CAMILA
^*^ I stood nervously across the table. I couldn’t tell the next move from him and the silence was eating me up. My eyes occasionally looked between the man on the chair and my boyfriend, Nick, who was standing nervously close to the table. I subconsciously dragged the hem of my dress down to somehow cover the fully exposed part of my lower body but as I did, the thin material covering my boobs dragged down with it. Nick cleared his voice a few seconds after, dragging every word with anxiety. “So, you asked for her. I apologize for the stupidity she caused some minutes back. So, here she is King, a full package.” His hands flew around as they pointed at me. I gulped. My attention focused on the man sitting gracefully on the chair opposite me. His gaze was stiff on the piece of paper he was scribbling on. Seeing how quiet the room was, Nick spoke again. This time, with a little bit of laughter to brighten up the atmosphere. “Come on King, I have girls downstairs with legs wide open waiting for me!” He gave a stupid laugh at the end of the sentence. The Adam sitting suddenly stood up. His hands moved to straighten the end of his suit as he walked majestically across the room to where I was standing. Every one of his movements screamed money, authority, and power. He suddenly stopped and stood before me, I didn’t dare raise my eyes to meet his. A mixture of strong manly cologne and mist filled my nostrils and I tried not to scrunch my nose at the strong beautiful smell coming from him. The confidence I had while riding him suddenly disappeared from me. His hand shot up and I flinched, thinking he was going to hit me. But instead, they came around my neck and tilted my head to the side. His long fingers trailed every inch of my neck as he suddenly spoke. “Who did this to you?” His voice came out perfectly strong, unlike the time he spoke to me at the strip hall. At first, I didn’t understand what he was pointing at. But when his fingers trailed at a sore part of my neck, I gulped and shut my eyes, I wasn’t ready to tell Nick out just like that. I heard Nick’s nervous laugh as he spoke. “Oh, forget about that Mr. King. It was a little punishment for the stupidity she pulled the other time—“ “Did you do this to her?” He spoke again. This time, a mix of impatience and anger was evident in his voice. I was shivering at this, my eyes were still shut and I was trying hard to not voice a whisper. His hand on my neck was still trailing around and I could still perceive the strong smell of mist on him. Nick didn’t give a response to his question. “Mr. Grey, do you do this to all your girls?” When Nick didn’t answer, he returned the question to me. “Did he hurt you?” I opened my eyes to meet his grey ones. “I- I, no. No, he didn’t hurt me.” I whispered as my gaze focused on his. I literally lost all confidence around this man. “What is your name?” “C-Camila,” I found my voice again. The tension in the room was slowly reducing and I could feel my heart beating well again. His hand on my neck was soothing. “Camila,” My name seductively rolled on his tongue. “Camila, who is this man to you?” He asked, gesturing to Nick. “He’s my boss,” I said and every word felt like glass in my throat. “And?” He raised a brow. “My boyfriend,” I gulped. “Fascinating.” He smirked and dropped his hand from my neck as he made his way to the big desk. “Camila, do you know that this man just sold you to me?” Sold? “S-sold? W-what do you mean sold?” My voice croaked. He signaled one of the guards who came to me and handed me a piece of paper. My eyes almost fell out of their sockets when I read the content of the paper. My name and a picture of me were attached to the paper with two signatures. Nick’s and obviously his. I managed to move sideways and fixed my gaze on Nick who was standing nervously. “Nick?” Nick didn’t say a word. Instead, he focused on the man. “King, I didn’t fucking sell her to you. It was a one-night contract.” He gritted. “And what’s the difference between that? She'll be mine after all." King asked, with his gaze still on me. Nick gasped and moved further towards me. "King, we had a deal-" "And the deal starts now Nick. Now, can you please leave?" King interrupted and when Nick opened his mouth to protest, he turned to the men. “Show this gentleman the way out, please." The men inside dragged Nick who wouldn't stop yelling out of the room, leaving just King and I inside. King moved back to the desk and sat on the chair. focusing on the documents once again while I stood, having absolutely no idea what I should do at that moment. My brain was still trying to register the fact that my boyfriend and boss just sold me off to some random dude. I needed to ask questions and be aware of what was going on, and that was what I did. "Why am I here?" I asked. my voice barely a whisper. The titan before me didn't bother sparing me a glance as he kept scribbling on the documents. Moments later, he spoke. "Quite impressive what you did back at the club, might I say?" "Huh?" I voiced. He stopped what he was doing and finally settled his gaze on me. "Camila Frost, am I right?" His right brow squeaked and his gaze remained on me. I gulped, shifting my weight to my right leg. "I'd like to be referred to as Camila, Camila Rose." Frost was my father's name and I hated to be called that. It wasn't worth answering my dad's name after everything he did to us. "Hmm, I see." He nodded. "Well, Miss Frost," He stood and walked to me. "I'd like to make a preposition. " He grinned, standing a few breaths away from me. "W-what do you m-mean?" I stuttered, trying to fix my gaze on his despite the blue light in the room. The Adam before me studied me for a while, then he moved back to the office chair, pulled out a file from under the table, and slammed it in my direction. I strained my gaze towards