ATHENA
The door opened and the guard walked in behind me, pausing just at the entrance. Sienna cocked a brow. "I guess we both broke the one person rule," she laughed. "My guards are hiding in the kitchen. It's only normal that we don't trust each other, ñ it?" n "It's normal that I don't trust you," I said, giving her a smile of her own. "I wasn't to be trusted, you'd already be dead." "Oh?" Sienna laughed. "I guess you're right. You did help me when I needed it, even though you were literally forced to do it." "You're welcome," I said as I sat down. Her smile faltered at that, but she kept it together still. "Your designs are quite incredible. I am in awe of the accessories you're making for my mating ceremony with Sebastian." Her eyes stared at me, searching for even the tiniest reaction from me, but my face showed none as I stared back. She scoffed. "You're no fun, you know." "I've never been told that," I shrugged. "I guess I just can't have fun with a person who bullied me to no end when I was keeping her alive." "Oh, don't be salty," she scoffed. "You weren't happy in your relationship anyways. You could ßy that I was helping to push you to make the right decision. Look at you now." "Indeed," I laughed. "I can't deny the fact that I did turn out better than before, but it was definitely no thanks to you." She gave me an amused look and turned to the servers. "Would you like to order?" "In a restaurant you rented out and have guards posted at the kitchen?" I asked with a pleasant smile. "No, thank you." "You know, I'm not going to poison you," she sighed. "Besides, I'll be eating from the food too." "I'm simply not hungry," I shrugged. "I came here to talk business but you seem intent on dredging up the past. Are you insecure about something, Sienna?" Her eye twitched at that and I did a little celebration in my head. I hit the nail right on the head. "Was Sebastian with you last night?" She asked, her voice cold and serious now. I lifted an eyebrow at that. "Why are you asking me? I believe you live in the same home as him." "Answer the question, Athena," she replied. "Or what?" I asked, my voice cold as my eyes glowed. "Surely you aren't trying to threaten me, are you?" She flinched at the sight of my glowing eyes but regained her composure quickly. "What if I am?" Her guards walked out of the kitchen and mine stood up from the table where he sat, a fierce cold look on his face. "Then, things could get ugly really fast," I smiled. "You haven't forgotten much about me already, have you? There was a reason why I was feared by almost everyone before I got involved with Sebastian. You haven't forgotten the sight of your blood, have you?" I turned my attention to the table between us and examined it for a few seconds before looking back into her eyes which were glowing as well. "Surely, you don't think this table is going to save you from me before your guards get to us, right?" Sienna seemed unsure of herself even though the fierce look on her face never went away. She seemed nervous. "Why don't we talk about business, miss Sienna?" I sighed. "You always threaten your clients?" She asked. "That's weird." "I don't," I shrugged. "My clients don't usually threaten me first." "I wouldn't want to do business with a person I can't trust," she said. "Let's end this contract now." I smiled at that. "By all means, we can. As long as you are ready to abide by the terms of the contract." "That's bullshit!" She hissed. "Why should we do that?! I'm not getting any service or product from you!" "By your choice, not mine," I replied calmly. "Do you think I enjoyed this contract too? It goes both ways, Sienna. If I decided to terminate this contract, it would cost me. I have invested time, money, and sleepless nights for this. If I can't see the result of my work because some client is insecure about her man, then I deserved to be fully compensated for it." "You could sell it to someone else," she argued. "You won't be taking a loss." "Unfortunately, ma'am," Bella spoke up. "We don't do that." "Shut your filthy mouth, you wench!" She hissed at Bella. "Who gave a cockroach permission to speak." "She isn't a cockroach," I replied coldly. "Insult my assistant once more and I will forget to be civil." I turned my attention to Bella who kept her face neutral despite the insult. She truly was used to this. "I'll handle this." She nodded to that and then looked ahead, at Sienna who was still glaring at her. "Do you know what we pride ourselves on?" I asked Sienna calmly. She gave me a puzzled look. "Uniqueness," I answered my own question. "We pride ourselves on uniqueness. Every one of our jewelries are tailored for the intended client. We never resell someone else's. That would go against everything we have built and I won't do that." "What happens to the jewelry then?" She asked. "It rots in our showroom," I smiled. "We use it as an attraction. Nothing more, nothing less." "So, you're not going to terminate the contract?" She asked. I cocked an eyebrow. "You're the one who wants that," I replied. "As long as Sebastian is ready to pay for it, I don't mind it being terminated." "What if I paid?" She asked. "That would be against the contract," I replied. "I personally don't mind you paying, but Sebastian signed the contract, not you. He has to confirm that he is giving his permission for you to terminate the contract and pay the appropriate fees." She glared at me for a few seconds and then turned to her assistant. "We're leaving," she hissed. "This was a waste of time." "That it was," I nodded as well and smiled pleasantly. "It was great talking to you, Sienna." The look on her face was priceless.SIENNAOnce we left Hillview, the ride back home was quiet, save for the Bella's relentless tapping of her tablet. I didn't mind it though as I was still basking in the reaction I got out of Sienna at the end. The look of anger, annoyance and hatred in her eyes was one that would grace my thoughts for a long while. I never intended to be nice to her even if we have a business relationship, and I'm glad she thinks the same way. She and Sebastian ran me out of my marriage and literally made the country unbearable to live in. They ruined many years of my life and made me into a sort of guinea pig for their own benefits. I wasn't even going to remotely pretend that all of those never happened. I was so engrossed in my thoughts that I missed the moment the tapping stopped, until Bella's voice dragged me out of it. "I had the assumption that you had history with Alpha Stone and his mate, but it seems things were a lot more intimate than I thought."I turned my attention to her and gav
