Christina’s POV
At 6 pm, just as I’d heard the maids discussing, a knock sounded on my door, and I had no doubt they were here to buff and doll me up for Scott’s coming. But I had other plans of my own.
“You may come in,”
Surprisingly, it was only the young maid I’d seen around Monica that was there. She strolled into the room, bearing a stoic expression.
“I’m here to prepare you for the young master’s arrival, ma’am,” she said in a tone stripped of all kindness, unlike Monica. It was the first time she’d be attending to me without the older maid giving her direct orders. Seeing how young she was, it calmed my nerves and made me believe I’d be able to communicate with her and get her to do my bidding as she must understand my predicament.
“Umm… that won’t be necessary,” I spoke, wringing my fingers in my lap but her annoyed gaze instantly cut to mine and she made no move to hide her displeased expression.
“I’m sorry, ma’am but I have orders to prepare you for the young master’s arrival and I take my job very seriously,”
For a moment, I stared at her, thinking of the right way to communicate my wish to her understanding.
“I’m sorry, I don’t wish to get you in trouble or anything. I’d just like to know more about Scott before we begin,” I drew in a deep breath but she huffed, rolling her eyes but at least, she wasn’t prompting me to do her master’s biddings anymore and I counted that as a little win. “You must know I’ll be living here for a while until I can bear him a child and it’s hard, throwing away my entire life to conform to this, but I’ve decided to make it work and If I’ll be staying here for a while, the least I could do is to get his favor and try to get his kindness so my life wouldn’t be a living hell,”
“Again, ma’am, I work strictly on his commands and I have no idea how I can help you,” her words came out in a bored tone but I chose to ignore it.
“I understand that. I only want to know how to please him. I assume you’ve been working here for quite some time and you must know some tricks?”
“I’d tell you right now, to give up on your plans, Ms Bell. The young master is not a man to be easily pleased and I must admit, it’s bold of you to think you, a mere surrogate would be able to please him,”
“I may be a mere surrogate but it’d make things easier if he’s at peace with me. Now if you don’t mind, could you tell me his likes and dislikes? You must know some as his servant,” I threw in that last bit to remind her of her status and I loved the way her face contorted with fury but I bit down on my lip to hold off my smile.
I disliked nasty people and I know I’d never get along with her. Maybe Monica was the best person to have had this discussion with. But anyway, I wasn’t going to give up until she gave me something to work with. Scott would be home soon and I needed to get started with my plan to save myself tonight.
“If you insist, Ms Bell, I’d have you know that the young master doesn’t show his likes and dislikes to commoners like me, but I’ve noticed two. The first one, he hates the smell of cinnamon and the second one, he hates being touched.”
The urge to scoff at his ridiculousness was strong but I resisted. He disliked being touched but had no problem doing that to me in my vulnerable state, without my consent. His arrogance was disgusting.
The maid kept staring at me with an expectant look to let me concede to her master’s orders but I rose to my feet.
“Thank you, and you don’t have to worry about preparing me for his arrival. I’ll do that myself and groom myself properly for him, but firstly, I have a little surprise for him,”
Ignoring her, I left for the kitchen.
Monica was surprised to see me there and so were the others_two chefs and another man I hadn’t seen but he was dressed like a butler so I assumed he was one.
“You shouldn’t be here, Ms Bell. The young master would be home soon,” Monica said, coming to me while the Butler spoke to the chefs in low tones, instructing them on what to prepare for dinner and how to set the table before Scott’s arrival but I interrupted him.
“That won’t be necessary,”
“Ma’am?” the butler called with raised brows but I smiled sweetly at him, strolling past Monica to the center of the large kitchen. The place was a chef’s dream and I had no doubt that the chefs were having the time of their life, working here.
“I want to prepare his dinner just for today, as a little surprise. Surely, you wouldn’t take this pleasure from me, would you?”
His eyes darted to Monica and I followed his gaze to see she was still staring at the scene, a bit dazed with surprise and uncertainty.
“N-not at all, ma’am. As you wish,” he returned his attention to the chefs and clapped his hands once. Just like that, they filed out of the kitchen, leaving me there to do my bidding and I did so with a joyful heart.
It was an hour later when Scott arrived, still dressed in his custom-tailored business suit. He walked into the dinning room and handed his briefcase to the butler, who scurried away with it but it seemed he didn’t notice me initially because when his eyes finally landed on me, he paused, his gaze darkening, eyes narrowed to slits and his brows pinching together.
I saw the surprise in his eyes but as soon as it had appeared, it disappeared, and amusement took over. His lips tilted in a smirk and he took a seat. His eyes traveled to the younger maid who’d attended to me earlier, his brow raised in question and but then he looked away.
