CHAPTER|4
1216 Words
Amarah’s POV
I inhaled deeply, ignoring the sting where Vanessa’s shoulder had bruised mine. Ava still shot daggers at me over her iPad as she walked away, while Liam offered a tiny sympathetic smile.
Drama was, indeed, on the breakfast menu.
Marcus gestured for me to follow him toward the living room.
I did, but my heart was still trembling from everything that happened in just thirty minutes of being here.
The main part of the living room was breathtaking sunlight spilled like honey over the marble floors, the chandelier sparkled like crystal rain, and glass sculptures reflected the morning glow like shards of a dream.
But the elegance didn’t calm me.
It only reminded me how severely I didn’t belong here.
Vanessa was on the couch with her legs crossed, and her phone in hand, scrolling mindlessly, looking like she’d been born lounging on velvet.
Marcus ignored her completely.
“Now,” he said, lowering his voice. “This is where the children spend most of their free time. Please make sure they don’t run around the glass structures. They’re artistic pieces, imported, very expensive, and very, very… fragile .”
I nodded quickly. “Of course.”
Ava smirked, muttering to herself without looking up, “Everything is fragile in this house. Including the walls.”
I pretended not to hear.
Liam walked over to me and tugged lightly on my blouse. “Miss Amarah? Can you help me later with my geography? I don’t really understand maps.”
“Of course,” I said softly as warmth filled my chest, at least I was making progress. “I’d be happy to.”
Ava scoffed loudly. “You don’t even know if she went to school, don’t you think you should ask first?”
My stomach twisted.
Marcus frowned at her. “Ava be nice.”
She slouched deeper into her chair. “Whatever.”
Vanessa suddenly clicked her tongue loudly as she scrolled.
She didn’t look up, but her voice sliced clean through the room.
“Children, stop bothering the staff. And Marcus, must we do this tour here? You’re blocking the light and ventilation.”
Marcus didn’t even blink. “Yes, Ms Vanessa.”
I couldn’t help staring at him. His professionalism was so unreal.
Vanessa shifted, tossing her hair over her shoulder. “Speak up,” she added lazily. “Your voice is ruining my concentration.”
Marcus quietly whispered to me, “Just ignore her.”
But how could I ignore someone sucking oxygen out of every corner of the room?
He continued the tour..
Explaining tasks, rules, routines.
“Breakfast at eight, then lessons at nine while rest period is at two. The children’s schedule is strict but flexible depending on Mr. Hart’s mood.”
“Mr. Hart?” I repeated. “Is he very involved?”
Ava snorted as though the question was ridiculous.
Liam looked down sadly.
Vanessa’s mouth curved into a mocking smirk.
And Marcus sighed. “Let’s just say… he cares.. But he expresses it differently.”
I wanted to ask what he meant differently, but Vanessa suddenly stretched like a lounging cat.
“If Aiden comes home early,” she said lazily, still not looking at us, “try not to embarrass yourself in front of him. He’s not very… forgiving and doesn’t ask stupid questions that don’t concern you.”
My skin prickled.
Marcus opened his mouth. But something made him freeze.
No.. Not something.
Someone.
The front door clicked.
Softly and barely audible.
But enough for Marcus, Ava, and Liam to stiffen instantly.
Vanessa didn’t flinch, she only smiled to herself.
A slow, chilling wave washed over the room.
Marcus leaned toward me, whispering like he was speaking through a nightmare, “He’s back from his meeting.”
My pulse began to race.
I hadn’t heard footsteps.
No car engine.
Just a shift that felt like a coldness entering the room.
“The children,” Marcus murmured. “Keep them calm. And you… just stay quiet. Please.”
I gripped my hands together to stop them from shaking.
Vanessa sat up straighter, “You’re home early,” she purred.
Marcus cleared his throat, panicked. But she was already rising to her feet, walking toward the doorway like she owned the house.
I instinctively stepped back, hiding behind Marcus.
But then..
“Amarah,” Marcus whispered urgently, “This way let’s finish the tour in the sitting room.”
I nodded, following him quickly while Vanessa moved toward the foyer. Ava and Liam followed us but stayed close enough to see.
We entered the sitting room first. It was a space connected to the living room through a wide archway. Enough distance from Vanessa… just enough.
Marcus was explaining the safety rules when Ava leaned against the wall, watching me with a strange expression.
Liam sat quietly beside me, fiddling with the hem of his shirt.
And then..
Footsteps.
Heavy, slow, disciplined.
A shadow fell across the archway.
Every hair on my body stood up as a tall, dark silhouette entered my peripheral vision.
I knew who it was.
I felt him before I saw him.
Aiden Hart stepped into view, wearing a black suit that fit him like sin and power. His tie was loosened just enough to show he’d been working hard.. or fighting the world.
His jaw was sharp, his presence sharper, his expression unreadable but unquestionably dangerous.
He stopped at the edge of the sitting room with his eyes on Marcus.
“Report,” he demanded.
Marcus bowed slightly. “The children have eaten, sir. Lessons will begin shortly. And Miss Amarahh..”
Aiden’s gaze snapped to me.
My breath caught so hard I nearly choked.
His eyes were focused solely on me. “Why did you leave the living room?”
I forced my trembling lips into what I prayed passed as a respectful smile.
Ava watched with wide eyes.
Marcus looked like he was preparing to catch me if I fainted.
I wanted to say something appropriate.
Something professional..
Something not stupid.
But my brain completely betrayed me..
Because of Aiden’s intensity, the nearness of him, the pressure filling the room like smoke, all of it scrambled my thoughts.
And I blurted way too quickly, way too nervously..
“I… I.. We wanted to give you some privacy with your wife Sir!”
Liam gasped and Ava’s mouth fell open while Marcus went pale as chalk.
The world seemed to have been frozen in ice.
For one terrifying second, no one breathed.
Then Aiden’s head tilted slightly like a predator hearing movement in the bushes.
“My…” he repeated as his voice dropped into something cold and scary, “What?”
His eyes darkened but not with anger, instead with something far worse.. It felt like a slow, deadly, controlled fury.
I swallowed hard, every nerve in my body screaming.
“I.. I”
A cruel curve slid along the corner of his mouth.
He took one step toward me..
Just one.
But it was enough to make my knees weaken, especially as his gaze pinned me like a knife to the wall as he whispered..
“What did you just say to me?”
And that was when I knew…
I was in catastrophic trouble.
- Writer
