"Wait," I call out.
Jackson stops and turns to me. "Yeah?" he prompts.
My eyes scan the room, trying to think of something to say. And the only thing that comes to mind is… "Thank you," I say softly.
"You're welcome," he replies with a short nod before leaving the room.
After the door closes, the room feels empty again. His presence fills the room with some kind of warmth and security that I can't even describe. I feel safe when he's around, but I know it's ridiculous. Clearly, my mind is playing tricks on me again.
I need to push these absurd feelings aside and move forward with my plan. I can pretend to love Jackson for a short while. Hell, I've been pretending most of my life. It comes very easily to me now. I need to use him to get what I want and need, just like I've been used my entire life.
And this is all just temporary anyway. I know deep down that, if I allow myself to get attached to anyone or anything, it will be a huge mistake and ultimately my downfall.
Eventually, I'll be walking away from all of this…including the people in this house.
CHAPTER 14
JACKSON
OVER THE NEXT few days, Katerina is…different. And I don't mean different good. I mean differentweird.
Instead of being the somewhat hateful bitch she had been before with a snarky attitude when I first met her, she's somehow morphed into a sweet and kind girl who flirts and giggles. I mean, seriously, she fuckinggiggles!
It's like a scene straight out of the movie,The Body Snatchers, or some shit.
"She's acting strange," Wraith remarks over breakfast one morning. "Maybe she was abducted by aliens," he suggests with a shrug of his shoulders as his teeth tear into a croissant.
I give him the side eye. "Dude, it's like you're reading my fucking mind," I mutter under my breath.
We both stare at the mysterious creature as she gathers food on her plate from the enormous breakfast spread that Maria concocted this morning. Then, Katerina turns and, with a big smile on her face, walks over to the long table and takes a seat to the left of me.
When she notices me and Wraith staring at her like she grew a third head overnight or something, she glances between us both and asks, "What?"
"Nothing," we both say at the same time before hanging our heads and focusing our attention back to our plates.
After a few moments of silence, Katerina is finally the one to break it. "So, I noticed there's a gym down the hall," she says.
Yes, I've been watching her on the camera feeds snooping around the manor. She even tried to open Lucien's office door, but that shit is locked down tight like Fort Knox with a code she'll never figure out. She's been searching every room, taking a different wing each night. And I have to wonder when she sleeps…orifshe sleeps.
Hell, when the fuck am I even sleeping if I'm watching her all the time?
Ugh, I don't mind that she's trying to become familiar with her surroundings, but I'm not putting my guard down around her whatsoever. I mean, shedidkill her husband right in front of me, after all. I still don't know the full story behind that, but I'd like to. Quite frankly, I'd like to understandhera whole hell of a lot better.
"Am I allowed to use the gym equipment?" she asks me with those big, blue eyes that always seem to put me under a hypnotic spell.
"Sure," I tell her before taking a sip of orange juice.
"Great," she says with a sweet smile before turning her attention back to her breakfast.
Wraith and I exchange a glance before he shakes his head and stands up. The giant of a man is done eating his third helping already while I'm still working on my first. I'm surprised Lucien doesn't subtract Wraith's food bill out of his paychecks. I mean, the man eats his body weight in food every meal.
After Wraith is gone, Katerina seems to visibly relax. Does Wraith make her feel uncomfortable? If so, why? I don't think Wraith has done anything to make her feel that way. But if he has…I'd like to know about it.
"Got a problem with Wraith?" I ask her bluntly out of curiosity.
Her eyes meet mine in surprise. I think she's shocked that I read her so well. I'm good at reading people, but of course, she doesn't know that about me. She doesn't know me at all.
"No…it's just…he reminds me of my husband's old bodyguards. Big, tall, Russian," she explains.
