Seraya's POV
Hutch turned out to be the butler, and he also doubled as the driver considering Drazien had packed me into a car and told him to take me 'home'.
"So… how long have you known Drazien?" I asked Hutch on the way.
"I've known him since I was a little boy." He replied and my eyes widened.
"Are you for real?"
"Yes. It doesn't look like Drazien has aged a day since I used to gawk at him in nothing but my underwear." He said with a wry smile.
"So the rumors are true? Lycans can live a thousand years?"
"Do you not know his age?" He asked, watching me in the rear view mirror. I could have kicked myself. We were barely thirty minutes into this farce and here I was already putting my foot in my mouth.
"Umm… I've not had the chance to ask." I admitted. Hutch must have sensed my misgivings about his master because he mistook my hesitation for fear.
"I know he can be terrifying. He may be harsh and curt but his heart is in the right place, just give him a chance." He said.
I didn't agree, nor would the entire village he left butchered in his wake.
"I will." I lied.
When we arrived at the sprawling mansion, I tried and failed not to gawk.
"How many people live here?" I asked, my jaw on the ground.
"Just the master, and now you." Hutch replied and I whistled appreciatively.
"Cleaning day must be a bitch." I said as I followed him.
"Not at all. The house functions efficiently with servants that work like clockwork."
The interior was even more impressive than the outside.
"Mind if I take a look around?" I asked, feeling a throb of excitement at exploring this large mansion.
"The house is yours." Hutch replied. "Give me a minute, I'll get you an escort." He said and left.
I didn't wait for the escort. I slowly paced through the halls, peering at the large paintings before pausing at one. There were five males standing around two sitting females. Drazien looked back at me, the painter managing to capture his intense black eyes such that even in a painting, he was staring into my soul. I shivered and raised my hand, gently tracing the curve of his jaw. Was this his family?
"My brothers and sisters." His voice from behind me startled me and I snatched my hand back guiltily.
"You're back." I said, playing it cool.
He came to stand beside me, towering over me really and he pointed to one of the females.
"That's Liora Ashryne." He said. "She will be hard to convince, but she must buy the act."
The female was incredibly beautiful. Her heart-shaped face was so beautiful it no doubt stopped men's hearts in their chests. The devilish gleam in her eyes made her even more endearing.
"Is she a Lycan too?" I asked him.
"Yes." He replied. Then she was the infamous female Lycan.
"There are five of you so… what about the others?" I asked, examining the second female.
She was the ice to Liora's fire. Midnight hair against Liora's fiery red. Cool tanned skin against Liora's pale freckled skin. They sharply contrasted but there was a harmony to them that made me wonder if they were possibly twins. If so, where was she now? Why had she been erased from their history?
When the silence protracted, I looked up to find his face suddenly closed off.
"That is none of your business." He replied. I should be used to his curtness but it still stung. "Come, I'll show you to your room."
My 'room' turned out to be a whole apartment, five times as big as my room that I left behind, with staff that welcomed me on arrival.
"Get rested. If you need anything, my room is down the hall." He said and left.
"Well, isn't he a bubbly one?" I mused.
"What would you like to do? Mira, my head servant stepped up with enough bubbliness to compensate for her master. "You can take a long relaxing bath, or have a massage. We could also do some manicure and pedicure, or if you want, we can-"
"No, none of that." I replied. I felt too restless to sit still. "I'll continue looking around."
As it turned out, there was no shortage of things to look at in the mansion. From state of the art paintings and sculptures, I looked around the entertainment rooms, the gym and when I found the boxing ring, I knew I was home. I lost track of time as I attacked the punching bag, letting out all of the frustrations of the last few days on it. Every time I remembered it was Cairh that taught me how to box, my fist punched harder. I let out a scream as I gave it a last punch and the bag exploded away.
It felt cathartic, sweat ran down my body in rivulets and my head was clear as I finally left the arena. I felt like myself again as I headed up the first floor to my room, intending to take the servants up on that bathing offer.
I turned the corner and stumbled into a hard male chest, bouncing off and crashing towards the floor before he grabbed my arm and steadied me.
"Sorry." The deep voice, his voice a gravelly baritone.
"No, I should have been more careful." I said, watching him as he turned away from me.
