The days blew by and the weekend finally arrived for me to go home.
I walked out of the mansion only to find Dragos leaning against his fancy Chevrolet Silverado, waiting patiently for someone.
I stopped in my tracks and sucked in a deep breath, trying with everything within me to tear my eyes off him.
He was drop-dead gorgeous.
As I passed by him on my way to the driver assigned to take me home, he waved to stop me.
"Get in," he ordered.
My face blanched in surprise "Sir?"
Dragos inclined his head towards the Chevy and walked over to the driver's side. "I'm taking you home"
On realizing he had been waiting for me, a strange happiness filled my heart, but still, I found it suspicious.
Reluctantly, I got into the Chevy, looking at him in stupefaction.
"Why are you doing this?"
Dragos ignored the question, asking instead, "Are you going home straight away or do you have somewhere else to be?"
"The hospital, sir. Blue Cove General Hospital." I responded, still staring at him.
"You know it's okay to call me Dragos. I've made this clear to you innumerable times. My mother's not here to tell you off"
He started the Chevy and backed out of the lot.
"Why are you helping me?" I asked again.
He did not respond until a moment later. "Because I want to"
The huge, automatic, iron gate opened up and the vehicle went through, navigating through the narrow streets of the island.
Relaxing into my seat and looking out of the window, I pondered on the sudden, confusing change in his behavior.
"What does your mother like?" Dragos asked out of the blue, making a turn.
"I don't get the question"
"Food. Music." he clarified. "What interests her? What does she enjoy?" He glanced at me briefly. "Tell me about her"
"Oh,"
My expression brightened up a bit as I sat up straighter, thinking back to my mother's preferences.
"She loves flowers. Tulips are her favorite, and she's also a big fan of croissants" I paused. "Freshly baked, of course. She also can't resist butter pecan ice cream, but unfortunately, she can't have any of those treats now," I said sadly, as I rested my head against the seat. "Fruits would do. Apples. Strawberries and some low-fat products"
As I continued to think, more memories came flooding back.
"My mother's a huge music lover too. At some point, she used to play the piano beautifully, and she'd often sing along to her favorite classical pieces but now she's too weak to do any of that" I further explained. "She's a fan of historical fiction and romance novels. One of her favorite stories is about Vlad the Impaler, also known as Dracula"
A small smile crept across Dragos' face.
His hands glided over the steering wheel gracefully. "We'll branch at a supermarket to get your mother a few things. I want to meet her"
I found myself frowning. "Why the sudden interest in my life, sir? Why the sudden change in attitude towards me?"
Dragos' gaze remained fixed on the road. "I don't know"
I shook my head "Well, I know, and it's pity. You pity me. I told you about my life and now you pity me"
He shrugged, his head turning to glance at me "I don't pity you, I empathize with you. Big difference" He corrected "Besides, you can't expect me not to feel empathetic, given your situation"
"Yes, I can. You and Lord Azrael have been nothing but harsh to me ever since I arrived at the villa, and I have done nothing wrong to warrant it. Nothing all too serious at least" I replied peevishly.
"You were holding a dagger," Dragos said through his teeth, his grip on the steering wheel tightening "If I hadn't come in at that moment you would have destroyed that painting"
I shifted in my seat and faced him "Did I seem willing to do it? I received orders but I had no intention of carrying them out because I understood how much it meant to you. Your anger that day should have been directed towards Lord Azrael, not towards me"
"I already dealt with Azrael"
I crossed my arms and looked out the window again. "The only person that has treated me like an actual person is Rafael"
Dragos scoffed "Rafael?". He swerved in another direction, his face unreadable. "Suddenly, you have no regard for honorifics"
I exhaled and changed the topic of discussion. "A few days after telling you about my dead ex and my dying mother, the next thing I see you doing is offering to drive me to visit my mum and even get her supplies"
I dropped my folded arms only to cross them over my chest again "I appreciate the gesture but with all due respect, Lord Dragos, I don't need you to do this if it's purely born out of pity"
Another frown crowded my brow "I will not accept your help"
Dragos turned to stare at me briefly, and I understood the expression. He was wondering where the sudden audacity to speak to him that way had spawned from, and honestly, I had no answer to the question myself.
Some days back I had been scared shitless of him and now I was ranting at him in his car.
He pulled up at the parking lot of a huge supermarket, ignoring all I had said.
"Out" he ordered, getting down from the Chevy and heading to the entrance.
I got down but refused to move an inch, till he looked behind and stopped walking.
"Dawn?"
"I don't think you paid any attention to what I said" I replied coldly.
Dragos' hand came to rest on his waist casually as he replied, "I don't care about what you said"
Then tipping his head in the direction of the mart, he headed for it. "Now, come on"
Reluctantly, I followed him.
Once inside, he grabbed a shopping cart and sauntered toward the first aisle.
"Have you ever done this before?" I asked casually.
I knew it was a stupid question, but I tended to say stupid things around Dragos.
Every rational thought always seemed to fly out of my head when he was near, leaving me feeling like an idiot.
He gave a single nod "Of course, but it's been a while."
I grabbed a shopping basket "Well, you have people to do everything for you"
Dragos took the basket from me and returned it to its rightful place. "I don't need assistance, I'm capable of handling this one on my own"
I shrugged "Okay. I just thought I'd help you out"
"Shopping is such a petty task" he stated, moving down the aisle "You shouldn't think I'd find something like wheeling a cart around while throwing things I desire inside, difficult"
"Just saying" I muttered.
He walked. "Tell me about your childhood"
"There's not much to know about my childhood," I replied.
Dragos slid open a freezer and brought out two big containers of frozen low-fat yogurt and threw it in the cart.
"There's plenty to know about mine" he muttered.
"Tell me"
"No." He wheeled the cart further down the aisle "I asked first"
I sighed "It's always just been me and my mother. Father bailed on us before I was born, Mother got sick when I was in my final year in high school"
I picked up two cans of malt and threw them in the basket "I've been in this town my whole life"
We moved to the cereal aisle.
"Why don't you tell me about your childhood?"
"I don't like to talk about it," he responded, picking up a large box of granola. "Things weren't exactly smooth for me, either"
"Oh. I'm sorry"
I couldn't help but ponder on what could've gone wrong during his childhood.
I knew his father had died a long time ago according to the rumors I'd heard. No doubt, growing up without a father must've been tough for him. It was something I could relate to.
"No, don't do that," Dragos said flatly.
"Do what?" I asked innocently.
He looked at me with those beautiful golden brown eyes "Feel sad for me" he answered.
"How'd you know I ..." I paused and denied it. "I wasn't feeling sad for you"
Moving nearer, Dragos filled the gap between us. Without word, and with grace, he stretched his hand to grab a big bag of oats.
As his eyes ran over the product's details, I stared at him, enthralled by his presence.
The fact that he was so close to me, made my heart beat faster, and my palms sweat. There was something about him that intoxicated me.
Dragos' eyes slowly shifted from the bag to mine and I looked away shyly, flushed with embarrassment. He had caught me staring, but didn't say a word and instead, threw the bag of oats into the cart, pushing on.
I cleared my throat, and walked past him quickly, my hands tucked into the back pockets of my snug jeans.
"Since you've got this covered, I'll wait outside by the car while you finish up"
Before he could respond, I was gone, fleeing from him before I did anything more embarrassing.