time I saw Alarik going to the third floor, and his room was on the second floor, along with his office and mine on the first. Sebastian's room is on the second floor too. Clara and Richard are with me on the first floor. While I didn't find out the room of Mary and Penelope since they don't talk to me that much,

"Yes, after that incident and suddenly moving into a stranger's house, I do not feel comfortable." I gave him half the truth.

"You don't have to be afraid anymore. I took care of those masked people tonight." He killed them; all that blood was from those masked gangsters.

He is telling me he brought home some groceries. I keep my expression blank, but I feel like he is closer than before. Should I thank him?

"Well, thank you. I will move out as soon as possible. I will give you rent for this month, Mr. Andressano, or you can cut it from my salary," he chuckled, like I joked. I can feel his chest vibrating with laughter.

"You always surprise me, Ms. Mathews. But do you think I care about some measly room's rent? I never said you could move out too."

Yes, he is right. This man is filthy rich, and why did I even say that? Now my face is hot with embarrassment. I turn my face away from him so he can't see me turning red. Wait... not move out?

"Why couldn't I move out? Now that I am not in danger, I don't think it is appropriate for me to live here any longer." Alarik did not answer, his eyes boring into mine.

When I turn my face away, not wanting to feel the weight of his stare, Alarik grabs my chin to face him. "You can try to find a place to move, but I assure you, you won't get far. You are safer here, and I prefer having you where I can keep an eye on you."

"I'm not your responsibility, Alarik. I can take care of myself," I retort, pulling my face away from his grip.

He leans back slightly, his expression softening yet remaining intense. "It's not about responsibility, Ms. Mathews. It's about ensuring your safety. After what happened last night, I can't let you leave."

"But I don't want to impose, and I don't want to stay where I'm not welcome," I argue, my voice trembling slightly despite my attempt to sound resolute.

Alarik's eyes narrow, his jaw tightening. "You are not imposing. And as for being welcome, I think you misunderstand the situation. You are far more involved in this than you realize. Leaving now would put you at greater risk, and I won't have that."

His words hang heavily in the air. The intensity of his gaze makes my heart race. "What do you mean, involved?"

"There are things you don't know, things that are too dangerous to discuss openly. Keeping you here isn't just about protection; it's about keeping you informed and safe from further harm," he explains, his tone firm but carrying a hint of concern.

"I don't like being kept in the dark," I say, my voice softer, but the determination still evident.

"Stay here, at least until we can ensure that the threat is completely gone."

Our noses are touching now, and his right arm is resting on the fridge beside me. We are in an intimidating position right now. The kitchen is dimly lit. I can only see his dark grey eyes, and he is definitely listening to my rapid heartbeats. I make a move to turn.

Instead, he stretched out and barely touched me with the tips of his fingers at the sides of my neck. The touch is light, gentle, something you could hardly even call a touch, nevertheless, it made my spine tingle. Before I could form a reply, his hand shot forward and clamped itself around the back of my neck, pulling me in.

We seemed to be the only two people in the world when his lips met mine. The kiss was a surprise while at the same time it was also a perfect fit. My first shock transformed into a confusion of feelings such as sexual desire, passion and finally. His fingers pressed rather firmly into the muscles of my neck but not enough for me to burst out of his grasp, even though I tried.

I am also not pushing him away. I think he stopped thinking because his right arm grabbed my head from behind, and I willingly met his lips too. This kiss is not like the one I had before. It is passionate. Time seemed to stand still as I was lost in the moment. I could feel my worries and fears melting away in his warm embrace.

Our kiss deepened, fueled by a passion that had been building between us. My arms wound around Alarik's neck, pulling him closer as I melted into his embrace. Every touch and every caress sent shivers down my spine, igniting a fire within me that threatened to consume us.

For a moment, we are lost in our own little world, where nothing else matters except the kiss we are sharing. As we finally broke apart, we were breathless and exhilarated. However, Alarik decided to go for a second kiss. I am so lost in his lips that he is now giving me small kisses on my neck. I am trying not to moan out loud. Our bodies are touching each other. I am not wearing underwear, so his hand under my t-shirt can feel my...

Wait, realization suddenly hit me. What was I going to do? I pushed Alarik away with all the strength I could muster. He hit the kitchen counter behind him from the impact. He groans, but his towel slips to the floor, and I can see everything.

I started running before he realized I had pushed him. I didn't look back; I locked myself in the room. What did you just do, Lena?