Zephyr's throat ran dry as the realization of what she had said and what she was doing sank in. She was refusing to offer her body, and she wasn't refusing just anyone-she was refusing the Alpha.
Zephyr quickly bent her head low to avoid his heated gaze. She felt like running away, but where would she run to? No one in history had ever escaped the wrath of Damon Alaric.
Damon's eyes never left her. He watched her fumble and lower her head to avoid his gaze. He never really wanted to bed her; he just needed to know if his messed-up wolf was attracted to her for sex or something more. He was hoping the latter was the case; otherwise, he would kill her himself if she was the one-his cursed mate.
Daman's smirk quickly faded, replaced by a grim look. His eyes narrowed as he stared at her. Perhaps this little girl was forgetting who was standing in front of her. The idea of someone disobeying, a human slave at that, didn't sit well with him.
"You'd rather die, huh?" Damon's deep chuckle sent a chill down her spine.
Zephyr slowly looked up, her eyes widening in fear when she saw him pointing his gun at her. She stumbled backward, her back colliding with the doorframe.
Damon wasn't having any of it. He quickly closed the distance in two long strides and placed the nozzle of the gun on her forehead. He could feel her shaking beneath it.
"Want to take a trip to hell? Huh, Zephyr?" he whispered softly.
Zephyr was a trembling mess. Her mouth parted repeatedly, but words refused to come out. She was scared-scared for her life. That phrase, "easier said than done," applied to the situation because, although she had said she would rather die than let him touch her, things were far from it now. Now that he had voluntarily opened the door to the afterlife for her, she couldn't step in. She was terrified. Goosebumps formed on her skin as his finger slid under the trigger, ready to blow her brains out.
"Please don't," Zephyr gasped as tears rolled down her cheeks, making her gray eyes glitter like diamonds. "Please don't kill me," she pleaded, her eyes reddened.
"Then be a good girl and strip," Damon commanded.
Zephyr wiped the tears from her eyes, and her hands slowly reached for the knot tied at the back of her dress. She silently prayed for someone to interrupt them, but no one came. With one tug, the dress softly fell to the floor, leaving her stark naked.
Zephyr quickly covered her chest with her arms, her face reddened with pure embarrassment. She was still trembling with fear, and standing naked in front of a man she wasn't married to went against her morals and pride. She wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow her whole. She wanted to disappear but couldn't, so she helplessly stared at the floor as the Alpha's shrewd eyes made her feel even more vulnerable.
Damon stared at her with a grim expression. No doubt, her body was a damn masterpiece, and he felt the growing urge to have her. But he couldn't-his wolf wouldn't let him do it unless she was on board with it. Her skin was as white as snow, and it turned slightly red as he drank in her appearance. She looked innocent-too innocent-that he wanted to taint her so badly. He wanted to break her in ways she wouldn't even imagine with her tiny brain. He was used to girls behaving coy with him before he had them, but with her, he could see how genuine her actions were. But then again, she was a slave, meant to be taken by many. His eyes fell on the cross tattoo on her chest, and his eyebrows creased.
"Get out," he ordered.
Zephyr, who had almost merged with the doorframe, was taken aback by his words. For the first time since she had stripped, she looked up to see him, but he had his back to her. Without wasting any more time, Zephyr quickly put on her dress and sprinted out of the room.
Damon's jaw hardened as his eyes turned pitch black.
"Alfred," he called, and almost immediately, Alfred appeared at the door. After announcing his presence, he carefully entered the room.
"Yes, milord?" Alfred bowed deeply.
"Arrange an item," Damon said, waving his hand, signaling him to leave.
Alfred didn't waste a minute before dashing out of the room to follow Damon's command. Minutes later, a brunette maid arrived in his room.
"Get on the bed," Damon ordered, not sparing her a glance.
The maid quickly discarded her clothes and got on all fours on the bed. The next minute, her painful screams filled the air as the Alpha took her mercilessly.
---
The next day, Zephyr dutifully cleaned the floors in the dimly lit hallway. It was almost midnight, and her body ached from the work she had done all day. She had been trying to push the events of the last two days out of her head. She still couldn't believe the Alpha had seen her naked. At least she was grateful to be alive and breathing.
She finished cleaning the floors and proceeded to the conservatory, where there were many flowers. It was like an indoor garden. For some reason, she was the only one permitted to work there, and she loved it. She loved how serene the place was.
It was a garden of roses-the rarest collection. It had purple, blue, black, and green roses. As much as she wanted to take one for herself, she didn't dare. She felt she didn't deserve a flower from such a precious collection.
She turned to leave, but her breath suddenly caught in her throat when she saw the Alpha standing in front of her. She bowed deeply as goosebumps formed on her skin.
He walked right past her, heading toward the black roses. Zephyr made to leave, but then the door shut on its own, and she stood frozen in front of it as fear crawled up her spine.
"A little piece of warning..." Zephyr heard his deep voice behind her. She wondered how he had gotten so close to her without her notice. But then again, he wasn't human.
Zephyr was quick to take a step back , making her lean on the door frame and unlike the other times, he didn't cover the distance.
"Stir clear from my sight cause if I see or find you, I'll make sure to drag you to my bed and there would be no mercy" he said and Zephyr gulped.