I must've fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew, someone was gently shaking my shoulder and asking me if I was alright.
Still in my slumbered state, my response was sluggish, and all that could escape my mouth were incoherent moans of protest at the person who woke me up.
"Are you drunk my dear? Do not worry, I am far from one to judge." The man chuckled. That voice… I was sure that I recognised it.
I cracked one eye open, and I swear it nearly bulged out of my head when I saw who it was.
"Mr Ivashkov?!" I exclaimed, more than surprised to see him in the Belikov grounds. I ran a hand through my hair to desperately try and make myself more presentable, as I could only imagine what sort of state it was in, only to find twigs snared and entwined in all the knots. I internally groaned. This was the second time he'd seen me and I looked a mess.
He laughed again, a seductive smile playing on his lips, "I'm glad to see I am that memorable." He winked at me, and held out a hand to help me up.
"Why is it that everytime I see you, I must help you up back onto your feet?" he queried.
"Because I am the damsel in distress, and you must save me, oh handsome prince." I cried sarcastically, theatrically placing my hand over my forehead. He kept held of my hand with one of his, and supported my with the other as he placed it on the small of my back. I noted how he didn't remove it once I was on my feet.
We started walking through the maze, and I trusted, and hoped, that he knew where we were going. It had somehow lost its fleeting beauty since my kiss with Dimitri. I wondered where he was, whether he had cried himself to sleep like I had, whether he had tortured himself with feelings of inadequacy and humiliation like I had. For some strange reason, I imagined not. He was probably in bed with his "Tasha" after a very fulfilling and satisfying rest, contrary to the one I had. The mere thought made me shiver with queasiness.
I snapped out of my miserable thoughts by the good looking man next to me. And my, how good looking he was. He wore his uniform again today, and succeeded in raising my pulse at the sight of him. For some reason, I felt a pang of guilt for thinking of him like that. But I immediately dismissed it. Dimitri had made it very clear he did not wish to pursue an affair with me, despite what the kiss ignited in myself, and so all I needed to do was to rid myself of any feelings towards the man. Whatever these feelings were. And what better way to forget a fellow, than to pursue another?
Mr Ivashkov smiled, then appeared to be lost in thought. "Hmmmm… yes. I think that's a rather fitting name for you, 'Little Damsel'."
I narrowed my eyes at him playfully, "That had better not stick." I snarled, and his grin grew wider.
"Little Damsel it is then!" And I practically growled at him in response.
It suddenly dawned on me that he had no way of knowing I was here, and I furrowed my brow as I asked him.
"What the hell are you even doing here? Wait. This is a dream isn't it? Why else would you be here in the private Gardens of the Belikov residence?" I questioned, genuinely curious as to what on earth he was doing here, and more importantly, how he found me when I got lost within the space of a few minutes.
"Well, Little Damsel, ever since our short encounter yesterday…"
My eyes widened at this. "Wait. WHAT?! Yesterday?! I've been asleep here all night?!" I cried incredulously.
He looked down at me in surprise. Genuine concern seemed to cross his features. "You've slept here all night?! With no shelter of warmth?! No no no no no" he tutted, shaking his head in disapproval.
"That most certainly will not do. A pretty little thing like you should not be sleeping amongst the commoners. You should be treated like a princess, not the same as those scum."
My blood boiled as I quickly became consumed with rage. I was sick of people looking down on people like me, when I, and the others in my position, had done absolutely nothing to deserve such disdain and could not help being born into poverty.
My mind flashed to Dimitri, and how he had blatantly used me in a way that would be unthinkable to an upper class lady. In fact, just the mere thought of him brought up a whole range off emotions, and with Mr Ivashkov being the closest person to me, the poor soul became victim to my anger.
I scowled at him, quickly becoming defensive. "Perhaps it is worth telling you right now, that I have commoner blood inside me, and that I have slept rough before. And if that makes me scum, then so be it. That's the thing about being someone like me, you soon learn never to trust anyone, and to make it on your own. I never needed your help anyway." I snatched my arm away from him, and began to walk away from him as fast as I could. He quickly caught up to me and grabbed my arm to stop my in my tracks.
"Woah, woah, woah there Little Damsel. I'm sorry, I had no idea. And I only ever meant it as a joke. Very few things I say are meant to be taken seriously, you will soon find." He said softly, and I looked into his bright green eyes, and found only sincerity there. He actually apologised, which was more than Dimitri had done in the many times he had insulted me.
I instantly relaxed, and looked away. Just because Dimitri was a pain in the arse, didn't mean I had to be too.
"I'm sorry, Mr Ivashkov, it's not been an easy day… or days rather. He… well, it's been tough." I trailed off, not really sure what to day. "I still can't believe I've been out here overnight." He stopped me, as my mind began wondering off, and gently placed his finger under my chin, and brought my face up to meet his. "It is quite alright my dear. If I had to reside with Lord Belikov, I most certainly would be In a foul temper such as you are."
That instantly piqued my interest, as Lord Belikov had referenced some sort of disagreement with their past before.
"What is this thing between the two of you, this feud?" I queried, "And why are you here anyway? You never answered me!"
