3

~Dawn

“As if.”

“Come on…”

“No.”

“Why not?”

I sigh. “I said no.”

“That not an answer.”

A year was enough time for Rylan to become even more infuriating. Right now, he has decided he wants me to accompany him to dinner tonight, at some fancy restaurant he enjoys. Personally, sitting in an enclosed space with pompous people does not appeal to me. 

I explained my thoughts to him, which he replied with a rather coy smirk, and I knew he didn’t understand. What I have gathered from him so far, is that he enjoys watching me squirm with wariness about everything he puts in front of me. Honestly, I believe he is too comfortable with me now being in his possession.

However, I’m still thinking of a way to change that.

“Go on, Dawn,” Rylan insists. “Someone has already drawn a bath for you.”

A low growl rumbles in my throat. Being told what to do doesn’t really sit well with me. Rylan is just a privileged Alpha of Purity, who fails to act like one. If anything, he should be sporting white all the time and have a few doves perched on his shoulder.

That was how I always imagined him anyway.

Not this tall, slender yet rather defined male, who enjoys wearing the sleekest black clothes that accentuated his waistline and broad shoulder. 

“I’m doing this because I want a bath,” I tell him, poking his chest threateningly, although he only smirks. “Not because you told me too.”

I turn on my heels, glad to confirm with Rylan that I’m happily stubborn.

He was right when he said someone had drawn a bath for me. Not only that, the strange porcelain thing I haven’t seen in a very long time has been dressed better than me. Sweet little rose petals float like miniature sailboats across the expanse of the water. Even a subtle smell of roses and lavender wafts up. 

I had to scour the ensuite to make sure whoever had created this small masterpiece wasn’t hiding in my room somewhere, before I could safely undress.

I did so slowly, letting the gentle satin kiss my limbs on its way off my body.

I should be grateful Rylan is giving me some space, at least. If he was demanding me to stay in his room with him, I think I may have committed to the consequences of 1st degree murder. As I put my first foot into the bath water - the warmth sending a  shiver up my leg, and to my spine - I mentally thank Rylan for his wealth and ability to pamper me, even if it does make me feel a little guilty. Poor Lucy.

Slowly, I let my bare body sink into the silky water, the scent wrapping me like vines of utter pleasure, dragging me down, until my shoulders were completely submerged, and my neck rested on the edge of the bath.

Okay, this I can deal with.

The water doesn’t feel brittle and icy like it did in all the streams I bathed in. Also, there was a lack of mud and slime underneath me, with an absence especially, of a stick in my back. And don’t forget the roses and lavender. None of those exotic flowers growing in the forest.

“Oh Rylan,” I breathe. “I’ll never tell you this, but thank you.”

Never would I give him the satisfaction of hearing those two words. Ever. As soon as I can, I’m going to get out of this place, but first...I think I might just enjoy this bath.

My mind didn’t register the fact that I had fallen asleep, until I woke.

The water around me had cooled, and my entire body had slipped down, until I was lying completely within the water, my ears submerged in the delicate water. Instantly, I started, sitting up, dragging my heavy, wet hair along with me. How long was I asleep? Long enough for the water to cool, and my skin to wrinkle around my fingers.

A knock on the door startled me. “Hey...You alright in there, Dawn?”

Rylan. Damn you Goddess.

“Ah, yeah,” I say breathlessly, standing in the bath. “Could you just give me a minute?”

Rylan may be surprised that I was using a kinder tone, and actually being a little more accommodating of his presence, but I’m blaming it on my very sudden awakening. I’m also stark naked, and not safely sure that I locked the door before I stripped.

There were no further words from Rylan, however, I heard his retreating footsteps.

Picking up a thick, soft towel, I step out of the bath to dry myself off thoroughly. How I wish I hadn’t fallen asleep, because now my hair is soaking wet, and as much as I rub is furiously with the towel, I can’t seem to get any ounce of it close to dry.

When I wander out into the bedroom, towel wrapped around my body, I’m surprised to see Rylan sitting on the edge of the bed.

The window behind him lets in the gentle stream of subtle oranges and golds from the sunset. How long did I sleep for? Already, Lucy is going into her first night without me, and the guilt only seeps deeper into every pore. 

