You Are Mine Little Sister (by Syra Tucker) novel Chapter 92

RALI

"Welcome, sir. Welcome ma'am. Please, have a seat."

I smiled at the friendly maid as Grayson and I took a seat. Though, we shared the same couch, I made sure to keep a good distance between us.

"Can I get you anything?"

"I'll take Merlot," Grayson replied.

The maid turned to me.

"Oh. Just water will do."

"Of course. Ms. Thorne will be home soon. Please, do wait."

A frown creased my brows as the maid left.

I turned to Grayson who was already absorbed in his phone. "I thought you said Mrs. Thorne was home. I had no idea we'd have to wait for her."

Almost as if he was being disturbed, he lifted his gaze from his phone with a sigh. "Zerali, you work for me. I don't understand why you seem to be in a rush."

Well, I do have a lot of dresses to make and deadlines to meet—I wanted to remind him. But right. Don't argue with the boss.

Fifteen minutes later, Grayson's glass of Merlot was empty, my water untouched, but there was still no sign of Vlyrissa.

The TV was on. But I couldn't concentrate. All I could think of was the work I could've been doing instead of sitting here.

Finally, Grayson shifted and murmured. "She just texted me."

Thank goodness.

"Come on." He stood and started toward the staircase.

Okay...

"Um....where are we going, sir?"

"Mrs. Thorne wants me to show the dress to you," he answered without waiting.

"What dress?"

He paused mid-step, hand gripping the railing. Then, he gave me a lazy flick of his eyes, just short of a full roll. Well, he still hadn't told me why we were here.

"She wants you to remake a dress for her. Said the one she currently has is ruined. Come on, Zerali."

Oh. Well, he should've said so from the onset.

Grabbing my bag, I followed him to a room that definitely didn't look like Vlyrissa's room. I imagined the classy woman's room to be more sophisticated than this.

Maybe she only kept the dress here.

"Is it in the closet, sir?" I asked Grayson who was behind me—trying to close the door, I think.

The only response I got was a soft click.

Hold on.

I whipped around, confusion threading through the space above my eyes.

"Did you—" I looked from the door to his unreadable face. "Did you lock the door, sir?"

His lack of silence grated on me more than a nursery full of crying babies. And that look on his face? It didn't belong to the Grayson Knightley I knew.

My anger flared "With all due respect, Mr. Knightley, this is beyond unprofessional. You told me we were here to work. You can't just lock me in!"

He remained unfazed.

No. Mr. Knightley might've been moody and blunt most of the time, but he's never acted this way before. He looked like a man shaking off a mask.

"Name your price. What will it take to get you on that bed... willingly?"

Fear jerked my heart off rhythm. The last word. I didn't miss the way it came off.

As fast as my hands could move, I reached for my phone in my bag. But sadly, I knew. I knew there was no way I'd be faster than him.

My bag hit the floor as I spun around, no idea where I was headed—just that my fingers were dancing frantically across my screen. But he was onto me before I could do anything meaningful, his strong arms locking around me from behind.

I grunted and wriggled against him, and when my phone dropped to the floor, I screamed in frustration.

"Let me go! Help!!!"

He slammed me into the wall. "Don't waste your breath, Ze. Trust me, I've got every one here under my wraps."

His face was too close to mine, causing his breath to brush against my neck when he spoke. Unlike a certain someone's, it made my skin crawl with disgust.

Survival instinct kicked in next. I stepped on his feet hard enough to break a toe—though I knew I didn't—and rammed my elbow into his jaw when his grip loosened. It gave me enough space to push him off and bolt for the door.

Shit. The key.

I turned back to Grayson who seemed to have shaken off my outburst and now looked perfectly at ease.

"I gave you a choice." He shrugged. "Remember that."