Adan’s Mistake

Eight

I stared at Adan’s Grandfather, trying to glean something from the twinkle in his eyes, but he remained elusive as ever, leaving me at a disadvantage. He leaned back in his grand chair and intertwined his fingers together as he regarded me with eyes that missed nothing.

“You must understand, Evangeline, that the life you knew is over,” he began. “Whatever you thought about your life is over. Whatever my grandson will decide will be your new life and you have to accept it.”

All I could do was stare at him in response. And no matter how hard I tried to keep the anxiety at bay I could feel it rising.

“Adan chose your family as soon as it was possible for him to do so. Though I do not know his reasons behind it, I’m not one to deny my grandsons. So when he expressed his wish to own you, I made sure it happened,” he said, which was something I already knew.

“Didn’t you ask him why he wanted to own my family?” I asked and he leered at me.

“No because I simply don’t care. If he wants you, then I’ll make sure he gets you,” he stated and I gulped in response.

“Master—” I started to say but he held up a hand to silence me.

“Adan is extremely possessive of his title as your Master. I’m sure using it for somebody else—even me—would displease him greatly. And as much as I appreciate the respect the title brings, I do not want my grandson displeased. You will address me as Sir from now on,” he stated and I nodded, unable to understand why Adan was so insanely possessive.

“I understand… Sir,” I replied.

“Good. As I was saying, you belong to him now. He’s the sun in your world now. Every action of yours should be taken with his permission and happiness in mind. I would go as far as to say you shouldn’t even breathe without his permission but that’s between you and him,” he said and I honestly had no idea why he was telling me all this. As my Master it went without saying that he was possessive. So there really was no point to this conversation.

“I know,” I replied because I doubt he would accept any other response.

“Then you should also know that if you say or do anything to displease him, then he won’t be the only one to punish you,” he said, taking me by surprise, but I nodded frantically so he wouldn’t punish me right now. But the truth was I didn’t agree with him. If Adan was displeased, then he should be the one to punish me. No one else. His Grandfather just said Adan was my only Master so why was he so quick to punish me when he wouldn’t let me address him as Master?

Perhaps he’s a sadist who likes seeing innocent people in pain.

I wouldn’t be surprised if that was true. Cornelius Diamandis was a ruthless force and the entire world knew it. I almost expected him to be a sadist.

“I understand, Sir,” I said because any other response would result in me being thrown in the dungeon.

He paused, the air thick and heavy with tension as I waited for him to dismiss me. My breath stalled as he got up and went over to the glass cabinet. He opened it and pulled out an antique box before returning to his chair across from me. I watched him flip the lid on the box and pick up a cigar. I didn’t know he smoked, but then again I barely anything about any of them. Cornelius lit the cigar and brought it to his lips before taking a strong puff and then focusing his sharp gaze on me.

“Adan told me there was a man in your life,” he said, more as a statement rather than a question.

“I was with him when Master came for me. I never broke up with him,” I said, trying to tell him that Wesley was and would be a big part of my life if all went according to plan. And the plan was simply to make Adan let go of me so I could be with the man I wanted.

You belong to Adan and always will.

I knew that but that didn’t mean I couldn’t be with Wesley. If Adan let me go, then I could be with him so all I had to do was drive my Master to do the impossible.

“Whether you formally had the break up conversation or not is inconsequential. That man is no longer a part of your life and it’s best if you accept that. I don’t want to hear my grandson complaining about his woman being unfaithful to him. If you think about being with any other man, Evangeline, rest assured your family will bear the consequences of your actions,” he stated.

My eyes widened as fear took root in my mind. “But Sir…” his sharp look shut me up and I sent a silent prayer to God to protect my family from harm. I was close with everyone in my family, especially my cousins and I didn’t want them to come to harm because of me.

“There’s no room for argument here, girl. You belong to Adan now and the women of this house have certain obligations which they have no choice but to fulfill. You’re no different. So do yourself a favor and forget that man, otherwise we’ll have no choice but to make you forget,” he said, the comment sounding more like a threat.

I wanted him to elaborate on his last words but I was afraid to know his intentions. I didn’t know why this was happening. Wesley was innocent, so why were the Diamandis’ targeting him? Was it because of me? Had I unintentionally put his life in jeopardy? If that was the case then I needed to stay away from him. It was the only way I could protect him. But I wanted to make sure he was okay. And then I‘d be okay. I’d focus on Adan and what he wanted from me. But I had to see Wesley just once.

“I understand,” I said because there was nothing else I could say. He wouldn’t listen to any arguments and if I dared defy him, then I had Adan to deal with. Perhaps I could talk to my Master alone and make him understand my perspective. Adan couldn’t be that unreasonable, could he?

Cornelius took another long puff of his cigar and blew the smoke out, the phantom rings slowly dispersing and becoming part of the atmosphere.

“Good. I’m glad I could make you understand. You may go now. I do not expect to hear any complaints,” he said and I just wanted to dig a hole for myself and crawl into it. I was officially done with this family and I barely started living with them.