“You must be hungry, Mr Reid,” I spoke, forcing a smile and he appraised me with that amused expression that had my heart racing. I had no idea what was going through his mind but I only hoped he wouldn’t be suspicious of my plans. He came off as a very smart man. “I wanted to surprise you and show you that I could be civil and honor our arrangement so I prepared dinner,”
“I see,” his words came out in a low calculative drawl, that only spiked my anxiety.
I nodded to the servant and she served us. At first, he stared at his portion and dug into it but instead of eating, I watched him from my peripheral vision, as he tasted his first spoon of the food that I made with a generous amount of cinnamon. My eyes darted to the servant but her eyes were on him, with a sinister smile curving her lips. I was ready to witness his outburst, and my heart rate increased expectantly but then nothing came. Instead, he was eating quietly, chewing each portion delicately. After a few spoons, he even washed it down with wine. I was becoming impatient at this point, waiting for him to react but he didn’t. I glanced at the servant, my annoyance visible on my face but her eyes were still on him, and she was no longer smiling. Instead, her expression spoke of her surprise, her brows knitted together in a frown. My gaze returned to Scott again and I began pondering:
Was he pretending to enjoy the meal so as to not make a scene or was he truly enjoying it?
While I was still lost in these thoughts, his eyes suddenly met mine and I quickly looked away, pretending to be more interested in the food.
“I appreciate your kindness, Christina, but next time, do not bother yourself with preparing my meal. Chefs have been hired to take on this duty and I’d like to keep it that way,”
His words weren’t what I was expecting but I nodded in acceptance and continued eating while fuming with my failure and disappointment. It was just my first task but I’d miserably failed at it. But then I remembered the words of the maid. He hated being touched and it was the perfect time to act on that.
Without second thoughts, I discreetly slipped my foot from my slippers and stretched it underneath the table, until my big toes grazed his pants. From the corner of my eyes, I saw him paused, his fork stopping close to his lips but then he wrapped his lips around it and continued eating like nothing happened. But it excited me that it was working. Hence, I continued, believing he’d soon have enough of me and dismiss me for the night.
Again, I rubbed my foot on his leg, gently tracing it from his foot up to his knee but then suddenly, his cutlery clattered to the floor and his face tensed in a hard unreadable expression. I gulped as my eyes widened and I met the servant’s gaze, who was smiling smugly.
Have I easily achieved my aim?
But my assumption was wrong because in the next instant, I was dangling over Scott’s shoulder as he marched out of the dining room, heading up the stairs.
“You little minx, you messed with me first,” he growled in a deep guttural tone that had my heart slamming hard against my ribs.
Scott’s POV.I wasn’t expecting what I met when I returned from work but it seemed the woman was back to her senses and had decided to do things the right way and it pleased me. I’d hate to force her to honor the contract but she was making it easy on me.She wiggled against my shoulder, rubbing her perky ass on my cheek and out of reflex, my palm landed on her ass, delivering a hard slap to it. An audible gasp escaped from her lips as I got to the top of the stairs and she stilled her movements but uttered no words. A smile of approval slipped onto my face. I was pleased with this docile side of her.I arrived at her bedroom and closed the door behind me before tossing her on the bed, while hovering over her with my eyes staring into hers. She stared at me with wide eyes filled with surprise and uncertainty, her lips parted and her legs spread out before me. Her long auburn hair was splayed on the white beddings of the mattress, her soft creamy skin calling to me to taste it. She loo
Christina’s POVThe soft rays of the morning sun streamed into the bedroom through the opened window, cascading over my exposed back and I began to rouse from my sleep.A low groan rumbled from my chest as I turned onto my back, my eyes slipping open to take in my environment. I must have slept well into the day because everywhere was lit with the sunlight and I had to squint my eyes to avoid its assault.I stretched my battered limbs on the bed and another groan fell from my lips. My body was annoyingly sore as though I’d engaged in a tiresome exercise the previous day but my night could as well be described with such terms. Thinking of it had me shuddering but then I felt my core quiver and my lower stomach curled tightly, a tingling sensation shooting up my spine as the memories of Scott’s assault flashed through my mind. Despite my resistance and my actions to keep him away for the night, he’d taken me and he didn't show any mercy while at it, but my body had betrayed me, much to
