Esmeralda stood rooted to the ground. Unblinking, unmoving and shocked to her bones. He was the prince. The man her mother had cursed at birth. He was the wolf prince. The Alpha without a Luna. She wasn't sure what was going through his mind.
"Well, are you going to get out of the way soon enough for me to pass?" The rich timbre of his voice sent the ripple effect down her spine. She stepped out of the way for him to get through into her office.
"Get in and lock the door." Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't let any man order her around like this. But the prince was not just any man. The commanding spell in his voice would have her stripping naked if he wanted her to.
"Well, Esmeralda Furler. I admire your cleaning skills, but did you care to ask me before getting rid of the old files?"
"You were not in your seat at the moment, and I was already setting up your bulky schedule. I wanted to start with your schedule as soon as possible."
Kain was just toying with her, testing her.
"Well, I need help with undressing. I need you in my office." Esmeralda looked him in the eye for the first time since her fall in the VIP lounge. She saw his vulnerability. His weakness. He caught her right in the act, and his vulnerability turned into weakness. The beast in him was on guard. It lived inside of him, protecting him, deciding for him.
Esmeralda sighed as soon as he was out of earshot. This was going to be extremely hard. She would have to stoop to conquer. She prayed for Kate's type of patience and virtue.
When she got into his own office, he wasn't on seat, but the executive suite was open.
"Stop snooping around and come here." He sounded like he was inside a cubicle. She heard the sound of water rushing and stopped in her tracks.
He couldn't be having his shower in there, could he? Esmeralda walked gingerly into the suite, clicking the door shut behind her. She stopped to take in the sight before her. The red plush sofas in the suite served as a beautiful contrast to the immaculate white walls. There were several paintings of the past kings of Havana. Esmeralda moved closer to look at them one by one.
She stopped to linger on the painting of the prince's father. His stern look and full mustache alone gave her the creeps. Her mother's words replayed in her head.
"He destroyed our kind. All of the Mondes breed."
Had he done that during his youth? Esmeralda's mother said she was barely thirty years old when Kade IV started the witch hunt that wiped out all of the Mondes, her people. Why had he done that exactly? Esmeralda hated that she had no background information about the bloodthirsty war.
"That painting has the same effect on me too. It pins me to it." Esmeralda jumped at his voice. In her startled state, she bumped into him. Her back was pressed against his wet front now. He had showered there. Damnit. She quickly moved away to avoid getting wet.
"You seem to have a thing for bumping into people." He remarked, a lopsided grin lighting up his face. Esmeralda's face flushed until her cheeks turned beetle red.
"Sir, you asked me to come." She muttered, averting her gaze. The prince was wearing nothing but a towel! He knew he had a rocker body, and he was doing a very good job out of showing it off. Droplets of water from his wet hair dropped down dangerously onto his shoulders, and Esmeralda's traitorous eyes wandered to his direction. She watched as droplets of water from his hair slid down his taut chest. This was torture. She didn't want to see any of this.
"Did I?" He asked cockily.
Esmeralda suddenly realized what he was thinking and frowned.
"I meant that you asked me to come here. Was there something you wanted me to do?"
"Hmm. Go to the bathroom and get another towel." Esmeralda stared at him confusedly.
"To dry my hair."
Esmeralda bit on her lower lip. She was going to dry his hair? Was that what a personal assistant was supposed to do? Regardless, she marched to the bathroom to get a towel. There were several towels draped over the towel rail.
"There are so many towels in here. Can I just grab anyone?" She yelled. The prince didn't answer. His footsteps however told her he was coming to get it himself.
"Grab the one in the middle." He ordered, taking his leave immediately.
As Esmeralda walked out of the bathroom, she resolved in her mind to talk everything out with her mother. He wanted her to dry his hair. The next day he was probably going to ask her to scrub his body in the tub.
Her mother was scared of a man who couldn't even dry his own hair. Esmeralda had been expecting an Alpha male. She had gotten a pompous package instead.