“Thank you, Sir,” I said and stood up. I paused for a beat, waiting for him to tell me something else but his eyes left my face and focused on the computer screen in front of him. I watched him for a few seconds before turning on my heels and rushing out of his study as if he’d set his rabid dogs after me.

As soon as the heavy door closed behind me I all but ran away from the eerie space. I really oped Adan stayed away for the entire day because I didn’t want to deal with any more Diamandis’ today.

However, as my terrible luck would have it, I found Adan in his room as soon as I threw myself inside and locked the door, as if the slab of wood could protect me from him and his grandfather. But I nearly screamed when I saw my Master lounging on the armchair as if he was the king of the f*****g world.

“Wh—what are you doing here? I thought you were at work and won’t be back until evening,” I said, as I huffed and willed my heart to calm down.

Adan gave me a slow once over, making me feel naked in his presence. How could he make me feel like he was touching me without actually touching me? What would I do if or when he actually touched me?

Then your fantasies will become your reality.

My blood heated as my deepest, darkest fantasies took center stage in my mind. And I gritted my teeth in an attempt to get rid of them otherwise I’d just end up embarrassing myself in front of Adan.

“Yes. But I thought I just got you and it’s best if I spent time with you until you adjusted to your new life. And—” he got up from the chair like a king rising from the ashes to rule over the world and came to stand in front of me. “I’m taking you out on a date.”

My jaw dropped as my mind dissected his words to shreds, making sure I understood exactly what he said. A date? He wanted to me out on a date? Why? How? Where? When? I was practically his slave and I didn’t think it was wise for us to be dating. He should be dating someone from his own class. Why was he coming after me?

“A da—date? Yo—you mean a ro—rom—romantic date?” I asked, not wanting him to answer the question.

He arched an elegant eyebrow at me and moved closer, leaving me with no choice but to inhale his mouth watering scent. God why did he have to own my thoughts when he already owned my body. I wished I didn’t find him so utterly captivating.

“You’re mine, Angel. I can take you out on a date whenever I want,” he replied, smoothly.

“You didn’t answer my question,” I said.

“Which question is that?”

“I—is it a ro—romantic date?” God, I really needed to stop stuttering. I was only embarrassing myself and I didn’t want Adan to laugh at me.

He raised his hand and stroked the side of my face. “You shouldn’t be asking me such questions.”

“Why not?”

“Because you don’t need to know the answer to that. I’ll take out the dress for you and then we’ll go,” he told me and turned to go to the walk-in closet.

“Wait. Where are we going?” As much as I was glad to have a chance to get out of the house I was still wary. What did he intend to do with me? And what would he do if I pissed him off?

“It’s a surprise,” he said and disappeared inside the closet. I waited for a couple of minutes and watched him come out with a dress covered in a black bag. “Here you go. You have twenty minutes to get ready. Keep your hair up.”

“What? Why?” I took the dress from him and looked at the brown dress with a turtle neck sweater. Immediately my mind conjured up a pair of shin length boots which would go with the dress. I really didn’t want to be excited about dressing up but I wanted to look good and it had nothing to do with Adan.

“You really need to stop questioning me so much. Do as I say and get ready. I’m waiting downstairs for you. Twenty minutes, do not forget,” he stated before leaving me with the dress in my hands.

With a sigh I went to the dressing room and changed into the dress, not surprised that it fit me perfectly. I looked through the vast array of shoes laid out of me and chose the brown boots which I imagined wearing.

When I sat down in front of the vanity Adan’s words echoed in my mind and I quickly pulled my hair in a high ponytail. If he wanted my hair any higher than I’d easily wrap it in a bun. I swiped on some lipstick and made up my eyes. I really didn’t know why I wanted to look pretty but I did. And when I finished I grabbed a matching purse, dropped my phone and lipstick in it and left Adan’s room.

He was waiting for me at the foyer like he said and when I came to stand in front of him he smiled and cupped my chin and gave my head a slight tilt.

“You don’t need that much make up, Angel,” he said, causing me to blush.

“I don’t?”

He shook his head. “A simple lipstick is more than enough for you.”

“I just… I wanted to do my eyes,” I explained and his eyes softened.

“Well they look beautiful with or without make up. And make sure to only look at me with those eyes. Now that I have you, I have no intention of sharing you… any part of you. So eyes on me and only me for the rest of your life,” he stated and my breath hitched as dread cackled before wrapping my heart in its dark talons.

“Master…”

“Shh, save your questions and worries for later. Right now we need to go,” he said before dropping his hand from my face and wrapping it around my wrist. He dragged me out of the house and straight to his car. I took the passenger seat while he slid in the driver’s seat and pushed the button to start the car.

“Can you please tell me where we’re going?” I asked.

“Nope,” he said and drove away from the mansion.

I looked left and right, barely able to make out the shape of the trees as the blurred past us. The sun shining bright and warm around us.

Adan drove for a good forty minutes before turning into a secluded street, making me wonder if anyone ever bothered coming in here.

“I just found this place and wanted to try it with you,” he said and parked the car. “And here we are.”

I stepped out of the car and couldn’t help the words that left my mouth. “What the hell?! You brought me here to eat Ramen?”