The Guest
Kieran’s POV
I knew I should be happy that we’d finally addressed the elephant in the room, but for some strange reason, that feeling never came. I tried forcing it, but it still wasn’t natural. I was troubled, and I couldn’t place my finger on it as to why I felt that way.Còntens bel0ngs to Nô(v)elDr/a/ma.Org
After Sabrina’s apology, everything quickly went back to normal. We were back to our old selves, almost like we had been speaking to each other in the last few days. It was surprising how quickly we fell back into our old ways. Apparently, I’d missed out on a lot of tea circulating around the mansion. Since Sabrina had some sort of authority over the house, she was the first to know about even the tiniest details.
Usually, it was the other way around but reverse was the case for Sabrina. The moment Xander excused himself from my room, we started talking. Our laughs and talks didn’t end till late in the night and before Sabrina left, it had come to my knowledge that one of the maids in the mansion was in a relationship with one of the guards that manned the front gate. I found it hilarious because most times, they were usually at each other’s throats.
When Sabrina had left my room, I took that as a sign that all of my troubles were over, until a knock interrupted.
“Hi.” I’d opened the door to see the Alpha standing on the other side. The moment I laid my eyes on him, I felt my breath hitch in my throat immediately. “Hi.”
“Can I come in?” Xander asked, a small smile on his face. I mentally facepalmed myself as I pushed open the door further just so he could come in.
An awkward silence settled between us as he stepped into the room. Involuntarily, I found myself staring at everything else in the room asides the man in front of me.
“I’m sorry about Sabrina.” Xander suddenly spoke up, cutting me out of my thoughts. ” I had no idea…”
“It’s fine.” I nodded. “It wasn’t your fault and we already settled it right? So it’s all in the past now.”
“Yes, yes.” Xander chorused. “And one more thing, next time don’t try to run whenever you’ve obviously been caught.”
“What?” Heat rushed up to my cheeks immediately. I hung my head low, praying that my hair was doing a good job at concealing the pink hue that has tinted the sides of my face. “I don’t understand…”
“I heard you by the kitchen the other day, Kieran.” Xander sounded amused. “Sabrina too. And I definitely saw you running up the stairs.”
“Well..” I drawled. There was nothing else I could say, he had caught me red handed and apparently, he was enjoying every bit of it. “What if it was a case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time?”
“I highly doubt that.” Xander laughed, and I found myself smiling along with him. It was a rich and hearty laugh that sounded like angels in a symphony. If I had my way, I would play it over and over again until the sound was etched permanently into my brain.
Another round of awkward silence filled the room as his laughter slowly died down. Goosebumps lined the surface of my skin as I felt his eyes rake over my body I sank deeper into my clothes as I suddenly became more self conscious than ever.
“Kieran.” His voice was a breathless whisper. “If you ever need anything, you know you can tell me right?”
Yes. I wanted to speak up. Not only that, I wanted to let him know how uncomfortable I was that someone else would be joining us in the mansion tomorrow. Couldn’t he just pick one of the maids he already had?
If he couldn’t do it, then Sabrina would. All she had to do was pick one of the maids. It would literally be the same thing as a promotion right?
Right. Then problem solved.
I nodded slightly, still unable to look him in the eye. A huge of dejavu hit me square in the jaw. This had happened before. Well, not entirely, but something related to this.
Was he going to try to kiss me again? The very thought of it was thrilling to say the least and I was sure Sabrina had retired to bed, so there would be no distractions or interruptions this time.
“I should let you have some rest.” If only Xander knew how he’d shattered one of my fantasies, maybe he would have taken his words back. “Goodnight, Kieran.”
“Goodnight, Alpha Xander.”
……….
I shook my head, willing the memories of last night to leave my mind. It had been on replay since I woke up, and I was beginning to get tired. Well, I wasn’t tired of the last part though.
It was late in the afternoon and I was hungry, so I headed straight to the kitchen. The moment I got to the door, something caught my eye. Or more accurately, someone.
A tall and slender woman stood in the kitchen, her back turned towards me. I didn’t have a good view of what she was doing, but I couldn’t help but feel she was up to something. Slowly, I tip toed into the kitchen and only when I’d gotten closer to her, did I let out a scream.
“What do you think you’re doing?” A loud yelp slid past her lips as something slipped from her hands. A loud clang filled the room and it took me a while to realize she’d just dropped a knife. ” Who are you?” I asked.
“What the hell?” She mouthed, a hand to her chest. I watched as her chest heaved up and down, her breaths coming out ragged and uneven. “Who are you?”
“Who am I?” I scoffed, sarcasm lacing my voice. “You’re asking me? I should be asking you.”
“No.” She shook her head, an air of defiance all around her. Jet black hair cupped her face, just stopping short above her shoulders. Her brown eyes held nothing but indifference under the few strands of hair that covered her forehead. As she fumed, I continued my scrutiny downward. A cream colored shirt hugged her upper body, with a navy blue suede skirt hugging her tiny frame. To top it all off, she had a pair of black shoes to match. “I don’t have to answer to you.”
“Yes you do.” I nodded. “You better tell me who you are..”
“Or else what?” She cut me off immediately. “What are you going to do?”
“You’re a spy aren’t you?” I pointed a finger at her. The signs were glaringly obvious. The uniform, the knife, the haughty attitude and the fact that I hasn’t seen her before. “If you don’t tell me who the hell you are right now, I’m going to call security and you’re going to regret it…”
“Do your worst.” She smirked, further infuriating me. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was about to do, but before I could raise so much as a finger, someone walked into the kitchen.
“Alice?” Xander called, causing the stranger lady to turn towards him. The moment she did, a huge smile made its way to her face. “You’re here.”
“Good afternoon, Alpha Xander. ” Without so much as a glance, Alice sidestepped me, before walking towards Xander. “I only arrived a couple of minutes ago.”
“Welcome.” The Alpha was all smiles. Immediately, he turned to me. “Kieran, meet Alice. She’ll be in charge of the maids in the mansion from now on.”
The maid. I totally forgot. As I stared at the woman in front of me, my stomach churned. There was something not right about her. Perhaps it was the way she stared me down, or the flirty looks she was sneaking at Alpha Xander while he wasn’t looking.
Whatever it was, everything translated into one thing. I didn’t like her. Not one bit.