Vicious Obsession

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

I blinked severally while Persie stood there staring at me.

"I tried to wake you, then I took the call," she said, as if she were reading my mind, trying to source out the exact questions I couldn't bring myself to ask at that moment.

"And I don't know why he would suddenly call you if he was visiting the family. You both are not that close to share the intimacy of him calling to tell you he was coming."

I swallowed at her answers to questions I hadn't even asked yet, but it somehow made total sense as she laid them out.

"And both of you could go to work together..."

I didn't wait for her to finish before I sprinted into the bathroom and took the quickest bath of my entire life.

Fifteen minutes later, dressed in a sharp black pencil skirt and a cream silk blouse, I made my way down the grand staircase. My heart beating with every step, my wolf restlessly pacing beneath my skin.

When I reached the formal dining room, the atmosphere was suffocatingly tense.

Sitting at the head of the table was my mother, looking unnaturally stiff as she cut into her poached eggs. Beside her sat Cynthia, dressed in a silk morning gown, also eating poached eggs.

Gideon sat casually beside her, swirling his black coffee while looking like a lion who knew he owned the whole den.

And directly opposite Cynthia, sitting with absolute, unyielding posture, was Elias.

He was impeccably tailored as always, his dark hair neatly styled, his broad shoulders filling out his dark suit jacket. He looked completely composed, utterly pristine, a stark contrast to the chaotic storm he had unleashed in my life last night.

As my heels clicked against the polished marble floor, every head turned toward me.

Elias raised his dark, heavy gaze, his eyes trailing up from my ankles, past my hips, and landing directly on my face. A subtle, almost imperceptible tilt of his jaw was the only sign that he recognized my presence, but the dark intensity in his eyes was lethal.

"Sandra," Mom said, "You're finally down. Elias came to drop off some urgent executive documents for the estate before heading to the office."

My eyes met Elias, then Cynthia, then Gideon, then Persie, who was also seated.

Elias's gaze traveled to my neck immediately. I hadn't covered the dark, crimson hickeys; I didn't bother to. I simply joined them at the table, taking the empty chair next to Persie, who immediately started helping me prepare my meal.

"You are not going to say anything?" my mom demanded.

I didn't even bother speaking. Instead, I whispered a few brief words to Persie, and she nodded, standing up to offer me a soft peck on the cheek before striding out of the room.

Then I started eating.

"You could've covered those disgusts on your neck," Cynthia started, cutting into her food with delicate precision.

"It's none of your business if they're there or not."

"So you sleep with her, don't you?" Cynthia poked further, her voice dropping into that familiar lilt.

I saw the tint in Gideon's eyes darken in an instant.

"How is that your business?" I snapped. I noticed Gideon's gaze traveling farther across the room, tracking Persie as she walked back into the dining room and settled right beside me again.

"Your girlfriend?" Gideon asked smoothly, resting his chin on his steepled fingers.

I struggled within myself, my knuckles turning white as I gripped my fork tightly to keep from replying. He wasn't worth my breath, I promised myself that much.

"Well, she is," Cynthia answered for me, smirking. "Has been for a long time. I mean... what are you even doing with your life, Sandra?"

"Exactly what I want to say, but I don't want to end up being baited by you this morning. It's far too early." I looked at Elias out of the corner of my eye. He was eating quietly, looking entirely detached from the drama.

"You haven't introduced them," I added, looking back and forth between Elias and Gideon before settling my glare on Cynthia. "Have you introduced them?"

"Why? You think Elias doesn't know Gideon?" she asked.

My gaze snapped to Elias. He remained perfectly still, chewing slowly like he wasn't in the least bit bothered by the mafia kingpin sitting directly across from him.

Didn't he say last night that he wanted to save his marriage? Is this how he planned to save it?

Gideon cut a piece of egg from his plate and casually offered it to Cynthia. She took it from his fork, his eyes meeting mine. I rolled my eyes at the absurd display. They couldn't be serious.

"So you know Gideon?" I asked Elias, forcing my tone to sound casual.

Elias looked up, his brown, impenetrable eyes locking onto mine. "Well, I do. He's going to be my co-husband. Isn't it fine that I know him?"

*Is that the conversation we had yesterday?!* *Sandra, it's none of your business,* I told myself.

"Cynthia..." *Sandra, you clearly said it's none of your business!* "...why don't you consider divorcing him first before jumping on another man? Actually, no, there's no way I'm okay with you being with him at all."

Neither of them. Not Gideon... and certainly not Elias.

"Why?" Gideon chipped in, a dangerous hint of amusement rising in his dark gaze. "Why don't you like me as your brother-in-law, little wolf?"

"Why should I like you?" We glared at each other, both of us fully aware of the treacherous history between us. "You're ten years younger than her!"

"Are you saying that age has suddenly started mattering to you?" Gideon countered, tilting his head with a razor-sharp smile.

"You know she's already married!" I slammed my fork down against the table. "You're sitting with her current husband at this exact table, don't you think you should stop now? Like show some respect!!"

" Even if not to yourself or name, then to what you represent!! To people that look up to you?!"

Gideon turned his head slowly to look at Elias. Their eyes met, and a suffocating, icy aura spread across the room. My omega instincts picked up the sudden spike in the energy, sending a shiver straight down my spine.

"We will find a way to relate with that," Gideon murmured smoothly.

"Relate with *what*?!" I felt like I was about to lose my mind right then and there. Persie placed her warm hand over mine under the table, anchoring me before I could snap.

I tried to suppress the rising heat in my chest, turning my gaze to my mother, who had remained silent, calmly eating her poached eggs.

"Mom, you're really okay with this circus?"

Mom wiped her lips with her linen napkin and set it down. "Have you thought about the blind date?"

I noticed Elias pause mid-motion, his fork hovering a millimeter above his plate as his eyes darted toward me.

"I've thought about it," I replied, holding my mother's gaze.

"And?"

"I will go," I said.

The air in the dining room vanished instantly. The tension spiked so high it felt like the glass windows might shatter.

Gideon's dark eyes narrowed on me. "You will go?"

"Yeah. Isn't that what my mother wanted?"

"Blind date?" Elias ruminated out loud as he slowly set his utensils down and leaned back in his chair, his heavy gaze locking onto my face. "What blind date are you all talking about?"

"I didn't tell you," Cynthia said, taking a sip of her water. "I fixed a blind date for my sister. I figured she needed to finally settle down."

"A blind date for Sandra?" Elias repeated.

"Yeah," Cynthia purred, a cruel, satisfied smile spreading across her lips. "With Valerius’’