DARING A MOVE

CHAPTER 004

CELESTE:

The strong scent of his cologne wafted into my nostrils; it was intoxicating, like a sweet mix of wood and lavender. It wrapped around me like a memory, the same intoxicating fragrance from my dream… from the refectory.

Then came his smile—slow, deliberate—and this time, I saw them clearly.

Dimples.

God help me.

The butterflies in my stomach erupted into a frenzy, their wings beating against the walls of my restraint.

“Okay… I see you don't do well with introductions,” he quipped, his voice teasing, snapping me out of the trance I didn't realize I’d slipped into.

I folded my arms across my chest, lifting my chin in what I hoped passed for composure. “You already told me your name. Back at the refectory.”

“Not properly,” he countered smoothly.

“So… Christian Adam,” I said slowly, tasting his name on my tongue. “I suppose I should return the courtesy. I haven’t properly introduced myself either. But you seemed to know who I was already.” My gaze swept over him before I could stop it. His perfectly styled hair, the Rolex on his wrist, and his leather shoes screamed luxury and power. This was no ordinary man. “Tell me… why are you really here?”

If he knew my name before I could tell him, does that mean he had been watching me too?

He smiled, easy and unbothered. “You didn't bother to say hello earlier; I thought I'd fix that,” he replied, eyebrows arching with curiosity.

My brows arched. “Say hello? Because we accidentally locked eyes at the funeral mass?” The sarcasm was evident in my tone.

“Why not?” He shot back. “Even in mourning, you managed to look… breathtaking.” His eyes danced around my body for a bit too long.

My lips parted in shock before I quickly closed them. I looked over my shoulders, hoping someone would interrupt us; no one did.

“Now that ‘hello’ is over, what do you want?” I asked, sounding slightly irritated.

He shrugged. “Nothing, I just wanted to meet you and maybe find out why you kept staring at me like I owed you money.”

I stiffened. “I wasn't staring.” I lied.

His lips curled into a smile. “Yeah, sure, it must have been someone else with your exact face, sitting three columns away and looking at me like she saw me in a dream.”

My heart dropped to my stomach. Not the dream word again.

He took another step closer, making my pulse race. “I want to know you, Celeste,” he said in a husky voice.

I swallowed, feeling sweat drop from my back to my butt. “If you could find me all the way to the orphanage and even to this point… I don't think you would have trouble knowing me.”

His shoulders dropped, and that smirk returned to his lips. “Fair.” He raised his hands in surrender. “But I'll have you know that I'm not easy to get rid of, and I always get what I want.”

I straightened my back. “And what is it that you want?”

He held my gaze, the corner of his mouth tilting up into something far too sinful for me to comprehend.

“You”, he said simply.

One word. Quiet. Certain. And yet it crashed into me like a thunderclap.

My breath caught.

“I want you, Celeste William.” His voice dropped lower, as if the confession was meant only for me. Which it did. “And I am a man who proudly says what he wants. I want not just a look at you. Not just in passing. I want to unravel everything you’re hiding. Even those you hide beneath that habit and the practiced silence.”

This must be a dream. He shouldn’t be saying this! I was not one for availability. This was a house of God. Not some whorehouse.

I took a shaky breath, gulping down a huge load of saliva that had accumulated in my mouth. “A—and I’ll have you know that I'm about to become a nun, so you can keep your flirtatious advances to yourself.”

My heart was beating in my ears as I stared down at him.

“Ah, so not a nun yet… I still have a chance.” He winked at me.

A beat passed between us as I slowly backed away. “I have work to do,” I said, forcing my voice to be steady. “Please don't come here again.”

I didn't wait for his reply before I turned around and went back inside.

The scent of stew hit my nose as soon as I returned to the building. The cooks were already preparing dinner.

Esme, who had been waiting just inside the hallway, leaned against the wall with a sly smile.

“Who was that?”

“No one,” I muttered.

She snorted. “No one? You were literally blushing.”

A small scowl formed on my face. “Stop saying nonsense.”

She chuckled but didn't say anything in protest.

We started to tidy up the hallway; it was getting late, and most of the kids had retreated to their rooms. “Let me go drop these off,” she said, with a handful of hymn books.

Just as she left, I found another stack of hymn books on the floor. “Esme—” I tried to call after her, but her steps had faded. “I guess I'll just do it myself,” I said under my breath, setting them aside.

The sound of approaching footsteps met my ears, followed by the sharp click of a cane…

Sister Theresa.

She entered the hallway, and before I could straighten up fully, she reached out and grabbed my hair, pulling it from behind.

“I saw you talking to that man,” she spat. “Who is he?”

“He's nobody,” I whispered, my voice trembling.

She scoffed and then raised her cane and struck me on the back. Hard. I winced in pain, biting down on my lower lip to hold back a scream.

Then, she struck me again, this time against my sides. “You're here to serve,” she hissed, landing a third strike. “Not to tempt men like the harlot from Babylon.”

“Celeste, guess what I found—” Esme halted, placing her hands against the walls to stop her movement.

She looked between sister Theresa and me, jaws parting slightly as she swallowed.

Sister Theresa shoved me forward and then stormed off. Esme waited until she was gone before she rushed to me.

“What happened?” She asked.

I could feel the tears building up; my eyes glistened with them, but I refused to let them fall. Not again.

“She thought I had something to do with that man who came to see me earlier. So she hit me.” My voice was cold. I got up, applying pressure on my hip.

There was still a hot, searing pain across my back.

Esme clenched her fists. “I'll report her to Father Elijah—”

I held her back. “Don't bother; we both know how it ends. He'll only reprimand her, and she'll come back and take out her anger on us.”

“She can't keep getting away with this,” she grumbled.

For the rest of the evening, I couldn't stop thinking about Christian; his face was now officially engraved into my mind. No longer a shadowy face of imagination.

I had to sleep on my right side because my left side and my back were still sore from the beating I had received earlier, and even so, I could barely get any sleep.

Two hours. That was how much sleep I got before it was morning. My head was still banging, but I had to get ready for the day.

A sharp knock on my door made me snap my head up. “Who's there?”

“Celeste, it's me, Esme; they said Father Elijah wants to see us all in the hall.”

That was odd.

I changed into my simple white hobbit and then followed after her. “Why would Father want to see us all so suddenly?” I asked her on the way.

She shrugged, “I don't know.”

When we arrived, almost everyone else was already there, even the kids from the orphanage.

In the center stood Father Elijah with a grim expression on his face. “Children. Staff. I bring difficult news.” He harrumphed. “The archdiocese has informed us that our state funding has been… revoked. The orphanage will be closing down permanently.”

Holy fudge on angel wings, shoot the demon star down.

I stood there frozen, heart pounding as I stared at Alice, who was standing in front, breaking down into tears.

No.

This couldn't be happening.