1“Kyle, she was just joking.” James hopped down off the kitchen counter to stand in front of Alessa.“James I am not sure why you're up at this hour, half naked with one of my workers, but I suggest you go put some clothes on before we talk.” Kyle calmly said. “He was keeping me company,” Alessa yelled out from behind James.“Oh god. Why are you poking the bear?” James turned around to give Alessa a warning look. “Why do you tiptoe around him all the time?”“Because he is my boss!”“Well, he is not my boss.” “Ok, he is our landlord. Can you stop snapping at him every time you see him?” James’s voice sounded calm and urging all at the same time.“That's enough James. Get some sleep. Unlike some people, you actually have work to do.”“Night boss,” James said, letting out a long exhausted whistle as he made his way to the basement. Kyle came closer but his eyes were on Alessa’s neck. To where her now healing rock scar was. She put her hand over it to cover its current progress. “So

After the call with Kyle, Alessa was determined to prove him wrong. Did he think she liked him? Never! So once Madison and Alessa got back after work she knocked on James' door. “Hello!” James said once he opened the door.“Hey! So what are you doing tonight?” She awkwardly asked.“Me? Free as a bird. Why?”“Want to get dinner again? No getting drunk on my part today.” “Oh I thought after you confessed to Kyle last night—““What? That wasn’t a confession. I was drunk and had no clue what I was saying!” Did last night really sound like a confession? What the hell had she said? “Look, either way. I promised Kyle I would keep away. I want to respect his boundaries.” James sighed, visibly uncomfortable.“You let him dictate your personal life as well? I mean, it’s just one dinner. It doesn't even have to be a date.” “I don’t know—““You're going to say no to a pretty girl? Plus, I paid for dinner last night, you're not going to return the favor?” Alessa batted her eyes. Finally, Jame

Alessa decided to avoid both the men going forward. Especially James, whose motivation was unclear to her after that day. Every time they got out of their rooms at the same time or ran into each other in the hallways, she ignored him, even though he kept trying to talk to her. Kyle on the other hand was easy to avoid, probably because he was avoiding her as well. It had been a week since the bedroom fiasco and she had only seen Kyle in passing once, and he was too busy talking to John about something important, the only thing she caught him saying was, “We need Jason’s money.”Other issues were brewing however that caused her to forget all about her issues. After her doctor's appointment, Madison came crying into her room where Alessa was working. “They said I am going to have a very hard time conceiving.” She cried into Alessa's lap when she asked her why she was crying. “It will be okay.”“I don’t have any time. My eggs are dying as we speak.” She bellowed louder.“Have you talk

Maurice had taken Alessa to a guest room and helped Alessa slip into a tight green dress that made her white skin shine and clashed with her red hair. The dress stopped well above her knee and left nothing to the imagination. She looked like she was cosplaying a dirty Peter Pan. He had also done a soft pink makeup look and was doing the third touch-up on it since Alessa could not stop crying.“You’ll be okay dear,” Maurice kept saying. Though she could tell he was uncomfortable preparing the prey.Just as Maurice finished dabbing at Alessa’s tears, someone—Alessa knew it was Kyle—knocked on the door. “All good in her, come in,” Maurice said. Kyle opened the door.Kyle looked at Alessa for a few seconds. He looked like he was unable to breathe. “That’s what he got her?” He asked, shocked as he traced her dress.“Well, she isn’t going into his room to talk about art or politics,” Maurice said. “It’s appropriate for what he wants.”“She wasn’t supposed to be going in at all. He just got

When the morning fully bloomed, Alessa was called downstairs to the main kitchen by Mrs.Rafferty. There she was served a full plate of breakfast.“I heard you were only having one meal a day girl. Well, that’s not allowed in this household. Kyle has demanded you eat at least three meals a day.” She berated her. “Eat up.”So she did, keeping her eyes on all the doorways in the dining room to see if Kyle would join her. After all, this was breakfast time at the mansion, but there was no sign of him. That night, Alessa noticed the bed in the new room caused her to have a sleepless night. Of course, she was overthinking about her blunder with Jason but the softness of the bed didn’t help any. She was used to the hardness that her dungeon mattress provided. So finally at three in the morning, she made her way to the kitchen to get water and maybe something to drink.When she made her way down, she saw Kyle and James. Kyle was on his laptop, typing, while James was watching basketball, and