TheDoor Between Us
1132 Words
Katherine could barely sleep.
Each time she would close her eyes, the image of Damian standing in his balcony would flash behind her eyelids.
"You need to leave before it is too late."
"What exactly am I supposed to fear?"
"Me."
She let out an exasperated groan as she rolled over in bed.
What kind of man talks like that?
An arrogant, dramatic millionaire, it appeared.
Sunlight was flooding through the large floor-to-ceiling window in her lavish new bedroom. It was more spacious than the rest of her apartment in the city.
The bed was comfortable.
The furniture was expensive.
The view stunning.
Nevertheless, she somehow felt confined.
Getting out of bed, she turned toward the bathroom.
In the middle, she spotted another door.
One she had not paid much attention to yesterday.
Confused, she moved closer.
The door was locked.
Curious, she tried to open it once more.
Still locked.
Weird.
Very few rooms have a door leading into another one.
Suddenly, a knocking at the door broke her train of thought.
"Miss Bennett?"
A housekeeper called from the other side.
"Breakfast is ready."
Katherine thanked her and got dressed very fast.
After twenty minutes, she walked into the dining room.
But there was only one guest there.
Sure thing.
Damian.
He sat at the dining table, and apparently, he was reading something on his tablet.
Again, he rolled up his sleeves.
His black hair looked untidy.
It would be funny to speculate about whether he had such a bad night as she did.
However, she reminded herself that she despised him.
Or at least she should.
Not taking his eyes off the screen, Damian said.
"You are staring."
Katherine froze.
"I didn't even glance at you."
"But you don't have to to realize that you're staring."
That man was really self-confident.
She moved a chair.
"Anyone ever told you how irritating you are?"
Only then he raised his head.
Those ice-blue eyes locked with hers.
"Frequently."
To Katherine's surprise, it was almost like a joke.
Almost.
She took her seat opposite him.
Coffee was served almost immediately.
Silence settled between them.
Curiously, there was nothing awkward about it.
Instead, it seemed... electric.
As if every single conversation between them was some kind of silent battle.
Finally, Katherine broke the silence.
"I have a connecting door."
Her fingers lingered around her coffee mug.
For only a split second.
But Katherine saw.
Interesting.
"So what?"
"Whose room does that connect to?"
A long silence followed.
And then Damian sipped on his coffee.
"To mine."
Katherine almost spit out her coffee.
"Pardon?"
"You asked."
"But why should our rooms be connected?"
"I didn't build this house."
No change in his expression whatsoever.
However, something strange happened to Katherine's heartbeat.
This was absurd.
Connecting door?
From her room to Damian's room?
Someone really thought this was a good idea.
"You could've said that yesterday."
"I forgot."
Big liar.
He knew everything.
Katherine could tell now.
Just as she opened her mouth to speak, Damian's phone went off.
Instantly, his expression changed.
It was instantaneous.
Cold.
Controlled.
Dangerous.
There was something about it that intrigued Katherine.
"Bad news?"
He raised his eyes.
She thought for a moment he wasn’t going to say anything at all.
But then:
"Business."
And it explained nothing, but apparently, everything.
They ate breakfast shortly after that.
Katherine spent the better part of the day looking around the mansion.
The place was ridiculously enormous.
About an hour into it, she managed to end up in the library.
The walls were full of books.
There was a huge window looking out into the gardens.
And sitting on his own at the very end of the room —
Damian again.
Katherine stopped in her tracks.
"What are the odds?"
"Not moving your eyes from that paper," he said, "Considering I’ve got you living under my roof now? High."
She rolled her eyes.
"Charming, aren't you?"
"No."
"Just with me?"
This time he actually looked up at her.
His stare took her by surprise.
For a few seconds, they both stayed silent.
Then, Damian closed the folder before him.
"Why are you here?"
It was like he was talking about something personal.
Katherine crossed her arms.
"I was seeking some place where I could be alone."
"You did find one."
"Well, not until I found you."
She noticed something menacing in his eyes.
He wasn't angry.
He looked amused.
And she found him looking amused quite attractive.
Katherine hated that about herself.
Especially since he stood up.
He was tall seated.
Upstanding Damian was intimidatingly tall.
Instinctively, Katherine took a step back.
She wouldn't.
"You are quite the strong-willed lady."
Her surprise showed on her face.
"But so are you, Mr. Krylov."
Damian smiled.
Really smiled.
For just a second.
It didn't last long, but Katherine did see it.
That was a win for her.
Until Damian began walking towards her.
He made three steps.
Then he stood just a few feet from her.
Too close for comfort.
"So, why are you nervous?"
"You're not making me nervous at all."
"Liar."
The word came softer this time.
Intimate.
And Katherine could feel it.
It was very, very dangerous.
No, not because she had threatened him.
Not because Damian was someone she couldn’t stand.
Quite the contrary, actually.
It frightened her.
Suddenly there was a loud bang in the hallway.
The spell dissipated immediately.
Both of them looked in the direction of the noise.
A servant passed by the entrance to the library.
Damian’s face went back to its usual mask-like expression.
The mood was over.
In a blink of an eye.
Katherine loathed the disappointment inside of her.
Apparently, Damian noticed it as well.
For a brief moment, his eyes rested upon her face.
And then he took a step back.
Creating space.
Protecting himself.
Protecting both of them.
“Stay away from that door.”
Katherine blinked.
“What door?”
“The connecting one.”
Her heart missed a beat.
“You’ve locked it?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
His face tensed.
He obviously found the question very unpleasant.
So did I.
At least now we were equal.
After a few seconds of heavy silence, Damian finally spoke up.
“Because sometimes certain boundaries shouldn’t be crossed.”
Katherine glared at him.
To her, those words seemed to mean much more than just a door.
Given the expression on Damian's face, she realized that he understood.
Before she had a chance to pose any further questions, he left without looking back.
Abandoning Katherine once more inside the library.
But not in the way she thought.
Not like last night when she had been worried about what he had told her.
Rather she was considering the locked door between their rooms.
- Writer
