Aurora thought hard about what she was told by her sister that morning, all the way to work. She felt as if her head was about to explode any minute. Still, she was unable to make sense of anything.
Maybe she was overreacting. The situation couldn't be that bad. But by just thinking about the disappointed look that masked Violet's face, she knew her sister didn't take the situation lightly.
She felt horrible because men never ran from her after she introduced herself. On the other hand, she envied her sister for even having the ability to let men run from her naturally without her having to find alternatives to scare them off. Thus, she wished she were in Violet's position since she didn't want to be in a relationship.
She was still left in the dark about Violet's situation. She could tell her sister was hiding something from her. But she couldn't stick around any longer to find out what it was. She had to ensure she arrived at work early to get her creepy and perverted boss off her back.
Aurora was never a woman that got scared easily but her boss gave her the creeps. She couldn't help but think about what he tried to do to her the previous day. He had tried to place his filthy lips over hers. She couldn't feel more disgusted than she was. Bile rose in the back of her throat and her heartbeat became defining to her ears. Her feet felt like jelly as the neat board shop came into view. She was never a girl who was scared of anything, she wasn't scared of her boss. But the mere fact of entering the shop made her have second thoughts. She wanted to turn around and head home but she couldn't bring herself to.
She had to remember she was doing this for her ill mother. Ella was out of medication and she couldn't bear to see her endure any more pain. Her thoughts were interrupted by the squeaky sound of carriage wheels approaching behind her. She pushed her feet to move faster as the carriage neared her. She didn't need to turn around she already knew who was behind her.
The carriage slowed to a steady pace as it caught up to her. She pulled the wool tighter around her shoulders and took big steps that would have normally matched three of her small strides. The wind picked up strands of her hair and threw them in her eyes making it difficult for her to see.
"Howdy malady!" Fredrigo sticks his head through the moving carriage window. "Are you in a rush?"
Aurora looked over at him with a scowl embedded on her lips. Her grip on the wool got tighter as she pushed her burning legs to move further.
"Are you blind?" Came to her humorless response.
He laughed it off as if he was told a silly joke. The air whipped his curly blonde hair around and turned his pale skin a shade of pink. "Did you like the flowers?"
Aurora glared over at him causing him to gulp. When she didn't respond he pressed her buttons a little further.
"That's understandable. I will get you prettier flowers next time."
Aurora had neither the strength nor the time to deal with Fredrigo. But she wanted to tell him straight up that she wasn't interested. But before she could open her mouth to speak, Fredrigo instructed his butler to speed the carriage up. She watched as the carriage raced off into the distance. A smirk plastered over his cherry lips as he started in her direction before he pulled his head through the window.
"What a gentleman." She muttered under her breath. He didn't have the decency to ever offer her a lift to work. Not that she would accept it but at least she would have seen him as a caring person other than hallow.
His only charm was to deliver flowers to girls' doorsteps. Aurora wondered how many women he offered flowers to. Not that she cared about his love interests. She wanted to get rid of him for good. She couldn't have him deliver flowers to her home anymore. He was only making her life more difficult. Now that Violet thought men were running away from her she didn't want her to feel worst about herself.
She had to figure out a way to get rid of Fredrigo once and for all. Knowing Ella all too well, she would force her to marry him. There was no way in hell she would submit to a man. The day she committed to a man was the day her corpse lay six feet under the earth.
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She burst through the shop entrance and wiped the beads of sweat that formed on her forehead with her handkerchief. She looked around for her employer and released a breath she didn't know she was holding. She tied an apron around her waist and her messy hair into an even messier bun. She took a step backward colliding into someone. A gasp left her lips when she noticed who she accidentally bumped into.
"You are late again." His voice was toneless. He started at her with his piercing eyes that burnt holes through her body. His stares made her feel naked even though she was fully clothed.
"My sincere apologies, sir." The words felt bitter as they rolled off her lips. She didn't mean any of them which resulted in them sounding more like a statement than an apology. She hated the fact that she had to suck up to the moron standing in front of her after what he did. But in no way she would get any rights if she reported him. She would only be looked down on by the people. of her village.
"Are you trying to be funny?" His voice was cold and his chubby face was everything beyond friendly.
"N-no, of course not, sir." She stuttered out.
"Good." He circled her his expression changed and resembled a hungry man. His eyes were misty as he stared down at her lips. "I do hope you are prepared to work overtime throughout the storm that is about to brew tonight."
Was he hearing himself or did he bump his head? Not only was it a full moon but there was also going to be a storm and he wanted her to work through it. What if something bad happened to her?
He walked closer to her she took big steps backward until her back hit the wall. A smirk found it's way to his lips. She just wanted to punch him in his chubby face. But she didn't, she couldn't do it. Not this time, she had Ella. She was only doing this because of her and no one else.
"There are are other alternatives." He brushed the back of his hand against her arm. " Such soft skin you have."
"Too bad no one will ever marry a girl like you with a messed up family background.
She ground her teeth together as anger coursed through her vain. Why did everyone blame her family for what happened to them? Being as smart as she was she didn't know what happened either. She had no blue what her employer was trying to say and she didn't want to either because she feared she wouldn't be able to process the piece of information properly.
"I don't want anything that you have to offer." She gritted out knowing his evil intentions towards her.
"Are you sure about that because the last time I checked I had the upper hand here!" He barked at her. " I will not take no for an answer. you will be my..."