Heir

Elena

Averting his gaze from the file, he looked up at me, his expression blank. “What did you say?” He arched his perfect-shaped, dark brows, amusement lurking in his ocean eyes.

It was a terrible idea, a terrible idea to even think of challenging him. Even though I wished he hadn’t heard me, he did—he heard me. Yet, he asked that for his own amusement.

I gulped the lump in my throat, my pulse racing. But I refused to show him my nervousness. “It’s nothing. I am just tired.” I paused, hoping to brush it off. “I should sleep.” I turned, aiming for the bed, praying I could just hide under the blanket.

But I had barely taken a step before he stepped forward, blocking my path. “No.” He stated, his tone sharp. “We are not done here.”

As I said nothing, he added, “You were asking about the heir,” he asserted, taking another step closer.

His intense gaze made my movements stiff. My heart throbbed so fast I feared that it would burst out of its spot. “I was kidding.” I said, faking confidence in my voice, my gaze locked onto his.

He was so tall that I almost broke my neck to keep eye contact. “And I was wondering what was so funny.” He said.

“He is looking at us like we are his next meal. Should we be worried or thrilled?” Sameera whispered in my mind.

My breath hitched. I wanted to step back, to put some distance between us, but I was frozen in place as if some invisible force held me in the place. And, I knew if I backed down now, he would definitely see it as weakness and I refused to show him any of my weaknesses.

“I asked—” I forced my lips to curve into what I hoped was a casual smile. “When are we going to work on bringing the mentioned heir?”

His lips twitched, and for a second, I thought he might smile. But he didn’t bless my eyesight with that. Rather he took another step, leaning slightly as he lifted his brows, “Eager, are we?”

Hearing what he had asked, my eyes widened. “No.” I immediately raised my voice.

He nodded slowly, definitely mocking me, “Fine then.” He muttered more to himself than to me as he moved back to the spot he was standing earlier. So normal, so unbothered.

I watched him blankly, as he focused on his file again. What was so important about it?

“Sleep, Elena.” His sudden deep voice almost made me jump. “Tomorrow will be a long day for you.” He said without even glancing at me.

“So caring, isn’t he?” Sameera joined with her usual sarcasm.

I wanted to piss him off but he had a point. Tomorrow would be my first official day as Luna. I knew no one here. Even though his family already felt warm and welcoming, I would still need to conform to them as well.

Swallowing my frustration, I bit back a sigh and walked to the bed. After pondering for a while, I grabbed a few extra pillows, and started arranging them to form a border down the middle of the bed. It was indeed a childish move, but if I had to share a bed with Xavier, I needed some barrier to protect myself from getting strangled.

“Wow, a pillow fortress.” Sameera joked.

A smile escaped my lips. For a moment, I could feel his eyes on me but when I glanced up to confirm, he was still so invested in that damn file.

I focused back on fluffing the pillows as if they were the most important task in the world.

“Does this make you feel better?” Xavier asked when I was done.

I brushed my hands out of habits and then slumped down on the bed, saying, “Just making sure we both get a good night’s sleep. After all, you did say tomorrow would be a long day.”

“How considerate of you.” He murmured while flipping through the pages.

“You are welcome,” I replied, trying to match his nonchalance as I pulled the blanket up to cover my body.

This time, he finally looked my way. But before his dark gaze could unravel me, I forced my eyes shut. Yeah, I should definitely sleep.

The light stayed on for the next twenty minutes, casting an irritating glow through my closed eyelids. I didn’t dare open them, though. Occasionally, I switched sides, trying so damn hard to sleep, but my mind refused to shut down.

I wouldn’t completely blame the light, perhaps it was his presence too. I had always slept alone, even as a child. The idea of sharing a bed with someoneeven if there was a pillow barrier between us felt so foreign.

A muted sigh left my lips as I rolled over to face the pillow barrier. My fingers wrapped around the pillow, seeking comfort in the soft fabric but my fingers brushed against something else—something so cool, not the soft fabric of the pillow.

Flipping my eyes open, I glanced down, and my heart nearly stopped. A black sleeve.

He was sitting on the bed, his back resting against the headboard, a book in his one hand. The other was casually draped across the pillow barrier, his fingers barely an inch away from mine. Goddess! When the hell did he get on the bed?

Before I could think any further, he tilted his head slightly, as if sensing my touch. Our eyes almost met, but fortunately, I was faster, squeezing my eyes shut and pretending to sleep like my life depended on it.

“Smooth move, Elena. Very convincing.” Sameera muttered humorlessly in my head.

Seconds passed—maybe minutes, I couldn’t tell before I heard the soft rustle of paper. The next moment, the light clicked off, eventually plunging the room into darkness.

I woke up to the harsh light assaulting my eyelids, pulling me from my beauty sleep. I squinted my eyes open just to scare the shit out of me.

There he was—Xavier, lying next to me. He had not crossed the pillow border, but was close enough that I could notice the faintest lines of tension on his face. His arm was draped over his eyes, shielding him from the daylight.

