Chapter Seven

“Elias, can you explain what’s happening right now?” She turned to Elias with a look of panic on her face.

He didn’t even spare her a glance. “So what’s it going to be?” He faced Dakota.

She stared long at the black card on the table and finally grabbed it, making her decision. 

Diana gasped. “Is that…That’s not what I think it is, right?” She turned to her sister with wide eyes. Dakota smirked, enjoying the look of horror on her sister’s face. 

She stood up to meet Diana, a smug smile on her face. “Excuse us, will you?” 

As Elias stood up, he took her hand in his as they walked towards his hotel room, leaving Diana with her mouth agape.

***

Her hands couldn’t stop shaking as she struggled to open the hotel room with the key card. She didn’t want to think of what was about to happen. Maybe this was the price she had to pay for her freedom. She swiped it across two more times but it still didn’t open. She gritted her teeth in frustration, much to the amusement of Elias.

He placed his hand to stop her. “Here, let me.” With his hand on hers, he swiped the card across. It opened in a single click. 

“You shouldn’t be so nervous around me.” He pointed out, as he opened the door.

Dakota stepped in tentatively. There was a large office table and a chair in the middle of the room. The table was filled up with files and documents. It looked like it was used often. 

“This is where I finish up my work after office hours.” He explained, gauging her expression. Across the room, she spotted a king sized bed. She glanced at Elias strangely, trying to figure him out. 

Did he only work here?

“What were you expecting to see?” He asked, as if he could read her mind. She shrugged in response, observing the entire room. 

“Do you actually work here everyday?” She found it hard to believe that all he did in here was work, nothing else.

He advanced slowly towards her. “Are you asking if I’ve entertained women here in the past?” He stood mere inches away from her. 

Her breath caught in her throat. “Have you?” She squeaked.

He frowned. “No. You’re the first person I’ve brought here. This is where I come when I want to be alone.”

She wanted to ask what they were doing in his hotel room but she dreaded what his response would be. Walking towards the wine bar, she grabbed a bottle of wine and two glasses. If anything was going to happen between them, she might as well be drunk.

“Wine?” She asked. 

He nodded, studying her carefully. “Help yourself.” 

Opening up the bottle, she filled both glasses and handed one to him. She brought the glass of wine to her lips and took a long swig. It had a tangy taste at first and after, a burst of sweetness filled her taste buds. She poured herself another glass and threw it back.

Elias chuckled in amusement. “Maybe you should take it easy.” 

Dakota let out a short laugh. She didn’t want to take it easy. Just this once, she wanted to forget how much her heart was aching. 

The people she had held in high regard had never loved her. If anything happened to her right now, they would move on with their lives like she never even existed.

She could see it clearly now that she was nothing. Her own birth parents didn’t even want to have anything to do with her.

“Have you ever felt like you’ve been waiting all your life for something good to happen to you?” She mused. Her head was starting to feel hazy.

She hiccuped. “Then you come to a sudden realization that if your life ends today…there’s no single memory you’d wish to keep in your heart?” 

Squinting, she turned to stare at Elias. “You’re kind of pretty, Mr Persson.” 

“You’ve had too much wine.” He grabbed the empty glass from her.

Dakota giggled. “You’ve had too much wine.” She spoke in a low voice, mimicking him. “What are you, the wine police?”

He grinned, clearly enjoying her goofy display. She was a completely different person now. Vulnerable and carefree. 

She yawned loudly. Her eyes were beginning to droop. “Come here.” He pulled her close. 

Her hair that had been tied into a sleek low bun had come loose, framing her face. He tucked a strand behind her ear. She scrunched her nose, murmuring something unintelligible under her breath.

He sighed, unable to fathom why her own family treated her like an outcast despite all she did to win their approval. It didn’t matter if she was adopted or not, she was still part of them.

Elias suspected she had proposed marriage to him to get back at her sister. And if that meant he could keep her by his side, he didn’t mind being used by her. She was hurting and he was going to do everything in his power to help her. 

***

She woke up with a start and no idea where she was. Her head ached so much she thought it would split into two. Something stirred beside her. She turned to find Elias sleeping next to her, shirtless. 

Mortified, she raised the duvet to check if she still had on all her clothes. She heaved a sigh of relief as she registered that nothing had happened. With no recollection of how she came to be on his bed, she suddenly realized that he must have carried her.

She shouldn’t have drank so much last night, knowing how easy it was for her to get drunk. As a flash of what she said last night popped into her head, she groaned in embarrassment.

Had she really called him as pretty? 

She was never going to drink again.

Quietly, she got out of the bed, grabbed her bag and tiptoed to the front door. Without making a sound, she turned the door handle and closed the door behind her. As she walked out of the hotel in yesterday’s clothes, it felt like she was doing the walk of shame back home. Although she couldn’t call it that, as nothing had happened between them.

She had judged Elias wrongly and he had turned out to be someone she couldn’t figure out. It rattled her.

Mother and Diana were waiting for her in the living room when she walked in. Before she could register what was going on, her mother’s hand connected with her face, hard.