Eva
The muffled noises of chattering could be heard within my surroundings as my eyelashes slowly fluttered open. The sounds were clearly coming from outside of the unfamiliar room that I was laying in and confusion burst through my head.
Where was I?
The last thing I remembered was Antonio throwing me out on the streets, and then having to sleep on some random bench. But now I was laying inside of a luxurious bed with a room that looked like it was fit for a King. Or a Queen in my case.
I rubbed the tiredness from my eyes and started to stand up. My body had completely been stripped of the clothes that I had on earlier and I seemed to be clothed with some kind of gold-coloured gown.
My eyebrows furrowed and my fingers ran their way down my petite frame, feeling the sensational softness of the gown. It was silky and felt like heaven beneath my fingers. A small smile played on my lips as I looked around at the interior of the room. The beautiful chandelier that hung on the ceiling; the creme-coloured bed that was slightly crinkled due to the use; the wooden floor that had a slight cold touch; the size, and the beautiful paintings that hung up on the walls. They were paintings of fruits and ladies and sceneries.
Nothing like what Antonio had. His were always dark and dismal.
Suddenly a maid burst into the room and caused me to jump up in shock, her eyes widening at the sight of me. "You're awake!"
Her voice was excited and filled with happiness. But I was still confused and so I furrowed my eyebrows at her and asked, "Where am I?"
Her head tilted to the side — almost as if she was looking at a dog. "Ah, I know you must be confused." She began to walk inside of the room and tidy up the bed-sheets. "Leon found you last night. You were on the streets as you'd probably know, and he decided to take you in."
I had a feeling that the maid assumed she had some kind of higher power than me. Maybe because she thought I was some dirty girl off the streets, but either way, I didn't like her tone.
"I still don't know where I am." I answered her back. My tone may have been slightly off-hand but so was hers.
Her eyes narrowed at me. "You're at Alessandro Bellini's Estate."
Alessandro Bellini. That name sounded familiar. As if I had heard it before. My eyebrows furrowed once again and I tried to remember where exactly I had heard it from. But clearly the maid was getting annoyed with me.
"I need to clean up the room. Would you mind leaving?"
I jumped back slightly at her remark. It sounded passive-aggressive and unnecessarily irritated.
What was her problem with me?
"Uh, sure..." I replied awkwardly, making my way out of the room and into the long hallway.
The hallways were similar to Antonio's — except there were pictures on either side of the walls, and the beech-wood of the doors was brown instead of black. My strides were short and unsure as I followed the sound of chattering at the end of the hallway.
My heart seemed to thump wildly in my chest, almost as if I was fearful of what there may be at the end.
Alessandro Bellini. It sounded like someone that I should fear... someone that came with danger. And that was something that made me hesitate when coming nearer to the kitchen. The chattering became more audible. A mix of raspy voices could be heard — clearly men — and it seemed as though they were discussing business, while the rare interjection of women's voices joined.
I took a deep breath. What was wrong with me? I was acting like a stupid little girl. I needed to get myself together.
So I walked into the door-frame and hoped that somebody would notice me before I had no other choice but to speak out.
Luckily there was a young-looking woman behind the counter that managed to catch me in her sight. She was wearing a white blouse and black dress which indicated she was a maid, and she had long blonde hair that was thrown back into a ponytail. Her eyes were bright-blue and they were prominent even from the distance she was standing away from me. In fact, she was really beautiful — and she looked like the sort of person that was warm and comforting.
"Ah, good morning." Her voice finally broke through the awkward situation. It was airy and sweet with a smile that was welcoming.
Everybody's heads turned towards me. I noticed five men all sitting around the table with their faces tense as if they were inspecting me. And then the maids that were gathered around the kitchen had kind faces.... nothing like the last one I saw.
"Good morning..." I meekly responded with my head urging to cower down. There was a man at the head of the table. He looked angry, or perhaps that was just his natural face... but the way he looked at me sent warmth racing through my body. His eyes were glued to where I was standing and I noticed his eyes discretely raking down my body, making me squirm around in my place.
"Are you hungry?" The same maid asked with concern lacing her words.
I looked towards her and cleared my throat. "Oh no, I don't want to cause any hassle."
"Don't worry about that. I'll make you some food." The maid told me with a friendly smile. "I'm Rosie, by the way."
"Eva." I responded quietly. My eyes drifted around the room at the other people and I felt as though I was just awkwardly standing there while they all judged me.
"Take a seat." One of the men suddenly spoke, his voice deep yet warm. He was sitting closest to where I was standing and had an unoccupied seat directly next to him. I walked over and took a seat with a nervous smile hanging on my lips.
