ARIANA'S POV.
"Hello there." He spoke, with a voice as soothing as a melody.
Just his first words, and I wanted to hug him, and cry. I perceived no wicked aura from him, and he smelled so nice that I wanted to bury my head in his chest, and tell him all about Michael, and how he'd broken my heart. But this was a stranger. One whose intentions I couldn't decipher.
"I almost hit you last night. Are you okay?" He asked, and I blinked. Was he actually asking if I was fine? He wasn't growling, or showing signs of wanting to throttle me? "You look a little pale," He said, touching my cheek, and I bloomed like a flower. "Ah, you're red now." He looked puzzled, and I stepped back. What exactly was his deal?
Was he going to act all charming, and then creep up from behind and kill me?
Or was he just like Michael? Sweet out of sight, and horrible when in sight?
"Thank you for yesterday."
"Come with me. I was waiting for you to wake." He said, and began to walk away before I could say a word.
I went after him, watching his tall figure stroll comfortably out of the garden.
"So why did you suddenly burst out of nowhere at such a time? Where do you live?" He asked, without looking backwards.
I thought fast, "I… I, uh, I was wandering."
What if he knew the pack, and returned me to them as a favor?
"Wandering? To where? From where?"
"From nowhere." I said a little too quickly. He stopped, and finally turned to look at me.
"From nowhere? You're homeless?"
"Yes."
"You don't look it."
I swallowed, "I… I was trying to live a better life. You know, get better, look better, and start afresh, so I took a bath."
He laughed, "Taking a bath is your idea of starting afresh."
"It's the first step."
"And what's next?"
"I… actually, I haven't thought of it yet." I admitted, and he gave an amused smile, before turning around to walk away.
When we got to a door, he stopped, and I almost bumped into him, but quickly moved backwards,
"You might have heard rumors about me, but you don't need to fear. I won't be hurting you," he said, then turned slightly to look over his shoulder, "To you, I'm Luke."
He pushed the door open, and walked in. Was that some kind of assurance? Was he really going to be kind? Would he demand something from me later?
However, as I stepped into the large foyer, I realized there was nothing he could actually want from me. He had everything.
He sat on a sofa, and I looked at some men and women in suits, standing in front of what seemed like a hundred shopping bags.
"I didn't know what type of clothes you'd like, so I ordered them to bring anything." He said, and I looked at all the bags.
"All for me?" I asked, and he nodded slightly, with a little smile.
Something was wrong. There was definitely something he wanted from me. It showed in the way he stared at me with those dark eyes, harboring secrets.
He was far too suspicious. You don't just get a hundred shopping bags filled with clothes for a tattered girl you didn't even hit with your car.
"You spent so much money."
"So much?" He asked, with a raised brow, and stared at the bags, "I was wondering if it would be enough. Maybe I will take you out to do some more."
"No! I'm… I'm fine with these." I blurted out, and with a flick of his finger, the men, and women in suits marched out.
"Check them out." He said, and I went to the clothes.
I bent, and began to open them, one after the other. All the while, he kept his enchanting eyes on me.
Something was certainly up. The clothes were all limited editions the girls back in the pack used to wear. These weren't your normal clothes.
"I… this… thank you so much. I…"
"Have you eaten?"
He was going to feed me too?
"Ah, uh… um. Actually," I bit my lip. I didn't take anything in since the previous afternoon. I'd been busy with my patchwork dress, so I'd skipped lunch. Not that the girls would let me enjoy a meal, though. "Not yet." I finally replied.
"Great. Lisa will take these to your room." He said, striding away.
My room?
Wait, what?
I turned around to glance at him, but he was quite fast. I got up, looking at him, then back to the clothes. What did he mean?
I left the clothes there, and followed him to the elaborate dining room with five chandeliers giving the place dim, but comfortable amber lightning.
"You only need to wait for ten minutes." He said, looking at me intently, and I nodded, wishing I could suddenly get smaller.
Indeed, in ten minutes, attendants came with meals, and began to serve us. But I was quite sure Lisa was the only maid in the house. Did he go through the trouble of ordering the dishes?
My thoughts were broken by the array of dishes laid out. Meals for a King!
How would a mere human like me take this? He watched me with his hand under his chin, and I gulped. There was no drug in it, right?
Despite how much I wanted to pounce on the meal, I played around the rich venison coated with sauce, and steamed veggies that looked crunchy.
I wanted it badly, but the way he never took his eyes off me. He was an evil man, but he was so nice. I was a fool, but I would rather not be a fool until that extent.
"You don't trust me, do you?" He suddenly asked, and I jumped a little. Then he leaned back. "Gradually, you'll see that you can trust me. I have no grudge against you. What do you say about being my personal assistant?" He asked, and I swallowed.
My brain began to do the math.
Personal assistant equaled to staying with him for twenty-four hours, being his right-hand man, going almost everywhere with him, being unspeakably close to him…
I gulped, and took a glass of water to wet my parched throat.
"With a monthly pay of $200,000." He said, and I coughed out the water to the side, immediately snatching a napkin to cover my embarrassment.
That was a life-changer.
Me? $200,000?
Another being took over me entirely, and I coughed, "Yes!"