Chapter 22
I step out of the dining room and exhale, feeling myself relax as I move away from all the pressure compressed in the room behind me.
I glance at the bracelet in my hand and briefly wonder how much the Ashfords pay their servants for them to be able to afford such expensive- looking jewelry. I should return it first before deciding whether I’ll be returning to the soul–sucking dinner.
I head towards the kitchen, unsure if the servants just linger there, waiting for us to finish each course before they bring the next one.
On entering the large kitchen, I’m immediately overwhelmed by the flurry of movement. Over by the sinks, the servants deposit the used plates where two others are doing the dishes. At the other side of the room, the next course is being prepared. I spot pears and walnuts and wonder what the heck they’re making.
In the middle of it all, watching with hawk–eyed efficiency, is Anna.
As I enter, she turns in my direction, and her face twists into an ugly sneer. “What the hell are you doing here?”
1 blink, resisting the urge to wither under her gaze. “Um, I—” I spot Sarah discreetly leaving the kitchen through a side door. I give Anna a smile that’s basically a grimace. “I was just leaving.”
Then I move through the kitchen, heading for the door the maid went through, forcing myself to calmly walk instead of running like I so desperately want to so I can get out of Anna’s sight quicker.
1 step through the side door into a long hallway just in time to see Sarah disappear around a corner. I head down the hallway, turning in the
direction she went.
I find myself in another long hallway, but this time, Sarah is nowhere in sight. Marveling at how ridiculously large the Ashford mansion is, I follow the hallway to the end and, on a whim, turn right. I follow that hallway to the end, and still, there’s no sight of Sarah.
Deciding to cut my losses and return to dinner before my absence gets noticed or someone finds me wandering and it turns out I’m not supposed to be here, I start to retrace my steps back to the dining. I walk back to the beginning of the hallway, but then I hear a sound that makes me stall.
It’s coming from somewhere in front of me–the left corridor I didn’t turn to.
Curious and looking for any excuse to delay my return to the dining hall, I move towards the sound, trying to decipher what it is.
The closer I get, the louder it is–groans and moans, like someone is in pain. I move closer still and decipher that the slightly muffled sounds are distinctly female.
1 stop in front of the door, feeling…wrong. It’s slightly ajar, and I know that if I peek through, I might be able to see who is making all the sounds -and why. I know I shouldn’t be here, but I can’t make myself leave.
The moans are interrupted by a loud gasp, and I throw all caution to the wind and peer through the gap in the door.
The lights are off, but the room is illuminated by the glow of the moon and the perimeter lights shining through the two large open windows.
I can’t see the entire room through the space, but in my line of view, I can tell that it’s sparsely furnished, and I can only see a desk and chair.
The desk that currently has Sarah, the maid, bent over it, her hands up above her, gripping the edge of the table with her dress bunched up around her waist.
My eyes widen as I take in the scene before me, not quite comprehending what I’m seeing.
The maid lets out another moan, the sound muffled by the large hand covering her mouth. I hear another sound: a low humming–like a vibration -and I watch as Sarah’s entire body trembles.
She removes one hand from the edge and places it between her legs, where I see a stream of moisture trail down her thighs, the glow of the lights from outside glinting off it. I watch, confused and shocked, as she writhes, moaning and whimpering into the large hand covering her mouth.
Due to the angle, I can’t see who the hand belongs to, but then another arm reaches around Sarah and pulls her hand out from between her legs. In her grip is a small round device, emitting the low sound I heard earlier–a vibrator. It slips from her hand, landing on the table with a wet thud, still vibrating.
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Chapter 22
Then, a face leans forward, and my breath catches in my throat.
The large hand holds Sarah’s damp hand up, and I watch, wide–eyed, as Lucas Ashford slips the maid’s hand into his mouth, sucking on her juices.
She lets out another muffled moan at his action, and the deafening sound of my heartbeat almost drowns it out.
I try to make my legs move, to get out of here, and forget I ever saw this, but I’m frozen, my eyes still wide like I’m watching one of those car wrecks that you just can’t look away from, no matter how awful they seem.
Lucas drops her hand and reaches back. When his hand appears again, he’s holding a large dildo, and a fresh wave of shock hits me.
Then, with one large hand clasped firmly over Sarah’s mouth, he brings the other around and slips it between her legs. I see him press the tip against her and pause, idly rubbing it against her opening and not going any further. That seems to drive her crazy as she whimpers, grinding herself against it, probably searching for relief.
Her wanton pleas are muffled by Lucas’s hand against her mouth.
He leans closer, pressing his face against hers, and his usual blank face is twisted into something dark and savage. And for the first time since I’ve laid eyes on Lucas Ashford, he smiles–before he shoves the large dildo into his maid.
Sarah lets out a muffled howl, rocking back into him. I think I make a sound, too, because at that moment, before I can move away, Lucas turns and his eyes meet mine.
The feral look in his eyes sends a jolt through me, and it feels like I’m waking up from the trance my shock put me into. I feel a scream build up at the back of my throat.
Before I can unleash it and further bury myself into the hole I’ve dug by being a peeping Tom, a hand grabs my wrist from behind.
In a flash, I’m pulled away from the door, and my back slams against the wall next to it as a strong, warm body presses into me and slaps a hand over my mouth to muffle my scream.
My heart thunders wildly as my terrified gaze meets green ones, identical to the ones in the room. But these eyes don’t hold dark savagery, only a warning intensity that paralyzes me.
Nathan.
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