"I'm Leon and this is Oscar, Vito, Matteo.... and that guy over there is Alessandro..." He introduced, his face coming close to mine as he whispered in my ear. "He's a little moody but don't worry, he's a softie."
He sure didn't look like a softie.
In fact, I was sure that he would murder me right in my place by the way his eyes were narrowed at me, dark orbs piercing through me.
Leon seemed sweet and soft-hearted. He was comforting and brought peace to my nervous stomach. Oscar looked hard — close to Alessandro, actually — and I instantly felt fearful under his gaze. Vito and Matteo both looked neutral. Their gazes didn't pierce through me like Oscar and Alessandro's did — but I could tell they came with danger.
"It's nice to meet you." Vito bowed his head in my direction.
"Nice to meet you all, too." I muttered under my breath. They probably didn't even hear my hushed words but they didn't ask further; they just continued with their conversation and ate their food. I was actually quite relieved that the attention was diverted... or so I thought it was.
Alessandro still had his eyes on me. It was like he was blocking out all of his surroundings and I felt my cheeks grow warm and undoubtedly red. My eyes simply couldn't gather the courage to look up at him. I was afraid that if I did lock my eyes with his — I wouldn't be able to unlock them.
"What happened to me?" I asked Leon with my eyebrows knitted together. "How have I ended up here?"
He looked towards me and sighed. "I found you last night. You were sleeping on a bench near the outskirts and I just couldn't resist the urge to take you in."
"I'm finding you a place to stay so you shouldn't be here for long." Rosie added from behind the counter, shuffling around and grabbing certain ingredients and supplies.
At Rosie's words, Alessandro seemed to look down.
It confused me but I decided against questioning it.
"Well, thank you for your kindness and hospitality... all of you."
Rosie and Leon both smiled at me in response. But the rest of the people — as in Alessandro, Oscar, Vito and Matteo — seemed as though they had completely dismissed me. I was getting every single feeling possible from one simple room. A feeling of gratitude towards Rosie and Leon.... a feeling of unworthiness from the rest of the men... and every single emotion possible from Alessandro. In fact he caused an ocean of feelings to rush through me. And I didn't know whether I liked it or not.
All I knew was that his gaze had the power to pierce right through my body.
Alessandro
I sat at the table with my body completely still — almost like a statue, with my eyes glued to the woman before me. I hadn't stopped to notice how beautiful she really was the previous night, except the brief glance into her bedroom; her brown hair was slightly messy and her large brown eyes were shining towards me. I could tell that my constant gaze was having an effect on her... and I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel excited at the thought.
My mind had completely shifted in a way that was unusual to me. I had gone from feeling disgusted to even look at her.... to feeling as if I wanted her in my presence all day. It was her aura. She had an attractive atmosphere about her that made it undoubtedly difficult to focus on anything else while she was in the room.
"Here is your food," Rosie softly spoke to the mysteriously attractive woman.
Eva, I believe I heard her say.
Eva. I liked the way it sounded as it rolled off my tongue. Eva. It sounded sweet and gentle yet had a sensual feeling about it.
"That doesn't look disgusted, if you ask me." Matteo whispered, snapping me out of my daze. A cheeky smirk was playing on the corners of his mouth as he looked at me with narrowed eyes.
I raised my eyebrow at him.
"The way you're looking at her... the way you can't take your eyes-"
"Shut up." I barked at him. It was quiet in order for nobody else to hear — but still had the aggressive touch that warned him not to test the waters with me.
He shrugged his shoulders and continued eating his breakfast with the same discrete smirk plastered all over that stupid face of his.
"She's nothing but some rat off the street, anyway." I muttered under my breath, giving her absentminded figure a tense glare before taking my bowl and standing up to give it to Rosie.
"You better not have any plans to scare her, Alessandro." Rosie warned with those annoying stern eyes of hers. Scare her? What did she think I was going to do? Pin her to the wall by her throat? "Because she's clearly already timid enough."
I couldn't argue with that.
"I'll do what I want." I responded... just to annoy her, before walking away and taking my seat. I could feel her eyes burning holes into me from behind.
Eva was distracted by her surroundings and fortunately she didn't notice my little encounter with Rosie. Instead her eyes were drifting around the elaborate decorations of the kitchen and I found her intrigued nature amusing.
A curious little girl, that was for sure.
Breakfast eventually came to an end. I hadn't heard Eva speak even once, but could I blame her? She was clearly confused and I had to admit that my presence wasn't exactly comforting towards her.
"Eva. You can sit in the living-area when you're finished. Or there are difference rooms around the house." Rosie told her with a smile. "Just let me know if you need anything."
