Chapter 8

CHAPTER EIGHT

HARPER

There he was, seated in what looked like a palace. He was facing the casement window that had a view of the ocean. His black curly hair was very visible under the beam of the chandeliers hanging from the roof.

“Boss, we are back.” One of the men who brought me to the mansion said. They bowed as soon as Asher got up from his throne and turned to face us.

He had a smirk on his face, and I could feel the tension that made men beside me tremble.

“What took you so long?” Asher’s voice was quick and sharp like the edge of a sword, causing the men to shiver with fright. How could a young man be so powerful and cold at the same time?

“We are sorry, boss! We had to wait for her to finish what she was doing.” The other man shifted the blame to me at once. He looked at me with an expression that pleaded with me not to say otherwise.

But he was right, I had to take my time to prepare for my mission in his mansion since I was going to be there as his private dancer.

“Leave us.” Came Asher’s thundering low tone, and the men scrambled out of the living room, leaving just the two of us to stare at each other.

“How do you know my mother’s name?” I didn’t waste any time asking the question that had been lingering inside my head from the previous night.

“Is that the reason why you are here? I am certain that Mr. Dante told you that you are mine now.” He suddenly lost his soft touch, causing me to wonder if what he did earlier was just a façade.

“I didn’t get enough of what I paid for last night. I am a man who likes to get whatever I desire in fullness…” He began to walk toward me, marching with a smirk on his face.

Each step he took almost made me move backward, but I decided to be very courageous in front of him.

“I wonder why you chose to do this kind of work. Such beauty shouldn’t be wasted on perverts like Brian.”

“You don’t know anything about me!” I fired at once, ready to defend myself just in case he was trying to make fun of me.

“Harper Thorne, twenty-three years old. Graduated at the top of her class, lost her mother barely six months ago. Was sold to the Nyx club by her father’s new wife, Anissa. Am I missing something?”

Asher’s gaze was laced with so much confidence after he left me speechlessly staring at him with my eyes almost bulging out of their sockets.

“I know you more than you think, Harper. I am certain that you are aware that a powerful man like me wouldn’t find it difficult to know things about anyone I am interested in.”

There was something about his confidence and the way he spoke, but I couldn’t stop myself from trying to figure out how he knew so much about me, especially my mum.

“I need you to show me some of those moves you were making last night. Get to work at once, and don’t let my money waste…”

“Music!” He turned to the automated device in the room, and the music was turned on at once.

“Perfect!” He chuckled softly, revealing a lovely set of teeth.

The music was the right choice for me to give him a good show, and he was already seated in anticipation of my dance.

“Disco light!” He commanded, and the bright lights gave way to red, blue, and yellow lights that made the entire place look almost like a nightclub.

I dropped the brown leather bag that contained the little properties I had and started dancing. For the first time, I enjoyed dancing for a man who had become a charming mystery within a short while.

I could remember that I wanted to get close to him because he was in the same hospital as my mother the day she died, and I hoped that he was going to have some explanation to give to me about her mysterious death.

No one was willing to tell me anything because they didn’t want to get into the bad book of the almighty Kingston Asher. But I knew that someday I was going to get close enough to get the answers that I needed.

He seemed to be enjoying himself while he watched me do my magic. I could see that he was struggling with himself not to grab my waist while he sat there with his legs spread and his lips curled.

But he couldn’t look me in the eyes for whatever reason. Each time our eyes met was followed by him looking away at once and concentrating on my body.

“Do you like it?” I got a bit bored with the silence, even though the music was loud enough to fill our ears.

He refused to say even a word, but I knew that he was amazed at how fast and lovely I moved my body, following the rhythm of the music like it was mine.

I decided to spice things up a bit by going closer to him. After all, he paid the price for my freedom and had saved me twice. He definitely deserved the best dance ever, and I was willing to give it to him.

Asher froze at my touch, unable to resist the urge to grab my waist. I wrapped my arms around his neck while I twirled and twerked effortlessly.

“Stop! Please!” Asher suddenly pushed me away, and then he got up quickly to get a grip on himself, hiding away the bulge between his legs.

“What is wrong? Did I do something wrong?”

“No! This feels so wrong, Harper! Your mother…your mother…”

“What happened to my mother?” I hoped that he was going to tell me what I needed to hear while I stared at him in his uneasy state.

“Your mother is the reason why I am still alive. I can’t do this to her daughter, it feels so wrong.” The only thing he succeeded in doing was getting me more confused than I was already.

“I need to go. I will send one of the maids to show you to your room.” Asher grabbed the glass of liquor on the table in front of him and emptied it before he walked away from me, leaving me to struggled with my curiosity.