Chapter 4

Amelia’s P.O.V.

To my utter surprise, a man rose up from the water of the swimming pool, making a loud cacophony of splashes. I shrieked in fear unknowingly and pulled my legs out of the water, pressing them to my chest.

That man ran his hand in his soaking hair, moving them back and looked up at me. My eyes widened to its full length when I recognized the face.

It was Nathan.

He groaned aloud, shaking his head at me. I got frozen for few seconds, still couldn't believe my eyes. He rubbed his palms against his face to wipe off the water from his face. My eyes followed the water droplets that were going down to his naked chest.

Wait, naked chest?

The sight brought roses to my cheeks. Instantly, I got back to my sense and stood on my feet. He swam underwater towards the end and jumped out of the pool.

My eyebrows rose in surprise when I got to see the full view of his body. He was just in plain black shorts. Something tickled in my stomach as my eyes stubbornly scrutinized his masculine and robust body.

"Why are you here at this time of the night?" I heard his raspy voice. It broke my haze. My gaze met with his, feeling nervous for no reason.

"I...I was..." I lost my train of thoughts as I observed water driblets dripping from his hair, slipping down his neck, to his chest wall, to his belly where my gaze distracted as he rubbed the white towel there and dried the moisture.

I quickly moved my eyes in another direction. Shutting them momentarily to recollect my thoughts, I glanced back at him. He was giving me a bemused look, still waiting for my answer.

The pounding heart and the frightening feelings brought me back to my senses and I recalled the situation I was in. "I, I was just sitting there....lo-oking at the sky and then, I saw a naked.. I mean, you. I thought there w-was some intruder. Gosh, I was so scared." I explained while stuttering, putting my hand on my chest to calm down my heart.

He quirked a brow at me, making me realize that I stuttered unnecessarily. I composed my posture and moved my hand from my chest. He broke the eye contact, lowered his head down to the floor while drying his hair from the towel.

If I had seen correctly, then I noticed a faint, suppressed smile on his mouth. Confusion crossed my features.

Why was he smiling? I wondered.

"How could you stay in the water that long? I mean, I didn't have a clue that there was someone underwater." I managed to ask a question.

He looked up at me again, throwing the towel on one of the folding, backpack chairs and taking another dry one but still left his bare upper body on full display. I was again distracted.

"I can stay in the water even longer. It's just that I'm tired today and I wanted you to know about my presence."

"Oh." I was surprised. It means he knew I was here.

I couldn't just focus on conversing with him when he was standing shirtless in front of me. Under the moonlight, his skin was gleaming with a soft silver glow.

Tingling started in my hands wanting to trace his skin. I closed my fists involuntarily.

"Why are you staring at me as if you've never seen a man's body before?" His voice broke my reverie. One corner of his mouth lifted into a smirk. My mouth fell open at his mocking remark, enlarging my pupils.

I quickly pulled myself together and hid my embarrassment. Although, I was sure that my cheeks were tinted with pink shade. "I was not staring at you."

"You are blushing." He looked at me with an amused expression.

I frowned at him and immediately looked away, probably the tinge of pink shade would've increased on my face.

He was actually right. I was evidently acting as if I had never seen a shirtless man before.

Since our first encounter, Nathan was shaking my sanity due to his seductive looks. I was terribly failing to hold my horses though I was not allowed to think of him this way knowing our situation.

“This is not good.” My mind snapped at me.

Again the engagement matter popped in my mind to get me blank.

“I should leave now." I tried acting casual. I turned in the opposite direction and started walking.

"Hey, wait." His voice disrupted my ambling.

I turned to him when he got uttering again, “Can you sit for some minutes with me?”

He looked disturbed for some reason.

I wondered what could be the reason but couldn't get to utter anything though.

Putting the towel on, covering his back, he got seated putting his legs in the water and turned to me for once.

When I still stood in my place, he uttered somewhat sadly, “Aren’t you coming?”

That's it.

I couldn't get to stay in my place anymore and my legs forward on their own towards him.

I sat beside him, putting my legs in the water.

Both of us remained all silent. I looked at him for few times only to find him looking into the water blankly.

Silence occupied the whole area. I didn't know what was going on in his mind.

At some point, breaking the silence, I got uttering while trying utmost to sound normal, “Selections of rings got done?”

He gave me a questioning look only to get me to utter again, “I heard you are getting engaged.”

He gave me an all blank look as he uttered, “Shouldn’t I?”

I got all silent at that and looked away. I didn't dare to utter anything.

Was I even worth answering this question of his?

My mind got uttering immediately, “No.” only to get me back to reality.

I immediately got my legs out of the water and stood on it.

With teary eyes, I left the place after uttering, “I should leave now.” giving him no time to say anything.

With a thought in mind, “I would never come to this place again.”

Nathan’s P.O.V.

