“I could, but Mr. Raines told me not to. He said if you want your space then I shouldn’t bother you,” he replied. “I have food if you want it though.”
I was legitimately surprised by that. If I was a prisoner, I wouldn’t have had a say in the matter. It was just one sign, albeit a small one, that maybe there was room for compromise with Gio and me, but it was going to take a lot more than him telling his staff to leave me alone to earn my trust back.
Standing up and walking over to the door, I opened it and the staff member jumped a little. He had my food on a tray, and I reached out for it and took it from him, then he glanced inside. “Oh. You cleaned.”
“Yes. I made a mess,” I responded.
“But the glass…” He replied. “If it’s okay with you, I can send our cleaning staff up to vacuum the area and make sure it’s safe for you.” Then he held up his hands. “But only if it’s okay. Mr. Raines was clear that we shouldn’t force our way in here if you don’t want us in here.”
I gave the man a gentle smile. “It’s okay. That would be helpful, thank you.”
He seemed to relax a little with my smile. “Of course, and…” He pointed up at the camera. “If it’s also okay, I’ll have that removed.”
I recoiled a little bit. “What?”
“Mr. Raines wants the camera removed,” he said. “The feed has already been disconnected, but the camera will be removed as well.”
“He’s removing the camera? How will he keep an eye on me?” I asked.
The staff member shrugged. “I’m just doing what he asked me to.”
“Um… okay. You can do both, the cleaning and the camera. I don’t mind.”
He nodded with a grin and scuttled off, likely to go get the people and supplies he needed, and to my surprise, he didn’t seem to be concerned about the door being shut and locked. I could have left right then and there, but I didn’t want to make a break for it just yet. There was no hiding the fact that if I felt like there was a road of peace with Gio that I would rather take that road. I wasn’t sure why, but there was just something about him that intrigued me.
Leaving the door cracked, I walked over to the table and sat down to eat. Eventually, some staff members returned, and I noticed that the leading staff member looked in and looked around the room to ensure I was still inside. I waved and they nodded and then came in to start cleaning up the kitchen and taking down the camera. By the time I was done eating, they were as well and left the room quietly.
Only one staff member lingered to ask, “Mr. Raines is wondering if it would be okay if he brought your breakfast in the morning?”
I appreciated the effort being put forth and said, “That would be fine.”
He nodded at me and said, “Goodnight, Miss Narzand,” and left.
Stupidly, I found myself putting extra attention into my appearance the next morning that Gio would be coming by. The room he’d provided for me came with a fully stocked closet, so I imagined everything in it were looks he liked. I picked out one of the sundresses and a pair of wedges and wondered briefly if he just guessed at my size or if the clothes existed before I got there.
Around eight in the morning, while I was sitting on the couch flipping through the variety of streaming services I had at my disposal, there was a knock at the door. I didn’t say anything at first, to see if Gio would just enter of his own accord, but then I heard him say, “Avion?”
I cleared my throat and called out. “Yes?”
“Can I come in?” he asked. “I have breakfast.”
I stood up off of the couch and walked over to the door and opened it. He too appeared to have put a little extra effort into his appearance. His beard was cleanly groomed, and he smelled strongly of aftershave and body shampoo. He had his hair swept back and was wearing a button-up with suspenders attached to slacks and a pair of sleek black shoes.
It’d be so much easier to navigate dealing with him if he weren’tsogood-looking.
“Good morning,” he greeted timidly.
I kept my gaze mostly averted from his. “Good morning.”
He held the tray up almost like an offering. “Can I come in?” I stood aside and he took it as a sign and entered. The first thing he did when he was inside the room was look up at where the camera used to be hanging. “They removed it. Good.”
“Yes,” I confirmed. “Thank you for having it removed. Are there any others I should know about?”
He set the tray of food down on the table and then turned around to face me. “No. That was the only one, I swear.” He seemed earnest. “Um… How… Uh…” I watched him fumble over his words and shift back and forth awkwardly. It was adorable. “How are you feeling this morning.”
“Embarrassed,” I said honestly. “I overreacted.”
His eyes widened a little. “No, you didn’t overreact. You had every right to be as upset as you were.”