"Wait!" I said, hurrying to his front and peering into his familiar face. "I know you…" I said, he was in the painting from earlier. "You're one of the Lycans."
He peered at me and I realized he was stupendously drunk. He looked so different from the painting, that's why I had some difficulty identifying him. In the painting, his face had been bright, and he had sported a crooked smile, rogue-ish even. Right now, his eyes were bloodshot, he looked like he had spent the whole day in his bottles and he was now haggardly thin.
"Who are you?" He asked and I froze. Who was I really? An impostor but no matter, Drazien gave me a role. I extended a hand to him.
"I'm Seraya. I suppose I'm supposed to meet you all later, I'm Drazien's mate." I said, the lie rolling smoothly off my tongue.
"Drazien's mate?" He asked with disbelief, his eyes sharpening as he peered at me. "I must have fallen and hit my head." He muttered.
"I guarantee you, you're wide awake." I smiled widely. "It is really nice to meet you, Drazien has said alot about you." I extended my hand again and he just stared at me until my arm got uncomfortable and my smile turned stiff.
"Like Drazien would ever lower his standards." He muttered to himself and walked past me.
"Uhmm… no handshakes then? Noted." I said as I lowered my hand. I was trying so hard not to judge him by his first impression but it was a first impression for a reason. "Are they all assholes?" I muttered, scowling. If there had been any form of excitement in me about meeting the rest of the Lycans, it was very much dead now. I trudged back upstairs to where my eager servants waited.
"Let's get this over with." I sighed.
An hour later, my skin glowed and scented and all the aches in my body had been massaged out. My blonde hair felt light as clouds, swept up into an intricate up-do. A dress was wheeled in.
"The master would like you to wear this." Mira said and I scoffed. I would bet my arm Drazien did not put it that nicely but I was supposed to be lovey-dovey so I withheld my comment. Was he always so overbearing and controlling? Going so far as to pick my dress?
Once I put it on, I had to admit the male definitely knew how to pick them.
"Oh my goddess! You look drop dead gorgeous." Mira gushed and I beamed. The royal blue dress exposed a moderate amount of cleavage, cinching my waist tight before hugging my hips and flowing to the floor around a thigh-high slit. Silver heels and tear-drop silver earrings completed the look.
"The dress fits like a glove." I observed.
"It does!" Mira agreed.
"I wonder how many times he has bought females dresses." I mused aloud and my attendants said nothing. What did I expect? I sighed again. "Just a month." I said under my breath.
was waiting for me under the stairs. He glanced up from his phone screen when I emerged and I thoroughly enjoyed the brief expression of shock that took over his face before it was quickly masked. I took my time walking down the stairs and his heated gaze consumed my every step. I knew what my body did to men and did I intend to pay him back for turning me away shamefully? Hell yes. He offered his hand and I slipped mine through his, relishing the surge of delicious heat at the contact.
"You look beautiful." He said and I winked.
"Glad I'm acceptable to your standards despite popular opinion." I replied. He cocked his head, trying to make sense of my words and I grinned. "Come, we must not keep your guests waiting."
The dinner was in the large sitting room on the first floor, and even before we entered, I could hear animated dialogue and tinkling laughter. The first case of nerves gripped my stomach and I realized I was anxious that his family would take one look at me and deem me unworthy like the asshole earlier did.As if he felt my nerves, his hand came to rest at my waist.
"Just be yourself." He said and I nodded. If only it was that easy.
When we entered, conversation slowly faltered as three pairs of eyes turned to look at me. The asshole was there too, already nursing a fresh bottle of alcohol. I felt like an idiot that stumbled into a lion's den, never before had I ever come into a room that pulsed with so much alpha energy. They were all inhumanly still, top predators assessing fresh prey. My gaze snagged on the lady with the red hair and I realized that painting didn't even do justice to her beauty. There was no painter alive that would be able to capture the way her face commanded light and shadow. She was so beautiful it hurt to look at her and she looked between Drazien and I slowly.
"I called you all here this evening to properly introduce you." Drazien said. He took my hand, slipping his fingers through mine and I tried to ignore the sudden swarm of butterflies in my tummy.
"This is Seraya Vale, my mate."