His let go off his gentle touch on my face, his own face tightened at my mention of the apparent feud between the two of them, but quickly transformed into that easy going, carefree mask that he wore so well.
We continued walking, and I linked both hands on his outstretched bent arm.
"Questions questions. You need to loosen up my girl and learn how to have fun."
Though I found it odd that he was avoiding my questions, I was easily distracted. He reached into his jacket and took out his packet of cigars. I was quite surprised when he offered me one, and he was even more so when I took it.
"Hey, I know how to have fun! And will not tolerate any one thinking the contrary!" I exclaimed when he shot me a look of disbelief.
He quickly recovered himself from his shock and began lighting his cigar. "Oh I have no doubt you know how to have fun Little Damsel. But one cannot help but ponder what sort of things that 'fun' entails." He bent down and spoke in a low, deep voice, leaning in close so our lips were inches away.
He brought his newly lit cigar to his mouth, and placed my own in my mouth. He lit my cigar using the end of his, and his eyes never left my own. Though it didn't drive me insane like Dimitri's contact did (unfortunately) it was still enough for my heart to beat faster, and my breath become a little uneven.
This didn't go unnoticed, as he let out out another chuckle.
"Oh my Little Damsel, when your body has that reaction when I'm this close, one cannot refrain from imagining what it can do when we have our… fun." I gasped, quickly becoming inundated by his masculine and seductive presence. And I'm sure I would not have been able to control myself, had the gasp not caused me to inhale the cigar quickly, and cause me to splutter unattractively on the smoke.
Smooth Rose. Real smooth.
It took a few seconds to collect myself, and when I had I saw Mr Ivashkov doubled over, in fits of hysterical laughter at my failed attempt to smoke.
"Hey! Sorry we don't all smoke a hundred cigars a day, and have smoke pouring out of our every pore!" I yelled in between chokes, which didn't help me settle down his riotous laughter as I'd hoped.
He swung his arm around me, leaning on me for support as he gathered his breath.
"Oh dear my Little Damsel. One shall have to teach thou how to smoke like a lady."
I snorted, but allowed him to take the cigar off me, and teach me how to do it.
"Okay, so first of all you need to wet your lips…" he trailed off as he watched me obey and slowly trail my tongue over my lips. I was quite amused when he became a little flustered and gulped harshly.
"Like this?" I said, feigning innocence, and all he could do was nod in response.
"You're a natural." He said, voice husky with desire.
Though I didn't feel my own body react in a particular way to his sudden change in mood, I was enjoying the flirtation. Besides, when did a little bit of confidence boosting do any harm?
I smirked at him, and soon his cocky demeanour returned. "Place the cigar in your mouth like so." He popped it in my mouth, and I waited patiently for his instructions.
"Once lit, slowly suck on the cigar, only a little at first, and gently breathe out."
I did as he said and clasped my lips on the cigar that he still held, and slowly inhaled, moving my lips along the shaft as I did so. His eyes widened and he bit his lip as I seductively moved my own.
I couldn't believe how brash I was being. I barely knew this man, yet was going further with him than I had another. Well, beside Dimitri, but I decided he no longer counted.
Unfortunately, it would seem our uninvited audience could hardly believe it too, as I distinctly heard the collective chorus of gasps ahead of me.
I looked up, and found the Belikov family all staring at us, with horrified faces on them. Well, Lissa and Vika looked more amused, but the rest of them most certainly looked mortified.
I hadn't realised that we had finished the path of the maze, and had ended up in the rear Gardens of the Belikov manner, where they were currently dining for their breakfast.
I looked up at Mr Ivashkov, wide-eyed in panic and flushed with embarrassment, but he, if anything, looked completely amused by the whole situation and actually played up to the audience. With a long bow, he took off his hat and greeted them, "Ladies and Gentlemen, a great pleasure."
I glanced back at the Belikov family, bracing myself for their reactions. I scanned the shocked faces until I settled on a very angry looking one. Lord Belikov's. He was staring at the two of us, and it was only then that I realised how close Mr Ivashkov and I actually were, and leapt back away from him. Not that it mattered. It was too late now anyway.
I looked back at him and thought that I could actually see... hurt? To my surprise, he actually looked pained and visibly upset by what he had just seen, and more than that an employer would feel for his employee.
And that reaction hurt me more than anything else could have done, had he shouted, became violent, or not gave a damn, it would have been easier to deal with. But this way… well. It felt like I had betrayed him in a sense, which was ridiculous, because he had no feelings towards me.
But then, why would he react like this? God, my head was all over the place, and I was so sick of getting such mixed emotions from him. I could not possibly gauge the man, and it was unfair of him to keep toying with my feelings like this.
I eventually looked away from the man, those brown eyes becoming too much all of a sudden. I heard him clear his throat before saying in such a soft voice, that I hardly caught it.
"Get that man off my residence immediately".
Thank you all so much for your reviews. 22 this time! Another record! I appreciate it so much, and it's lovely listening to what you have to say.
So I'm going to pose the question:Adrian of Dimitri? Who do you prefer?
Let me know what you all think!
Thank you so so much.
Love,
Emma xxx