His features were relaxed, yet there was a slight furrow in his brow. The slight twitching of his muscles spoke volumes about his discomfort. But his unguarded posture and the steady rise and fall of his chest were oddly soothing. My gaze lingered on him, studying the way his dark hair was tousled and his jaw clenched. He didn’t seem so arrogant right now rather strangely vulnerable.

Just as I was lost in my thoughts while watching him, Xavier’s hand shifted slightly. His arm moved up from his eyes to his head, revealing his eyes.

Our gazes met. For a brief, electric moment, I held my breath, having no idea in which direction I should run.

He blinked his eyes, so blue, so dark yet so calm—locked onto mine. He wasn’t sleeping. I mean, he looked like he didn't get any sleep.

Should I explain? Should I say I wasn’t doing anything? I tried to wake Sameera up in my mind but she was still sleepy.

His lips parted slightly. “We—” He was about to say something, but before he could utter another word, there was a sharp knock on the door. The sound shattered the charged silence between us.

My heart leaped, and I instinctively jerked up. Thank God.

“I will get it.” I muttered as I started to get up to open the door, but before I could make it past the pillow border, Xavier’s hand shot out, grabbing my wrist with surprising firmness.

I glanced back at him, my lips slightly parted in awe.

“Who is there?” He asked while his gaze remained locked on me. I couldn't understand what he was thinking.

The knock came again, more urgent this time, and a familiar voice called out from the other side. “It’s Ivana.”

“Hold on a minute.” He said to his mother.

The next second, without a warning, he pulled me back down onto the bed. A gasp escaped my lips, my heart pounding in my chest as I fell over his body—one hand on his shoulder, the one on the border. Then almost in an urgency, he slipped his hand in my hair and pulled me closer.

The sudden closeness caught me off guard, and before I could even react, he pressed his lips against my neck. My chest rose, something hot stirred within me, reaching my core.

I trembled, my eyes closed as his teeth sank into my neck, biting down on my skin. Heat rushed through my body.

It took him another knock to withdraw his hand from my hair, his eyes searching mine with an almost clinical focus.

“Xavier?” Ivana called.

His Adam’s apple moved slightly before he glanced at the door and replied, “Coming.” His morning voice—fuck—it was fucking hot.

“You enjoyed it. Now, move.” Sameera’s sudden voice knocked some senses into my head and I immediately pulled away from him, sitting up.

Xavier too sat up and hurried to ruin the pillow border from the bed, placing them back to their spots. He slightly rumpled the bedsheet, making it disheveled before he finally got to the door and opened it.

Ivana walked into the room. Her lips curled with a warm smile as spotted me on the bed. “Good morning.”

“Good morning, Lu—” I bit my tongue as she narrowed her gaze playfully. “Mom.” I corrected myself.

Her smile widened. She walked closer to me and gently caressed my face. “Are you awake yet?” For a moment, I felt like her gaze swept over my neck with a mix of curiosity and then approval.

Was it the mark? Was it why he did it?

Goddess. Of course, if he hadn’t marked me, his mother would have been so pissed off.

Gritting my teeth, I glanced at Xavier, who was standing across the door, now studiously avoiding eye contact. Anger flared within my system.

Yet, I managed to stay calm and nod at his mother, “Yes. Entirely.”

“Then, get freshen up and come downstairs with him.” Ivana said, moving her hand from my cheek. “Have breakfast with us.”

I smiled. “Sure. Thank you, mom.”

”My pleasure, sweetheart.” Saying, she tore her gaze away from me but as she started to turn away, her eyes found Xavier. “Why are you wearing that black shirt? Don’t you always sleep shirtless?” She asked.

Looking at her, he scoffed in disbelief. “Mom?”

“You better treat her right, Xavier.” She warned him and it wasn’t even a joke—she meant it. Turning back to me, she asked to confirm, “Is he good to you?”

Finally. It was my turn to mess up with him. Oh, I wholeheartedly manifested some troubles for him.

“Well—” I said, holding back the smile when he glanced at me lifting his brow. “He is a bit cocky. But…”

“How dare he.” Ivana didn't let me finish. Sauntering to her son, she glared at him. “Meet me in the study after breakfast.” She said before stepping out of the room.

Letting out a soft sigh, Xavier ran his hand through his hair, making his morning hair messier.

I enjoyed his frustration until his dark gaze met mine. When I feared his gaze alone would eat me up, he turned on his heel and stepped inside the bathroom.

Was he mad or just disappointed?

“Both mean the same, Sky.” Sameera sighed, sleepiness still lingerinh in her voice.

Well, he didn't look disappointed. He didn't look so pleased either. But again, his face held no emotion at all, so for such a normal person like me, it was impossible to know what he was thinking.

“Why would you care? Didn't he bite you without your consent just to show his mother a while ago?” Sameera asked sternly.

She was right. He had no right to give me an attitude when he was the one who started the game.

Fuck him.