Rylan, however, doesn’t seem fazed by that. The shadows from the window shape his jawline, making him look somehow sinister, even though he had shock written all over his face. And I know why...Right now, he stares at my hands pressing my towel to my chest, before they drift down to my bare legs, slightly dripping from the water I didn’t get to.

“Dawn,” he whispers, his voice a little hoarse.

I’m not necessarily the most confident girl with my body. So having another male stare so directly at me makes me wary. It seems Rylan feels the same way, as his gaze swept up to my raised eyebrow, he feels the need to answer to my qualms.

“I’m not supposed to think so wickedly about someone,” he tells me, his eyes like an open window into his emotions. Internally, he is beating himself to the core, trying to teach his mind to be the perfect Alpha of Purity. My sudden ability to see this gives me a shock to my system, as I think about what it really means.

There it is. His weakness. 

He’s my mate...Of course I can see and feels these things along with him. 

“What are you thinking?” I can’t help but ask in a soft whisper. In a single moment, I have been dragged down into his spell of enchantment.

He instantly shook his head. “Nothing I am allowed to...There has been a dress left for you. I hope you like it.”

And just like that, he was out the door.

I was left, in all my towel like glory, to think over what in the world just happened. There was apart of Rylan that was being respectful to his religion, not wanting to have those thoughts that the Goddess wouldn’t like, until we were mated. There was another part of him struggling to control that, wanting to succumb to his natural advances.

Perhaps if I was interested at all in pursuing our relationship further, then maybe I would have had a bit of fun trying to tear down that wall of adamant.

The dress that had been chosen for me to wear was mouthwatering. The fabric was a rich, royal blue colour, with a bodice that perfectly sculpted in curves I didn’t have; having lost them after a life in the forest. For a moment, as I slipped the dress on, watching the gemstones glittering lustrous as they hit the light, I felt beautiful. I wasn’t that sickly girl anymore.

In that moment, I am strong. And I can get through this.

Lucy played in my mind, as I paraded back down the stairwell, my dress sashaying around my ankles almost dangerously. Like a proper gentleman, Rylan was waiting for me by the main door, and I almost forgot I was a kidnapping victim.

“Wow,” Rylan says, a bewildered expression gracing his features. “You look stunning.”

I’ve never been the kind of girl to try make herself look better than she actually does. If things look good on me, then that is a bonus, however, my wet hair suggests I don’t really care. I can’t make him see me break down any further into his spell of being my mate. 

“You too,” I say, my tone bland, yet I know I mean it. I can’t help but admire how impressive he looks in a suit, and how he manages to make it look so casual, yet so proper at the same time. 

He holds his hand out to me. He’s wearing gloves.

It shouldn’t have taken me by surprise. Gloves are a common fashion feature to everyone males outfit. It is also a sign of respect in some twisted way, yet it had an entirely different reason. We haven’t touched in over a year. No sparks for that long. He is protecting himself from what he felt earlier in the bedroom. 

He loops his arm through mine, opening the door for me. The night air is like a cool slap in the face at first, as I imagine Lucy without my body heat.

As we step outside, I get a feel for where we are a little more. The courtyard that is lit aptly, has an elegant sports car parked there, with one door open to reveal a leather interior. It’s a daunting sight, since my only mode of transport for this past year has been my two feet and no shoes.

Rylan leads me outside, seemingly calm. I could rip away from him right now and make a break from it. Is he not worried about me shifting, to potentially escape his grasp?

Of course not, he would easily catch me.

“Careful,” he murmurs, as I clamber uneasily into the car. Inside, it smells heavily of the leather that coats it, and for a moment, I feel a little light headed. If possible, I would have done something to get away from this situation, to get back to my little sister.

“Where are we going?” I decide to ask, not wanting to be kept in the dark any longer.

Rylan smiles slightly, and the expression lights up his handsome features. “It’s a small dining place. Maybe you will like it.”

I didn’t say anymore, until we arrived. The place wasn’t in the main central business district, or even close to the city. It was a modest little restaurant that was hardly populated by anyone tonight, and seeing it made me a little excited, yet my stomach will most likely disagree. This kind of food may be too rich for me to handle.

Rylan helped me out of the car, making sure not to let go of me for a single second, so not opportunity would arise for me to make an escape. She shouldn’t be worried about that in this dress…

When we make it to the door, Rylan pauses.

“Tonight, you’re mine again,” he whispers in my ear, before he swings the door open.