CASSIA
After I finished reading the contract, I finally stepped out of my room. It was already seven in the evening.
When I walked into the living room, I saw Kairos, Lily, and Mrs. Moore seated at the dining table, chatting like a happy family while the other maids moved around them, serving dinner.
The moment they noticed me, the conversation stopped.
Mrs. Moore's expression changed instantly. The smile on her face disappeared, replaced by a hardened glare. Lily shifted closer to Kairos, placing her hand over his and shooting me a poisonous look.
And Kairos?
He seemed the least interested in any of it. He was still staring at his phone, his eyes narrowed at whatever was on the screen.
Tilly, one of the maids serving them, brought out a plate and placed it in front of me.
I shook my head, offering her a small smile.
"Thank you, but I'm not hungry," I said politely. I wasn't here to eat. I had something else to do first.
Tilly frowned and glanced at Kairos, as if unsure whether she should listen to me or not.
"Ma'am, you haven't eaten all day…"
"I'm fine," I forced out through clenched teeth.
Right then, a sharp pang twisted in my stomach, reminding me that I actually hadn't eaten all day.
And that was mostly because of Mrs. Moore.
She was in charge of the kitchen. After what I had said to her earlier, I wouldn't be surprised if she refused to give me any food at all.
Francesca had done that countless times whenever she was angry with me. No food. No television. No stepping out of the house. No friends allowed over.
Fortunately, I had learned how to cook at an early age, which made me less dependent on the maids. Sometimes, a few of them would secretly bring me food, risking their positions in the house.
But this wasn't my home.
I doubted I had any such rights here. Kairos had only brought me here for reasons best known to him.
I brought you here for your sake.
I scoffed inwardly at the memory of his words.
"Are you trying to starve yourself just to get my attention?" Kairos's voice broke through my thoughts.
He lifted his head and looked at me, one eyebrow raised.
"Or are you mad about what you read and trying to get my attention by refusing to eat?"
Technically, he had said the same thing twice. I wasn't trying to get his attention.
But yes, I was angry.
"Serve her and no more questions," he said the moment I opened my mouth to protest.
"Yes, sir," Tilly replied obediently.
I shot Kairos a glare from across the table. He only shrugged before returning his attention to his phone.
Dinner was terrible.
Throughout the entire meal, I forced each bite down my throat, fighting the urge to scream and throw the plate at both Kairos and Lily.
They had clearly decided to make my evening miserable. Lily was doing it deliberately.
Kairos, on the other hand, I couldn't quite figure out. His attention barely left his phone, as though I didn't even exist.
She was even worse than her mother, who had been fawning over Kairos earlier. Lily was practically glued to him, kissing his hands and cheeks. At one point, I honestly thought she might get naked, climb onto the table and present herself to him right there.
And that wasn't even the worst of it. She started talking about the blood ring.
According to her, only a woman of ill repute would ever end up in a place like that.
As if I had chosen to sell myself. As if I had willingly stood before hundreds of lustful men waiting to buy me and use me however they pleased.
She made it sound like everything was my fault.
Of course she didn't know the real story. She had no idea what had happened after my father died, or how I had been betrayed by the very people who were supposed to protect me.
When dinner finally ended, I let out a quiet sigh of relief. I stood and started toward the staircase, convinced I wouldn't get the chance to speak to Kairos alone tonight.
But suddenly a hand grabbed mine.
"Come with me," Kairos murmured.
He didn't even give me time to respond before pulling me along with him. Within seconds, I was inside his office.
My back hit the wall.
Kairos loomed over me like an evil spirit. I shoved at his chest, trying to push him away, but he didn't move an inch.
Instead, he placed both hands on the wall beside my head, trapping me between his arms.
I swallowed, staring into his narrowed eyes.
"Your answer," he grunted.
"How about you go fuck yourself," I flung at him.
Kairos's eyes glinted, his mouth curving in an unamused smile.
"I've done that plenty of times, I should let you know," he said, leaning closer, his voice dropping to a low murmur. "Having a warm hole clamped around you is better."
God. Did he have to be so crude every time we were alone?
I tried to pretend his words didn't affect me, but the heat creeping up my cheeks made it impossible.
"Now tell me your answer. I am not a very patient man, Tesoro," he said, cupping my right cheek.
A shiver ran down my spine at the touch of his calloused palm. I bit my lower lip, then ran my tongue over it. Kairos's jaw tightened, his grip following suit.
"You're doing this because you want to take over my father's position," I said.
The bastard had written it in the contract.
He wanted me to be his mistress so he could become the Don. I scoffed at the thought. How exactly was I supposed to make that happen when no one even acknowledged me?
My father's properties probably belonged to his brothers, his wife, his other children, or some distant relatives by now.
Certainly not me.
If anyone had cared even a little, they would have filed a missing person report when I disappeared. I had seen nothing of the sort.
I was irrelevant.
"You killed my father and still expect his daughter to help make you something that's impossible?" I shook my head in disbelief.
"Are you agreeing to go back to the blood ring?" Kairos asked calmly.
"No. No!" I snapped, shaking my head and scowling at him.
That wasn't even an option.
"Then…?"
"I can't give you that position, Kairos," I said matter-of-factly. "If you're trying to punish me for my father's actions against you—"
His palm slammed against the wall beside my head, cutting me off.
A sharp gasp escaped my lips as my heart lurched. Kairos's eyes had darkened, fury burning in them as he snarled.
"I am punishing you for you, Cassy," he growled. "If this were about that terrible father of yours, you would already be dead."
My eyes widened at the venom in his voice.
Punishing me… for me?
What the hell had I ever done to him?