Page 16 of Hawthorne

Vincent Hawthorne

I’ve been successfully avoiding Camilla for two days after that late-night encounter. My body felt wired up and oddly awake after it, so for the sake of my sanity, distance has been what’s keeping me safe.

And knowing I won’t be able to avoid her today is messing me up again, especially with Mother and Edgar coming for the first family dinner since I’ve moved in.

We almostkissed. Well, I almost kissed her, that’s for sure. If it wasn’t for the cute dog’s tongue bringing me back to the real world…I am not sure if I could have stopped at all.

The dog successfully avoided an apocalypse fornow.

What the hell did my aunt have on her mind to set something up like this? Sure, we were tight when we were kids, playing together every moment we had, but that was ages ago. She couldn’t expect us to keep that innocent and pure connection.

I’m far from the innocent kid I used to be back then.

I am a man now. A man who is insanely attracted to his housekeeper and thinks of nothing but different ways to defile her.

Nice, Aunty…Real nice.

“I’ll lose my fucking mind,” I mumble to myself while tightly gripping the longer part of my hair.

With a couple of drinks, in a weak attempt to divert the tension from my body, I mindlessly walk around my office, thinking of different ways to get through this. That’s until a soft knock sounds from the door.

“Come in.”

“Your Grace,” her sweet and melodic voice fills my ears, and unwillingly, my body finally relaxes at the sound of her. “I’ve come to deliver mail.”

With my eyes glued to my desk, where I’m now sitting, I answer, “Please, leave it here, and I'll run over it later.”

If I make the mistake of looking her in the eyes, I’ll be sucked right back into thoughts of her.

“Of course,” she mumbles with a strained tone.

Did that night affect her, too?

My eyes burn holes into the paper before me while my ears focus on the sound of her heels clicking. Her steps are steady and rhythmic until they halt right before my desk. Her ankles and shoes enter my sightline.

My eyes rise slowly, drinking in the curves of her body all the way up until they land on her shiny chocolate-brown eyes.

“Here,” her soft voice is enough to bring a warm feeling to my chest.

“Thank you,” I say, struggling to look away from her plump lips. “I need you to prepare things for a family dinner tonight. My mother and Edgar are coming.”

She nods before asking, “Any special request for tonight's menu?”

“If it’s not a hassle, I’d like some salmon. How it will be cooked can be up to you, as well as the rest of the food.”

“Are there any forbidden ingredients? Any allergies?”

“None,” I answer. “Surprise me.”

“Of course, Your Grace.” She gives me a shy smile.

Our eyes linger on each other, thickening the air around us. I should be looking away and not giving in to temptation, but how is it possible? With her right in front of me, it’s like everything else fades away.

That is enough for the battle between ‘duty’ and ‘need’ to compete in my mind, with the latter winning.

The one thing I can focus on is…her.

Her eyes are shiny, and the artificial light of the office highlights all her beautiful features. The prominent cheeks, her eyes covered in big and thick eyelashes and her plump pink lips. She’s gorgeous, and with every new glance, I find a new enthralling detail. Like the small beauty mark on her right cheek, close to her jaw. How is it in the perfect spot to be kissed?

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