ATHENAThe door opened and the guard walked in behind me, pausing just at the entrance. Sienna cocked a brow. "I guess we both broke the one person rule," she laughed. "My guards are hiding in the kitchen. It's only normal that we don't trust each other, ñ it?"n"It's normal that I don't trust you," I said, giving her a smile of her own. "I wasn't to be trusted, you'd already be dead.""Oh?" Sienna laughed. "I guess you're right. You did help me when I needed it, even though you were literally forced to do it.""You're welcome," I said as I sat down. Her smile faltered at that, but she kept it together still. "Your designs are quite incredible. I am in awe of the accessories you're making for my mating ceremony with Sebastian."Her eyes stared at me, searching for even the tiniest reaction from me, but my face showed none as I stared back. She scoffed. "You're no fun, you know.""I've never been told that," I shrugged. "I guess I just can't have fun with a person who bullied me
ATHENA "The car is ready, ma'am," Bella's voice informed me from outside my bedroom door. "I've arranged for one of the guards to drive us as well. "Good, Bella," I replied. "I'll be out in a minute."I stared at the mirror for a few seconds, checking out my body more than I did my outfit. I wanted to make sure my bruises were gone. The last thing I wanted was for Sienna to see even an ounce of weakness in me. When she called me, I was sure she was about to yell at me for keeping Sebastian until so late. It was surprising that all she asked for was a meeting between us alone, but that already sent alarm bells ringing in my head. With Bella there, I'm assuming her intentions would be a little more subdued. I still can't take chances so a guard will be driving us as well instead of the regular chauffeur. I stepped out of my bedroom once I was ready, my blonde hair tied in a ponytail and my penciled skirt hugging my curves. Bella was waiting in the living room and rose to her feet
SIENNAI smashed my wine glass on the wall with a snarl as I gripped my phone hard enough to almost break it. "What the fuck!" I yelled into the phone. "You told me you had never failed a mission! I thought she was as good as dead.""She should be," the voice on the other end replied. "We had an interruption. We lost all of the men we sent. All except the scout.""How on earth is that possible?!" I hissed. "How could you send weaklings after her?!" There was no reply for about a minute before the person on the other end spoke. "A piece of advice," the voice came, cold as ever. "Call us weaklings again and you would get a taste of those weaklings. We'll see if you survive them."I frowned at that. "Is that a threat?" "An advice," was the reply and he kept talking. "The target was more powerful than we assumed, but we never work with assumptions. We overcompensate for the sake of success. She would have died regardless of her monstrous strength. She was helped by the Alpha of the B
ATHENAI could see the relief in Sebastian's features as he stared at Bella. I just couldn't understand why. Why would he care who I live with? Why would he even bother saving me?My presence must be dampening the mood of his coming mating ceremony, so why does he care?Bella rushed to my side as she checked my wounds which were already healing. "I've contacted a security company and they're sending a few of their best over here right now. What happened to you, ma'am?" "Nothing much," I forced a smile. "Just had a little altercation." "She almost got assassinated," Sebastian said from his corner, earning himself a sharp glare from me, while Bella's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "By the goddess, what?!" "It's nothing, Bella," I replied and then glared at him again as I spoke through gritted teeth. "It was taken care of before anything serious happened." There was a faint hint of amusement in his eyes as he met mine. When he opened his mouth to speak again, I knew he was
SEBASTIAN Athena's eyes searched mine with a question. I could tell she genuinely hoped for an answer........but it was an answer I couldn't give. "No one does on my watch," I said calmly, keeping my voice neutral. "I am the Alpha of these lands. It'll be a poor look on my reputation if a guest and an someone under my employ, gets killed right under my nose.""Contracted," she said. I cocked an eyebrow at that. "What?" "I was contracted, not employed," she corrected. "I don't work for you, I work with you and your Luna. Which by the way, reminds me. Leave my house."I blinked at that. "What?" "You heard me, Alpha," she bowed, but I only saw it as what it was. Mockery. "Respectfully, leave my house, oh venerable Alpha." "Is that really necessary?" I sighed. It was quite annoying but I couldn't bring myself to be mad at her. It seemed comical. "Please leave," she sighed as well. Her tone turning serious. "Thank you for saving my life but I'll need to be alone to rest.""You n