Chapter 3

~RHEA~

It was tough and terrifying. I kept having scary dreams and seeing scary pictures.

I was drifting in and out of my sleep, gasping whenever those scary dreams or pictures appeared again.

After struggling with the imaginary force that was holding me down, I jerked from my sleep and sat up. My breath was unsteady and heavy.

My eyes wandered over the room while I was still fighting with my unstable breaths. For a moment, I paused when I discovered that there was something wrong.

Yes! Something was wrong. This didn’t look like my place or my father’s place. Where was I?

My heart began to race fast when the reality hit me. The last scenario before I passed out rewound in my head. I saw a male silhouette. The vision was blurry, but I could tell he was masculine because of his sturdy build and muscles.

Was he a bad man? Had I been kidnapped by him?

I clutched my body tightly and squeezed every part of me just to be certain I hadn’t been groped or injured in my sleep. If he wasn’t a kidnapper, he could be an organ trafficker or a murderer.

Scratch that! What was I saying? He brought me here without my consent. That could also be tagged as kidnapping.

I heard the creaking sound of the door, and it jerked me out of my trance. A woman, dressed in a blue knee-length gown, walked in. She was holding a tray of what I assumed was food because the aroma was hitting my nose aggressively.

My stomach was shameless, and it almost made me hate myself. It grumbled as soon as the smell invaded my nose. What the fuck is wrong with me? How could I be hungry in this situation? How could I think of food when I wasn’t yet certain I was in safe hands?

“You are finally awake, Missus!” The woman smiled widely and put the tray on the stool beside my bed. “Good afternoon, Missus.” She made a curt bow.

My throat bobbed as I looked up at her, speechless. “I… Please… Where am I? Where is this place, and who are you?” I questioned, darting a gaze of scrutiny over her. Did she come here to poison me or make me sleep deeply so they could open me up and take my organs?

At that moment, a whole lot of different bad thoughts filled my head. After what had happened in the past few days, I had learned never to trust anyone… not even my parents.

“Oh! Pardon my manners, Missus. I’m Irene, Mr. Travis’s head of maids,” she introduced politely, a radiant smile etched on her face. Her voice was so soft and welcoming that I found myself relaxing. The bad thoughts I had were slowly dissipating, even when I was yet to know who the so-called Mr. Travis was.

I trusted her—her innocent face, and her voice, which brought serenity to me.

“And who is Mr. Travis?” My brows arched, and my eyes rolled up in a questioning manner.

“He is my boss. The head of this house,” she responded. “Your bath has been prepared. Just go into the bathroom and take your bath. I will inform Mr. Travis that you are awake. Please, eat your food, Missus. You’ve been sleeping for twenty-four hours.”

After listing her instructions, she made a curt bow and strolled out of the room. I couldn’t believe my ears. My jaw dropped as I watched her leave. I had been sleeping for twenty-four hours? What the… I had been wasting twenty-four hours of my life on this damn soft bed.

•

I felt much better after taking my bath and eating my meal. I found the gown I changed into in the wardrobe. It was the only dress there, and that was why I easily knew it was for me.

It was as though I was being watched; the door opened the moment I dropped the spoon, revealing a man.

He walked in like he owned the air—each step deliberate, quiet, but heavy with purpose. His eyes were fixed on me, and I felt my bottom getting wet at those eyes—like dark gold caught in sunlight. They held stories you wouldn’t dare ask him to tell and promises you weren’t sure you wanted kept.

There was something untouchable about him. An aura like coiled thunder, calm on the surface but charged with unspoken power.

He didn’t need action. He didn’t need words. I could feel it. His face was arresting, sculpted, and symmetrical. A firm, squared jaw, lightly dusted with stubble that hinted at rebellion even in his most polished form.

High cheekbones.

A slightly crooked nose that suggested a fight or two—and that he’d won every single one.

I didn’t blink. I couldn’t blink when I saw him. My throat suddenly dried up, and I gulped every bit of saliva I could gather.

“Is there a problem?” His husky voice wafted into my ears, causing me to shake out of my reverie.

A husky voice was supposed to be rough, right? How could it be monotonous in my ears? How could it be sweet and rhythmic in my ears?

“Eh…?” I spurted out. “Ah! Yeah! I’m fine,” I responded, wiping the little drool at the corner of my lips. Such a loose, flexible fool I was. I couldn’t even stop myself from drooling.

“Good.” His baritone voice was coarse and devoid of emotions. He flung a large brown envelope at my face, and I caught it before it could hit me. “Sign those papers,” he ordered.

My brows knitted at the order. “What papers?”

Instead of responding to me, he walked to the couch in the room, settled on it, crossed his legs, and folded his arms. Oh, Jesus! He resembled a demigod in that posture.

Enrobed in curiosity, I brought out the papers in the envelope, and my expression turned into shock when I read their contents. From shock to anger, and anger to sour.

“What is this rubbish? What nonsense are you spouting about, pup?”

“You are with my pup,” he revealed.

For a moment, I was confused. What did he mean by that? I knew I was pregnant.

Yeah! I was pregnant. Wait a minute! Was the baby I was carrying the pup he was referring to?

I clutched my belly and glanced at him. “How did you know I’m pregnant?”

He scoffed, playing with his fingers beside his jaw. “My pup’s smell is strong. It is just like mine.”

At this point, I was confused. What is this shit about pup and smell? If he was talking about the child, he should fucking speak up straight so I could let him know that I had plans of aborting the child. There was no way on earth I would keep a child who made me lose everything—my family, my relationship, and here I was, losing myself too.

“Can you speak clearly, mister? I don’t understand the pup and smell shit. How did you know I’m pregnant?”

“I found out that you are the woman who was inseminated with my sperm.”

I was dazed, not because of the news, but because of the reality hitting me one more time. I was finally in front of the man who owned the child in my belly, and I didn’t know what to do.

“Oh! Good! Thank God you appeared just at the right time. I will be aborting this baby. I cannot keep it,” I spurted out after deliberating for a while. I assured myself that I was about to take the right step. I shouldn’t let a stranger’s baby ruin me.

“You will not do that. You dare not!” His voice resounded like thunder, cold and eerie. I felt chills down my spine. When I stared at him, I gasped when I saw the expression he had on. He glanced at me with murderous intent in his eyes.

“What…! You need to understand me, mister. This is not just about you. This is also about me. I have lost everything because of this baby. My family has deserted me. My boyfriend has broken up with me. Keeping it only means destruction for me,” I explained, hoping that he would put himself in my shoes and understand me.

However, the response I got swept me off my feet. “I never asked for your opinion, kitten. Sign the papers and stay here with me until you have my pup. You will only leave here after you’ve given me my healthy pup.”

“What!”

He stood up and started taking steps toward me. Fear gripped me as he came closer. His aura and demeanor were terrifying. I gulped and shifted backward on the bed.

That didn’t stop him.

He kept moving closer, and I kept shifting backward until I felt my back against the headboard.

He fucking didn’t stop. He didn’t.

He kept shoving his head forward. I was scared. What was going to happen? Was he about to…? Never!

Then he stopped! When I least expected it, leaving just a thin space between us.

He let out in a breathy whisper, “You have to sign the papers, Kitten. I lose my patience easily, and I don’t think you want to see that soon.”

He smiled with his eyes, stood straight, and chuckled.

Without waiting for my response, he walked out of the room.

Two minutes after he left, I couldn’t jolt out of the shock and daze. I felt like a fool.