"I prepared some beef and omelet rice for you, sir," Lydia greeted the man with fresh smell walking straight out the bathroom wearing only a towel on his lower half. The other towel blissfully rubbed his silky wet hair. For a second Lydia flushed by this unexpected situation as she looked at his naked body while talking about his meal.
The girl clutched her fist tightly as she noticed her boss throwing the only towel covering his body down, she tried so hard to keep looking up that she even forgot to blink at the moment.
And he took a dark blue bathrobe from over the couch and wore it, "Does it look good?"
"Pardon?"
"I mean you keep staring at my face without blinking, it must be quite handsome," he chuckled knowing exactly the matter here.
"No. no… I mean yes, it is handsome but… I am sorry," she turned her head down and let out a sigh. There was no excuse to make for staring with her eyes widened as if she was gonna eat him in one gulp.
He sat down on the dining table in the hall room and crossed his leg. He was having fun teasing her but it would be a letdown to end it so easily. "You better call me Ethan if you want to make up for your mistake."
"What?!" Lydia was taken aback and she swallowed. She was already tired after running like a dog from the bar to make sure he doesn't see her and just after coming back, she also prepared a hearty meal. Now she was quite satisfied that she deserved that amount since she was working like a dog with a business smile of humans and yet here, he started these weird things making her more tired mentally.
She shook her head while waving her hand at the same time keeping a smile to not offend him but he gestured with his index finger and froze her. Calling her to move closer, Lydia could hardly take a step but she has to.
"Now, sit there." He ordered her to sit across him.
"I shouldn't, sir. Please have your meal comfortably.
"And who is the boss here?" he glared back.
Not sure whether that was a mere acting or not but Lydia followed his words and sat down in silence not wishing to get scolded at all, "Yes, sir." She swallowed and looked down. She hasn't placed her portion of food on the table so sitting there felt more than awkward when all she could do was remain silent not out of will of course but rather because of his pressurising look that appeared terrifying.
Ethan leaned back cracking his knuckles and staring intently at her. She didn't understand what wrong she has committed but his angry look felt scary. "That…"
"I remember telling you to call me Ethan, you are really a rather disobedient worker. I can see that."
'Fuck! Why is he being so scary on the very first day? I know he isn't that welcoming toward my presence but is he going to be nerve wrecking every day like today? It is already scary to think what he will do if he finds out that I have hacked his phone and tracked the location while linking it with mine. Though I am sure he won't be able to figure it easily but what if he meets a guide? I know coincidence of happening it is quite lower since no one shows their phone to others nowadays but…'
Lots of thoughts were passing by as her cold sweats dropped on her thighs while she kept her head down. "It's not like that, sir… Et..han."
"See how amazingly rude you are to call me 'Han'?" he pounced his hand over the table and glanced at the food over it. His nose swayed with the smell and he swallowed. While Lydia panicked because of his constant picking up, he took the spoon placed beside the plate and took a bite. "Hmm… not bad," he wiped his mouth and smiled, "Now that everything is settled, let me hear more about you."
'What the hell? Is he speaking to himself. It feels like my existence doesn't matter much.' She felt irritated and yet she has to think what to speak about herself since everything was fake to begin with.
"Luke? Are you paying attention?" he knocked her attention back and greeted with a wide grin of amusement. Looked like he was enjoying himself.
Lydia was shaken hearing the forged name from his mouth and replied instantly, "Yes, I was indeed paying attention. It's just I have nothing much to introduce about myself."
"Oh. And I thought you were thinking of something else in front of me. I don't like people falling in daze while they are with me." His words were clear. He was creating a clear line for her to know her place. It was indeed awkward but she stayed still keeping her eyes straight and making sure that she doesn't look like she was in daze at all.
Ethan took another bite and smiled while chewing, "You are here to seduce me, right! my mom sure knows the looks I like in my lover."
With his weird words knocking inside her ears, eyes widened in surprise. All these things just didn't make anything. "That's shit! Madam will never send a lowly ranker like me to seduce you. I am just here to work faithfully." Her words came out loud as she felt kind of offended and clutched her fist while her creased eyebrows frowned loudly at him.
Yet another grin from him let her completely clueless. What was going on in his head was out of her grab. "No problem with that. My father married to my mother side and he is a Rank 'A'. And not to mention my mother might be quite tired of playing with 'S rank' kids like me so this might be her way of getting a lower rank kid."
'What the! Does he not know the difference between Rank 'A and F' or is he just pretending?' her eyes looking at him as a sigh escaped hearing those words no more than a lie and she averted her gaze in disbelief.
The conversation wasn't that bad and Lydia unintentionally showed her rude side too on the very first time by swearing but Ethan had no concern about it, he likely was good with that then her being polite to him. In a while she brought her food and ate with him but something she forgot that only came to her mind once she got inside her new room full of comfortable things.
"Jeez! I forgot to ask why he spoke like that when we first met. Have we met before or something? Who cares, I will just ask him later," she mumbled and glittered seeing the soft mattress with a fresh bedsheet over the luxurious bed and then the study table that was placed perfectly facing the window with small cupboards to keep items and also the dressing table and the big cupboards beside it. This was a room where five people could fit easily. And not forgetting the bathroom attached with it, she wondered if she was in some kind of dream.
While she felt happy, she couldn't care less about the fact that this luxury reminded her of her past life where she got it in the end but it didn't last long with the betrayal in her faith.
…
The night passed in warmth and she slept blissfully like in heaven. Diligently she got up on time and cleaned the room and hall room except the area she was forbidden. Preparing healthy breakfast with a good speed while Ethan still seemed to be sleeping inside. And as the clock strikes at 6am, she walked back in her room to take a small rest before Ethan wakes up.
"Hello," her sweet voice greeted her brother she called after taking a small break but the response sounded dull and she got instantly worried, "is everything ok? No one is bullying you at your new place, right? Ner, tell me honestly, what's gone wrong."
He sighed feeling irritated by her constant nag, "Calm down already. No one is bullying me, I just got tired after working hard yesterday."
"Oo. Don't forget to tell me. You know how great I am, I can take care of everything for you." She smiled, her body relaxing back on the bed while legs still hanging down. Smooth bellybutton visible as the shirt got lifted up by her careless sleeping position and in midst entered Ethan without any permission.
He glanced at her smooth and thin belly that grabbed his attention quickly. Her packs looked sexy and can't be underestimated and he smirked seeing how careless and off guard she was. Meanwhile Lydia got up seeing him out of sudden.
"Is that your girlfriend?"
"No. Just a friend." She replied hesitantly forgetting she was still on the call.
"We better set a meeting place," suspicious by the fact that he heard a man voice while she clearly told him before, that she was in her room and not only that but she lied straight through her teeth by calling him a friend rather than a brother, Nerua seriously asked her to meet but the connection soon got cut.
Now she was in trouble. Seemed like Nerua was suspicious of her and her job and things will not go in easy way.