Christina’s POVLong after Adams left, his words were still ringing in my head.A smile of amusement swept across my face and I shook my head at the butler’s words. If he thought I meant anything to his master other than a sex toy, then he was so wrong. Scott could never see me as a respectful woman again. I was sold to him by his debtor to bear an heir to his empire for him. No man would develop feelings of love towards such a woman. The only emotions he could develop for me are those of pity but he was too pompous and high-handed to care about my well-being. As long as I was healthy enough to fulfil my father’s end of the contract, then that was all that mattered.Deciding to ignore his comment, I settled on my bed to eat the food Anna had brought because I was sure he was bluffing or acting out of line by assuming Scott would take me to a banquet as his plus one.Later that day, I was on my bed reading a psychological thriller novel I’d gotten from Scott’s home office when a knock
Christina’s POVI stood still, watching her strut away as my heart shattered to pieces. It felt like a cold bucket of water had just been dumped on me.She was Scott’s fiancee and I’d been sleeping with him but how could he do that to her? Why drag me into this mess? Was he that shameless?Asides from the reality that Scott had deceived me to get me in his bed, my heart hurt for a different reason that was entirely foreign to me. The truth that he wasn’t a bachelor and I was just his plaything crashed into me making my heart constrict painfully. Maybe I’d allowed myself to read too much meaning into Adams’ words that they got into my head.Memories of our evening before we arrived at the banquet flashed before my eyes. So his reaction to my appearance was all a facade? He didn’t mean any of the words he said because surely, he wouldn’t think twice about me when he had such a beautiful woman as his fiancée. Just as she said, I was merely his arm candy. Anger surged through me, burning
Christina’s POV It was almost ten minutes later when Scott finally descended from the stage and headed toward me with purposeful strides. All eyes were glued on us and I forced myself to smile bitterly while nursing my anger on the inside. Getting to me, he pulled out the empty chair beside me and took his seat, before gently taking my arm and placing it on his legs with his fingers laced to mine. Rage flooded my bloodstream as I remained quiet, faking a smile while wondering what the monster was up to. He’d successfully pushed me farther into a brighter and bigger spotlight than the one Jenny had started with. What was his aim in lying to a room full of people? To keep me from escaping? I was still seething with a clenched jaw when the woman beside me suddenly nudged my shoulder with hers and when I turned to acknowledge her, she had a polite smile on her face. “You’re a lucky woman, Christina,” her smile widened and I forced myself to return it, with my cheeks hurting from how wi
Scott’s POVAfter scolding her in the car on our way home from the banquet, I was sure Christina knew her place and wouldn’t question my actions and decision regarding her henceforth. That evening, I cleaned up, and went to her bedroom, dressed in my bathrobe as I’d just gotten of the shower.Between being the host of the banquet, and striking up business deals with possible investors, I was tired and craved the comfort of my bed. Yet, the thought of checking on the woman kept assailing my mind. As much as I wanted to put her in her place, I think I may have gone too far. I’d been tired and frustrated and the moment she began yelling at me and stepping out of line, I heaped my frustrations on her.I walked towards her room with the sole intention of checking on her but on opening the door, I saw she was seated on the bed, still dressed in the dinner dress that accentuates her curvy figure, hugging her like a second skin and leaving nothing to the imagination. I drew in a deep breath,
Christina’s POVThe pain of the gashing wound in my neck ricocheted through me and I clenched my teeth to hold off the cry that was threatening to slip free as my unwavering gaze remained on my captor. His hardened gaze was locked on mine and I could feel the rage emanating from him but I managed to keep my act together. He needed to understand that I wasn’t just a puppet he could toy with. I was a human with emotions and he’d have to treat me with respect. But then, the more I stared into his darkened eyes, the more I wondered if my act was even getting through his thick walls.What if he didn’t care about my life? I mean, I was nothing more than a plaything to him with the extra bonus of bearing him an heir. What if he let me kill myself and move on with another victim? He could even dispose of me and no one would be aware. After all, my father has sold me to him.These thoughts swarmed my mind and the hand that was holding onto the scissors began quivering. Yes, I wanted to end my
Christina’s POV Instant anger surged through me the moment I heard the butler’s words. ‘Who the hell does he think he is to assume I’d bow to his will and stroke his silly ego?’ Scott Reid has all but shown me different versions of his personality disorder which has only helped in strengthening my hatred for him. He was the kind of man that would do anything to hurt people all because he can’t get them to lick his feet and worship him on his high horse and truly, I’d rather die than be one of his worshippers. “You can tell him to suck up his inflated ego and shove it up his ass for all I care,” I gritted through clenched teeth, ignoring the little discomfort I felt in my chest from when I’d hastily swallowed the remnants of the snacks I’d been eating just to hide them from the butler. “If he thinks I’d fall to his feet all because he’s stopped you from feeding me then he must be a sore loser.” I stared Adams hard in the eyes, not caring to hide my disgust that he was actively taking