Amelia left without bothering to give me some time to answer her and without turning back to me for once.

I kept staring at her receding figure until it got out of my sight and then again turned to the water and searched for the face, I was staring at earlier but this time I got only me there. Alone like always.

I didn't know why but a desire started arising in me to be with her. When she kept looking at me, I could feel the same thing in her too.

But I wondered..

What was it that got her attracted to me?

My status, my money or was it something else!

When I started feeling cold, I came back to reality and forwarded towards the entrance.

I entered into my room and changing into black loose pyjama and a grey t-shirt. I got on the bed and closed my eyes and at some point in fell asleep.

For the next two days, I didn't get to see Amelia not even for a single time. Though I was with Katrina who was all busy with her shopping, my mind was occupied with her thoughts.

I tried to talk to Katrina about ourselves, our different mentalities but she just shrugged off.

I wanted to talk my mind but no one was there like always.

Amelia's P.O.V.

After our encounter by the swimming pool lounge, I got careful not to face him.

His disturbed face kept popping out in my heart but I chose to listen to my mind.

Getting me to remember my position, his mother entered the kitchen and spoke up, seeing me, “Hey, little maid. Bring a coffee for me in the living room.” and left from there.

Taking a deep breath, I shut the thought and making a coffee, I forwarded towards the living room.

Completing our work, Mom and me got back to the cottage. Mom fell asleep early because of tiredness from work.

This got me felt guilty again.

I wished to be graduated soon and find a job to free ourselves from working like this. But there was no way for it to happen anytime soon.

Later at night, when the negative thoughts corrupted my mind, I decided to go for a walk to get some fresh air.

Thoughtlessly I walked towards the garden.

The darkness of the night resembled to the darkness inside me. I stood still and let my mind to take me back to the previous years of my life when Dad was alive.

All the bitter sweet memories related to my early schooling, early teens shuffled through my brain. He tried die heart till his last day to give us a happy and comfortable life. But that damn accident..

Remembering the worst incident of my life got tears rolling down my cheeks.

Sudden and faint sound of footsteps broke my chain of thoughts. I wiped off the tears and turned around.

I saw Nathan going towards the inside of the house. He stopped walking when he glanced at me. A smile crept on his lips suddenly. He stood there for few seconds then he resumed his walk but towards me this time.

But getting me confused, he stumbled once. I noticed his legs were wobbling as if he had troubled moving them forward. He took another step forward while rubbing his forehead. I understood something was wrong and reached him with longer steps.

"Are you okay?" I lightly touched his arm.

He turned his head and stared into my eyes for few seconds before replying, "Were you crying?"

His voice was hoarse. In confusion, I reached my hand to his forehead without answering him.

I gave him a shocked look as I got uttering, “You are feverish.”

"It's nothing but you didn't answer me." He replied in the same hoarse tone.

I couldn't help uttering in confusion, “Are you even serious! You are just burning up.”

He turned around abruptly and again tried to walk, but his wobbly self didn't let him. I put aside my confusions and followed him, "Let me help you. I will take you to your room."

Without waiting for his permission, I put his arm around my shoulder and got close to him to give him support. His expressions perplexed as he gazed at me. I could feel he stiffened his whole body for a moment as if he was sensitive to my touch.

"You can use me for a support." I offered. He got staring at me for some moments and then slightly nodded..

We both started ambling in the direction of his room.

He got closer to me as we started stepping up the stairs. I got bemused and nervous at the same time by his sudden pull. I felt shortness of breath, but he looked nonchalant and completely unaffected. The sudden desire in me to never get away from his warmth, his softness surprised me.

My heart skipped a beat in reaction to that thought indicating some corner of my heart liked the idea.

Despite all the circumstances, I couldn't stop myself to think of him as a man which was forbidden...

Nathan's P.O.V.

Being awake in the morning, I opened my eyes slowly. I tried to got out of the comforter but something got me stopped.

Then my eyes fell on the peacefully sleeping figure right beside me.

The memory of last night made its way to my mind and unknowingly a smile crept on my lips.

It's happening first time to me in my life. My thought got interrupted when I saw her moving in her sleep. Few hair strains came on her face.

I got the hair move aside from her face. A dim light was on in the room and in that she was looking breathtakingly beautiful. I kept staring at her face for a while until it hit my mind that who was she.

She was the daughter of our maid. Whatever I was doing or feeling was wrong to the point it would get to be called forbidden at least to my status loving family. But for some reason it felt right. None but with her, it felt all right.

Then all of a sudden she opened her eyes only to find me staring at her. A silence occupied the room. I was still staring at her but she kept avoiding my gazes.

At some point without uttering anything, she tried to get away from me but I got hold of her hand making her stay in her position as I got uttering, "Wait."

But before I could say anything else, the door of my room got widen open and a voice came getting us all startled...