Page 24 of Obsessive Love

As the car rolls forward, a tall, broad man appears from the side of the long pebbled driveaway, making his way to the car.I scan his attire, taking note of the black cargo pants, the tight black t-shirt, the chunky combat boots, and lastly, the bulky gun strapped across his body.

Instead of walking over to Jaylen's open window like I was expecting him to, he moves towards mine and knocks on the window, waiting for me to open it.

I glance at Jaylen and when he nods, I press the button, watching as my window rolls down. The man crouches until his head is aligned with mine and I gulp as I stare into the black pits of his eyes.

"The name's Leo," he says, drawing my attention away from his eyes and down to his moving lips where I spot a nasty scar that runs down from the side of his nose, through both of his lips, and ends at his chin. "I'm usually on the gate and I'm also the head of Jericho's security team, so if you have any issues whilst you're here, I'm the one you find."

I nod my head, not wanting to attempt to speak whilst in proximity to his frightening aura.

"If I'm not at the gate, this is the code you'll need to come in or out." He reaches his gloved hand through the window, handing me a piece of paper. "Memorise it and then burn it. Don't want anyone else getting their hands on that."

I nod again, focusing on his inky hair instead of his facial features.

"That's all. Drive up the road and park outside the steps. Myra will be there to greet you and someone will park the car in the garage." With that said, he taps his hand against the side of the car, stands to his full height, and then disappears back into the darkness surrounding the entrance gate.

I quickly wind my window back up and then look over at Jaylen as he slowly drives forward.

"Did you see the scar on his face?"

"I don't think anyone can miss it, Soph. It's gnarly," he replies, exaggerating a shiver along with his words. "Looks like a scary dude. Makes sense that he's head of security if you ask me."

Chapter Sixteen

Sophia

After driving for a solid few minutes, the driveway finally opens up to a large circle in front of a large, red-bricked house. I stare in awe as I look at the marble steps that lead up to a small porch area at the front of the house whilst Jaylen parks the car.

"How many rooms do you think it has?" I ask, looking at all of the windows gracing the front of the property.

Jaylen turns the ignition off and then quickly scans the property before shrugging.

"Well, there's twelve windows, so I'd say there's at least twelve rooms."

I tut at his sarcastic comment and undo my seatbelt when I see the front door of the house open and a small woman appear, smiling down at the car.

"I'll get the bags. You go introduce yourself to your new housekeeper."

"She's not my housekeeper, Jay. I may be married to the man, but I'm positive that doesn't mean we now share everything between us."

I hop out of the car and stand beside it for a moment before building up the courage to walk towards the woman I'm assuming is Myra.

"Welcome, dear! It's lovely to meet you," she says, pulling me in for a hug as soon as I reach the top of the steps. "I'm Myra. I'll be showing you to your room and then if you're hungry, I can make you a snack before you go to bed if you'd like?"

I watch her for a moment, observing her relaxed demeanour and her easy-going, bright smile. She seems genuine and nice.

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Sophia, although you probably know that already," I tell her, chuckling slightly when she nods and pointedly looks at my wedding dress. "This is Jaylen, my cousin."

"Her cousin who would love to have a snack after you've shown us how to get to our rooms in this mansion that everyone keeps referring to as a house," Jaylen says as he lugs our bags up the steps and plants himself beside me.

"Of course! Right this way." She leads us through the door and into a grand foyer with two staircases on either side of it and a large, diamond chandelier dangling from the ceiling in the middle. "Through these double doors ahead of us, there's a hallway which connects the whole of the downstairs. On the left side of the hallway, you have the kitchen, dining room, two living rooms, one more snug than the other, a small gym and a reading room. The right side is all Jericho's. It's out of bounds for everyone unless you're invited, so please be sure not to venture that way."

Jaylen and I sneak a glance at each other as her words spark curiosity inside of us.

"Now, if we head upstairs, it's kind of the same layout," she says, walking towards the left staircase and motioning for us to follow. "The left wing of the house will be for you two as you'll both be staying in some lovely guest rooms that we have. Each room has its own private bathroom and walk-in wardrobes. The right wing is where Jericho resides, and I believe Kaleb will also be staying now that you both live here."

I trip up one of the steps when she says his name and I hear Jaylen chuckle behind me as Myra turns around looking concerned and quickly coming to my aid and helping me up.

"Kaleb is staying here as well?" I ask, trying not to come across too eager for an answer.

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