CHAPTER 6

ATHENA'S POINT OF VIEW

 Nothing much had changed about the Stone's mansion. It had the same terrifying yet intimidating look about it, the only difference was the time I spent away from it. 

Slightly I felt nervous, but I was no longer the same woman they had so cruelly maltreated years ago. Now, I was "Adeline's", that was my brand's name. I had built prestige and confidence in myself and I was even more confident about staring Sebastian Stone in the face.

There were some familiar faces and some unfamiliar faces as we entered the house, our purpose was stated and we were granted access into the mansion. The first face I saw was one I dreaded, one I desperately wanted to tear down, Sienna. The shock on her face said alot.

"Athena!" Her pronunciation of my name came with an appalling tone which reflected surprise and disbelief. Yet, She couldn't even hide her distaste. I wasn't bothered by it, her surprise was enough for me.

"Sienna, fancy meeting you here after a long time. I see you settled in" I teased sarcastically.

Her smirk came almost immediately, it was obvious she had a comeback.

"What re you doing here, Athena? I thought you had disappeared for good?" She asked returning my sarcasm with a smile..

From her stance and looks, I could see my plasma had done great justice for her, she looked stronger and more sturdy.

"Manipulative bitch" was all I could think to say, but I held back my words.

"I am here for a job, apparently Stone's company hired my services" I replied handing her the card.

She stared at it rather confused, her surprise increasing to further disapproval. I wasn't surprised that she hadn't known who I was, my brand did not bear Athena.

"How?.." she asked furrowing her brows together.

As she contemplated the situation, trying to narrow down her confusion, that was when he walked in. How didn't I expect to feel the way I did? From his sleek hair, to his sharp brown eyes, to his properly chiseled face, a part of me felt like jelly. Still, a greater part of me despised the sight of him, I detested him, and soon enough every part of my body began to agree.

"Athena" his eyes widened with surprise more at my transformation than at anything else, because he gave me a run over from my head to my toe. Yet, somehow he managed to maintain a cool, icy demeanor. Typical Sebastian Stone.

"You ordered my services" I said avoiding any form of pleasantry.

"Yes, Sienna here..." He tried to explain but she immediately cut him short.

"Can we please talk for a few minutes?" She asked him sweetly.

They excused themselves and went into the other room. Their conversation lasted less than five minutes before they were out again. Sienna had a look of someone who had just lost an argument.

"So," a smirk formed on her face "I and Sebastian's mating ceremony is coming soon and I need a good Jewelry designer to create a moon ring for me" she said smirking knowingly.

"I see" I felt a pang hit my chest, they were finally making it official.

She leaned towards Sebastian and nodded.

"Yes, are you capable of handling it or should we lease the job to another?" She asked

All the while I felt Sebastian's stare burn into my forehead. My anger grew and I was very tempted to hit the floor with my heels and stomp out of there, but no, I would never again give them the pleasure of seeing me break.

"Definitely, my reputation precedes me, as you know" I replied tilting my head sideways for effect.

Her smirk was immediately wiped off.

"Good, intrigue me" she said smiling. Sebastian watched eagerly as I brought out my notepad. I turned to my assistant for a blueprint sample.

"First, do you both have any particular design in mind? Is there something you want us to recreate or do you need something from scratch?" I asked maintaining an extremely professional look.

"Yes, my grandfather's ring" Sebastian replied in his deep barritone voice. The Stone's family ring was an old treasure of the Nightwalker Pack. I knew it was personal to him, and a great honour to be bestowed on Sienna.

"Sure, just hand us a sample or a blue print of the design." I replied without looking at him.

"We have some other blueprints here for the jewelries you requested for, Ma'am " my secretary said bringing out two more samples.

Sienna looked at the samples with an impressiveness that could not be denied, plus she knew she had to keep up her pretense in front of Sebastian.

He stared amicably without smiling or any need for further comments at the designs, then nodded his approval.

Without a word, I turned to Sienna and asked if she liked the designs

"Mmm, I do… but they're not really my taste. This one looks good though" she said pointing to one of the designs and shrugging. I knew she was sbeing rude on purpose but I ignored her.

Alright, send us samples of what you like and we'll create it" I said looking at my watch.

"It's been an hour, I have another appointment, we'll be expecting your blueprint and your feedback as soon as possible." I said faking an excuse to leave.

"My driver will drop you off " Sebastian offered in a.low, almost darked out tone.

"No, my driver is waiting outside.. thank you" I replied coldly and packed up my things, leaving without another word. I coudk feel their stare imprinted on my back as I walked out. I had left the Stone house without dignity and now I walked out of there with my head held high, what else could be sweeter?