"Where are you taking me to."I asked as I strolled behind him.
"you should eat,you have been out for hours." he said without turning. His voice had softened slightly, but it still carried that edge of restrained tension.
He stopped in front of a wide wooden door, then pushed it open. The warm scent hit me before I even stepped inside roasted meat, herbs, something sweet in the air.
"I made us dinner," he added, glancing over his shoulder. "You should probably eat something."
I blinked. I wasn't sure what I'd expected.Him, preparing dinner.
"wow.This is beautiful."I gasped as I looked around.
"You did all this?You live alone" I asked, not hiding the suspicion in my voice.
He looked back."You are nosey."
That almost made me laugh
He dish the food as he placed it gently on the table.
"Sit"He ordered."I didn't poison it, you're safe."
"Forgive me if I'm struggling to believe that," I said still contemplating on whether to eat or not.
He didn't react. Just sat down at the chair beside mine,pouring the dark wine into the two cups. "If I wanted you dead, Eira, you wouldn't be sitting here."
There it was again. My name. He said it like it meant somethin to him.
I hesitated only a second longer before slowly walking to the table and sitting.
I took a cautious bite.
It was good.Deliciously good.
"You cook," I said, more surprised than I meant to sound.
He watched me closely. Too closely. Like he was memorizing the way I held the fork, the way I chewed, the way I breathed.
"You don't trust me," he said after a moment.
I looked up at him. "Should I?"
His jaw tensed. "No. Probably not."
At least he was honest.
I set the spoon down slowly, my eyes never leaving his.
"So, you're planning on keeping me here?"
The muscles in his jaw twitched. He didn't answer right away just leaned back in his chair, wine glass in hand, staring at me.
"I don't know yet," he said finally. "Depends on what you are."
I let out a hollow laugh. "I already told you I'm just a girl who got lost."
He didn't even blink. "Girls who get lost don't stop monsters mid-shift, Eira. They don't... freeze it with one look."
"That wasn't me," I said quickly, too quickly. "I didn't do anything."
"But you did," he said, voice softening dangerously. "who the fuck are you little witch."
My hands curled into fists on my lap,
"I told you," I said, heat rising behind my ribs, "I'm not a witch."
His lips twitched not quite a smile.
"Then explain why it stopped the moment you looked at me."
"I don't know!" My voice cracked. "I didn't do anything. I didn't ask to be in those woods. I didn't ask to see... whatever the hell that was."
Arman stood abruptly, as he pushed the chair angrily.
"You don't just stumble into those wood," he muttered. "No one does. Not by accident."
I stood, slowly. "Then maybe you dragged me here. Maybe this whole thing is you"
He was in front of me in a blink.
"But I didn't," he said low, almost mournful. "You came. And everything changed."
For a heartbeat, all I wanted was his lips on mine his hand on my breast.
Shit!!!!
"What do you want from me?" I whispered.
His gaze dropped to my lips just for a second.
christ!!!!
Fuck this man his hot.
"I want the truth," he said, taking a slow step toward me as I stepped back.
"You said I made it stop," I said quietly. "The monster. The shift. What if it wasn't me?"
I finally stopped at the end of the wall, but he kept coming.
"No," his voice hoarse "That part of me doesn't stop. It breaks. It devours. It kills."
My voice was barely a breath. "But it didn't."
"You're not just a girl," he said. "And I'm going to figure out what the hell you are."
"I don't know if I want to kill you or keep you."He added
I stared at him, my heart slamming in my chest.
His eyes searched mine like he was trying to crack me open as he turned his back.
"You can sleep on the couch.Everything you need is there."I watched him as he left.
Fuck!!
I hadn't realized I'd been holding my breath until it finally left me in a rush.
********
I woke up to the sharp sound of glass breaking from the kitchen.
"Who the hell was that?"I whispered to myself
Careful not to make a sound, I stood, as I crept toward the kitchen
Arman.
Angrily sweeping everything off the counters plates, glasses, cutlery all crashing to the ground like he was trying to destroy the entire room.
My breath caught. "Arman,are you alright?…"
He turned.
Slowly.
His chest was rising and falling like he'd just run a mile. His hair was a tangled mess, falling across his forehead. But it was his eyes that made my blood run cold.
That storm-grey gaze, looked Wild.
Darkness swam in his pupils like something ancient and feral had woken up beneath his skin.
And then… he smiled.
It looks fake,weird and dangerous
"You're awake," he said, voice low and strange.
He took a step toward me.
Then another.
I backed up, my spine hitting the edge of the doorway.
His smile didn't fade.
"I dreamed of you," he whispered.
My voice came out a whisper. "Arman…"
He tilted his head, still walking toward me. "You looked different in the dream. But I think I liked this version better."
I swallowed hard.
"What's happening to you?"
He stopped just inches from me now. I could feel the heat coming off him. Smell the wine. The blood under his skin.
His lips twitched. "You tell me."
He said as his lips met mine hot,cold hungry.
His hand tangled in my hair as he deepened the kiss. It was hot,I could feel the pain in his kiss,he lifted both my hands up as he pinned them down devouring me.His breath shuddered against my skin as he pulled back just enough to look at me.
His breath was ragged.
Then his voice dropped lower, darker.
"I've been alone for years, Eira," he said, voice hoarse from the kiss "And not once… not once did I lose control like this."
His breath was ragged.
"You did something to me."
I shook my head. "I didn't.."
"You did," he snapped, eyes flashing. "You changed the way the beast responds. You made it… hesitate."
His forehead pressed against the wall just above my head, his body towering over mine but not touching.
"You shouldn't be able to do that. No one should."
He stepped back from me.
"Get out,Get out away from me."He knelt down shaking as he sobbed softly.