But it doesn’t help.
This weekend is supposed to be an adventure, a new thrill. But this house feels too alive, too aware, and from the moment I arrived, everything in me is screaming to leave.
Except I won’t.
And I don’t even know if it’s because I want to stay—because I want to see where this leads—or because I’m too fucking stubborn to back out now.
I wipe my face and toss the towel aside, then head toward the bedroom door. I turn the handle and step into the hallway.
The corridor is long, dimly lit by sconces that flicker like candle flames, casting strange shadows along the walls, shadows that shift as I move, lengthening and twisting in ways that make my skin crawl. Each step I take brings a soft creak from the wooden floors, the sound lingering in the air.
By the time I reach the grand staircase, my muscles are coiled tight.
Why the hell am I so on edge?
I exhale, my shoulders relaxing a bit, when I spot Adrian at the bottom, casually leaning against the banister. His posture is relaxed, and yet . . . there’s something about the way he’s standing—so still, so composed.
Almost predatory.
Fuck, this house is messing with me. Could be the fact this isn’t my house. My domain where I’m in control.
Get your shit together, pussy.
I shove my hands into my pockets, brows furrowing. “Left my mask in the room. Should I go get it?”
“No need.”
My eyes narrow. “Yet, you’re wearing yours.”
Adrian’s gaze remains locked on mine as I descend the staircase, and when I reach the bottom, his lips curve into that same knowing smile, as if he’s already ten steps ahead of me, already knows how this is going to end. “Remember, Jasper. This weekend is about letting go.”
I huff, squaring my shoulders. “So you keep saying.”
“Are you ready for that?”
Am I?
I don’t know.
But I nod anyway, because that’s why I’m here, isn’t it?
“Then let’s begin.”
Chapter 5
Adrian’s hand doesn’t touch mine as he leads me down yet another endless corridor, but it might as well—the pull is fucking magnetic. The air around us thickens, turning warmer, more intimate as I trail behind him.
The manor is a labyrinth, each hallway stretching out like veins beneath skin. The flickering light from the sconces lining the walls cast long shadows that seem to reach out and wrap around me, tugging me forward.
Deeper.
Like even if I wanted to turn around, I wouldn’t know the way back.
We eventually stop in front of wooden doors carved with intricate symbols I can’t quite make out in the dim light. Adrian pauses for a second, fingers hovering over the ornate handle, then pushes the doors open with a soft groan of ancient hinges.
“Holy fucking shit.”
Mirrors are everywhere. The walls, the ceiling even. It’s like stepping into a broken kaleidoscope.
