Page 44 of Dark Elf's Good Girl

Thankfully the door pushes open and a zagfer pokes her head into the room. I’ve never been so relieved to see a dark elf.

Well, that’s not entirely true.

“Madam, the head chef has requested you to come down to the kitchens.”

I can practically feel Talara fuming behind me, but at least this time her rage is not directed at me. “Nothing can get done around this house without me,” she mutters beneath her breath and storms out of the room.

I heave a sigh of relief, glad that I can clean in peace without fear as she watches over my shoulder. It gives my mind time to wander as my body goes through the motions. Instantly, my thoughts are on Aiken. I wonder what he’s doing right now.

Will he come to see me tonight? Or now that he’s had a taste, am I no longer interesting to him?

I try to quell the nerves tangling in my stomach as I start to wonder if I won’t be seeing him anymore. And when a pain echoes through my chest I curse beneath my breath.

“How foolish are you, Isla?” I shake my head in disgust. “Attached to a dark elf? Really?”

I’m so lost in my own thoughts I don’t even hear the footsteps. I wish I had, though. It would’ve given me time to prepare for what was about to come.

Instead, my body registers the presence of another just as my brain catches up. The hinges on the door squeak just slightly enough to tell me that someone has arrived and I clamp my mouth shut, hoping nobody heard me.

“Which dark elf, pray tell?”

I don’t recognize the voice, and that makes me more nervous than anything else. Dark elves are too unpredictable for comfort.

I gulp down air, forcing a smile on my face as I turn around to face the dark elf standing in the doorway. He’s dressed well in an embroidered tunic and breeches, clearly of the merchant caste.

But I don’t think I’ve seen him before. And the smile that bleeds violence spreading across his face makes me wish I never had.

“What do you mean?” I try to play dumb.

He clucks his tongue, shaking his head. My eyes scour his face trying to place him. But with his dark indigo eyes and silvery hair, he looks nothing like any of the dark elves in this family.

“Don’t play ignorant with me little girl.” He pushes off the door frame he was leaning on and starts walking into the room. “I heard Calix bought a new toy. He doesn’t keep them for very long so it didn’t come as a surprise to me. But after the display today, I’m curious if you’re what has caused so much turmoil in the house.”

My mind whirls trying to keep up with him. What display? The question is on the tip of my tongue but I know better than to ask it. Servants are meant to speak only one spoken to. I’m not going to let my curiosity jeopardize my life.

There’s something about this dark elf I just don’t trust.

Instead, I press my palms against the front of my thighs and dip my head down a little into a bow. “I can assure you I had nothing to do with that,” I say in my softest voice.

To my surprise, he laughs. It’s dark and makes my body want to recoil. Who is this man?

“What is your name.?” Humor colors his voice as he takes a few steps more. I fight the trembles that want to wrack my body as he takes away the space between us.

“Isla, sir.”

He hums beneath his breath. “Isla.” He says it with a curiosity in his tone that isn't innocent. “It’s a pretty name for a pretty girl.”

Most women would blush as such a compliment, but there’s an underlying promise in his words that makes me nervous.

I force out a small, “Thank you,” even as nausea teases my stomach.

He steps even closer. The tips of his shoes come into my vision. I swear I’m gonna be sick. “Look at me.” It's the first time his tone has matched the sinister look in his eyes, and all my muscles tense.

I don’t get a chance to lift my head because two fingers come beneath my chin, wrenching my face up violently. I grit my teeth until my jaw aches, but I don’t say anything.

I want to tell the fucker to get his hands off of me, but I think that would only entice him. He seems like that kind of elf.

“Calix has trained you well.” Heat sears up my spine and bloods my cheeks. My anger is starting to hit a point that I can’t ignore him. “I bet he wouldn’t mind if I tested out all the tricks he’s taught you.”

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