My eyes darted towards Eva and I noticed how she looked up at Rosie through her long eyelashes, smiling softly. It was a sweet gesture. Such an innocent gesture that made me smirk.
What the hell was a girl like that doing in a place like this? A cruel, tainted Estate with dark secrets lurking everywhere.
"I'm going to finish off some work, Boss." Vito told me. I bowed my head towards him and he stood up, making his way out of the kitchen.
After Vito had left, all my other men left too, to do their daily duties and assigned jobs. Rosie and the other maids finished off with the dishes and they were also swiftly off to do their other duties.
By the time everyone had left... the only people present were Eva and I.
Her eyes were avoiding mine. I could see it in the hue of redness on her cheeks... and the way she pressed her pink lips together.
"Thank you for your hospitality..." She repeated. Her eyes may have quickly darted up at me but if they did — it was very brief because I barely got to notice before she was looking down once again.
Her slim figure stood from the wooden chair and she tucked it under the table, before whispering something under her breath. My ears weren't able to pick up her hushed voice so I didn't receive her last words before she walked out of the kitchen, her body swaying slightly as it moved.
Don't scare her, Alessandro.
I rolled my eyes at Rosie's naive remark.
I didn't even have to try.
A week later
"Alessandro.." Rosie sung as she walked into my office.
I looked towards her and raised an eyebrow. "How many times do I have to tell you to knock?"
Her smile was sheepish but not too much. She knew that I would never actually order her to knock whenever she wanted to see me. Rosie was my best friend — basically my little sister — and I loved her just enough to let her break a few rules... or rather bend.
"I've found a place for Eva to stay." She told me, tossing a file on my desk. "It's a homeless shelter. But a really nice one. It has the nicest workers and she'll be more than happy there."
Eva had been staying at the Estate for a week now. I hadn't seen much of her due to the heavy work-load but I had seen her around. We'd frequently crossed paths on the hallways and of course, when having our meals. We had exchanged a few looks and she'd said small phrases like 'thank you' and 'goodbye' but we hadn't properly engaged in a conversation.
And I didn't really want to.
I had agreed that she could spend time at the Estate until she found a new place to call home, and so I didn't see the point in creating any form of relation.
"And it's safe?" I dared ask.
It made Rosie grin and I narrowed my eyes at her.
When you've catered for somebody and given them good treatment for a week, it wouldn't feel right to just throw them out to the wolves. I wanted to make sure she was at least being cared for.
"Yes. It's safe." Rosie responded with a quick nod of her head.
I stood from the leather chair and looked towards her. "Great. I'll let her know. Thanks for your help, by the way."
A big smile spread across her face and I chuckled to myself, walking out of the office and going to find Eva.
I presumed that she'd be in the living-area. That was the place that she usually spend the day — doing her own thing, whatever that was.
As I walked closer to the living-area, I heard Arianna's laughter.
It was a beautiful thing to hear but it also caused me confusion. All of my men were on their assigned missions and I had just seen Rosie in my office which told me that she wasn't the cause.
My head discretely peered around the door-frame and I couldn't believe what I saw.
It was Eva.
She had the biggest, most genuine smile on her face and she was tickling Arianna, causing her to erupt in her fit of giggles.
I hadn't seen Eva in a state that wasn't confused or afraid... I had never seen her in such a happy mood, with such a happy smile on her face.
It was actually a beautiful thing to see. Her happiness was contagious and dare I say that watching her playing with Arianna made my heart warm up in my chest. It was like something had suddenly clicked and I felt this wave of love flood over me for one brief second.
One rare moment of pure love that made its way through my heart.
Arianna seemed happy within Eva's presence. In fact, the happiest I've ever seen her.
And that's when the realisation hit me: I couldn't let Eva go.
It wasn't just how her presence reflected on Arianna, but how her presence reflected on me. The night that I first saw her sleeping in her bedroom, I knew that she was something precious.
Something that was rare and not easy to find.
And ever since she came into the Estate, I had been ignoring the fact that I thought about her whenever I had the time. Even the small things, like the way she would smile softly whenever Rosie would give her something; the way she would lock eyes with me, and then shyly look away; the way her lips would press together when she saw me coming on the hallway.
She belonged here.
Not on the streets... not in some homeless shelter....
Right here.
~
Ahhh!!! I felt so lovey-dovey writing the last part. :)
I hope you enjoyed reading this one. I definitely enjoyed writing it!
Oh and yes, the picture is Arianna. Isn't she a cutie???
Alessandro seems pretty convinced that he wants Eva to stay but what'll happen when he finds out that she didn't just come from the streets, but from Antonio?
Please vote and comment, and until next time! ♥