Chapter 199
SADE
Maybe I’ve been wrong about this man. Perhaps spending eight years out of my twenty–four years has made me think that all men are monsters.
I was still growing when I was taken. The only men I knew then were the boys in our village and the elders, so I didn’t know many men before I was snatched away and thrown into a world I knew nothing about, a world where the men were never gentle, always lied and deceived, and always seemed to want to cause me pain.
And that was why I thought Mr. Varkas was just like all those men, but maybe I was terribly wrong,
He had rejected me when I wanted to show my gratitude, hadn’t looked at me with any disgusting look in his eyes, and had been gentle with me, giving me space when he noticed I was uncomfortable with his closeness.
“I want to apologize, sir,” I muttered, and he raised an eyebrow. I swallowed, my hands squeezed tight. “I–I have judged you badly. I thought you were one of those men who only wanted to use me.”
He scoffed, but that did nothing to hide the displeased look on his face.
My guards immediately went up.
I know that he meant well, and that displeased look on his face was because of how I had thought of him, but that didn’t stop my body and mind from reacting.
When he noticed this, the look on his face deepened, and he stood up, picking up the dish I had made for him, which must have gone cold.
I stood up too, swallowing nervously.
“Good night, Sade,” he said as he turned towards the stairs and went up.
“S–sir,” I whispered when he was gone.
I slumped down on the chair, burying my face in my hands.
You’ve messed up, Sade. We were doing so well. I could feel us growing closer, and I had thought to myself that if all it took for us to get closer was for me to open up and tell him my story, I didn’t mind at all. I would tell him everything from A to Z but now I’ve messed that chance up.
“What’s wrong with me?” I whispered, my face still buried in my hands.
It was going to take time before my brain would catch up that I was no longer in that place, that I had finally escaped, didn’t have to do those things again.
It would take an eternity before my body stopped flinching every time it came into contact with someone.
Maybe I’ll always be this way, perhaps I will be scarred for life, and that wasn’t fair because I never asked for any of this.
I had wanted to get married and have kids before, but now? That seems like someone else’s dream. The thought of a man touching my body again made me want to throw up.
Life really wasn’t fair.
***
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Or that was what I thought, fost in the morning, when I came down and saw a pose with just a single short sentence. I knew be had come back late
“Thank you for the meal
I stare at the sentence over and over
This was his house, he was filthy rich with countless cars parked in his garage, and yet he was thanking me for making a simple dish for hire
Thave really judged him terribly.
I made another meal that night, and came down in the morning to see a note saying the same thing, but I didn’t ace the
That went on for a week, and that night, I decided I would stay up and wait for him
I know he was giving me space because he knew I needed it, but this was his home, and I couldn’t chase him out
I felt guilty and wanted to apologize for both that and that night
But I fell asleep on the couch, and when I woke up, there was a blanket around me, the sun shining through the curtains, and
a note, as usual, but what was written this time was different
“Don’t sleep on the couch. You might get a stiff neck
That made my eyes burn.
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Chapter 199
2015 oct
Be really was different, wasn’t he? I had been lying on the couch, helpless, and yet he did nothing to place a blanket on the And if I slept through that, that mast man try body was beginning to trust hi
That surprised me geraly because I was totally jumpy whenever I slept. However, ever since I’ve been saying is this me ‘ve been sleeping well. If I look in the mirror, I can see that my cheeks are getting fuller, and I’m arking a bit of weighe
And Mr. Varkat was who I had to thank for that. But if he wasn’t here, how was I going to show him that I was grateful
That day, with Mrs. Banks help as usual, I prepared his meal. When Mrs. Banks was gone, I picked up the telephone for the irst time since he had told me that I could call him
dialed the number that Mrs. Banks had given me, holding my breath as it rany,
le picked up on the third ring
Sader
Mr. Varkas,” I blurted, almost shouting, I was shocked that he picked, because honestly, I really didn’t think he would
What’s wrong?” he asked, a hint of worry in his voice. “Are you okay?”
-I’m okay, sir. 1-1 just wanted to ask if you would have dinner with me?”
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