the paper but couldn't get words out of it. "What's that?" "You see, Miss Frost... your humble boyfriend sold you to me for the night. How shameless of him." He broke out and moved his head around in pity. "No!" I glared at him. The high shoes on me were already too uncomfortable for me and the whole situation was irritating. "Nick would never do that!" "Technically, no, he'd never. Financially, hell yes." He said and gave a laugh that I found annoying. "You were given off for One Million dollars baby, for the night." Well, that was a lot of money. I didn't even know I cost that much. "But, the thing is... I wanted to have you just for the night. but after your little foreplay on stage, that thing on your neck. and how smooth your body ran through mine at the bar, I want to have more of that. I have a proposition to make, Camila. And I'm ready to pay you more than one million if you'll accept." He finished, resting on the table and crossing his hands together.CAMILA ^*^ "I'm not a prostitute, " I muttered, shifting my weight to my right leg this time. Did he want to have me for himself? Was I some sort of... whore? I mean, I was a stripper, but that was where it ended. I only danced at the pole and sometimes on the men to make them spend more... but that was where it ended. "I'm not a freaking whore!" I muttered again but this time, more to myself. "You see," The Adam stood again and started moving closer to me with his hands in his pockets as he spoke. "That's where you miss it all. I don't want to fuck you, I want to paint you. Sexually, I don't involve myself with 'things' like you." He emphasized more as he said 'things'. "I paint things like you." It took a whole lot from me not to laugh out, or punch this self-centered man in the face. "So? And why do you think I'd even accept whatever you want to do with me?" "Because, my dear, I have what you want." I raised a brow and he grinned. "I have the money you need." "W-wha
CAMILA ^*^ A hand shot out to grab my upper arm from the right side, and I gasped, as a cold metal suddenly touched my neck. I gulped, and my eyes shot, shaking, towards the bodyguard with the tattoo-deck neck. His dark eyes were fixed on me with pure murder, "Who are you?" I parted my lips, furrowing my eyebrows slightly, "Huh?" I didn't know how to identify myself. A cold, smooth, and absolute voice shot some feet before me. "She's with me, Pietro." King's order echoed calmly, "Let her in," The bodyguard called -apparently- Pietro, directly let go of me and nodded respectfully, yet still with a rude look. "Aye, get in." Hey, who stuffed your ass with a hum bag earlier dude? I turned and stepped behind my new employer, who had already marched through the corridor leading towards the entry of his… ehem… mansion. Feeling my presence behind him, his majesty spared me a look. Fast, indifferent, and with a lack of interest. "Coming?" He murmured, archi
CAMILA ^*^ Dinner.. One would think it’d be a pleasant, harmless word. But right now? It felt like a loaded gun. I stared at myself in the full-length mirror for what felt like forever. My curls were brushed out, soft and falling around my shoulders just the way Claire had styled them earlier. I wore a silk two-piece set in ivory, the shirt loose but showing just enough collarbone to make me feel like bait. And the tight pants clung to me like sin. Everything in this house made me feel like a very expensive doll. A doll being watched. I touched my lips, the soft pink gloss catching in the light. Why did I care what I looked like? Why did I want him to look at me? I shook the thought away. That was not the mission. The mission was simple: Survive this house. Collect the money. Save my sister. Escape my toxic life. The mission was not to start falling into the strange pull of a man who painted women and kept their portraits locked away. Claire knocked and didn’t wait before pu
CAMILA ^*^ The next morning came too quickly. I barely slept. How could I when every creak of the mansion, every tiny sound in the hall, made me twitch. My dreams were a weird mix of faceless paintings, piercing black eyes, and me drowning in a pool of roses while Claire laughed and danced around me with a tea set. I woke up sweaty, confused, and entirely unprepared for whatever the hell today was supposed to be. Claire knocked on the door with her usual singsong tone. “Rise and shine, my darling blossom! It’s studio day!” Studio day. Yeah, that didn’t sound ominous at all. I didn’t respond. Instead, I rolled out of bed, yanked on a pair of black leggings and a cotton crop top, and tied my hair into a messy ponytail. If I was going to be gawked at like some muse-slash-test subject, I was doing it comfortably unapologetic. Claire met me at the base of the stairs, eyes scanning me from head to toe with disapproval. “No dress?” “No dignity.” She chuckled. “Oh, y
King ^*^ I woke up feeling the most peace I’ve had in years. Not just peace in body, still in mind. The kind of peace that felt foreign, like waking up inside someone else’s life. There was no pounding in my skull, no screams clinging to the back of my throat. Just peace. warm and soft through my body, and the quiet chirping bird outside. I hadn’t slept like that in years. I knew that It wasn’t the bed. It Wasn’t the medication I stopped pretending to take. It Wasn’t the damn darkness in my heart. It was her. Painting Camila did something to me. To whatever haunted me. It calmed the noise. She didn’t even know it. And that was the part that scared me the most. My phone buzzed from the dresser. I grabbed it, expecting the usual flood of meaningless messages. Instead, one name flashed across the screen: Leonard. Of course. I answered on the third ring. “Morning, sunshine!” he chirped too loudly that I almost felt dead. I didn’t say anything. Just stared out the window. “Ah
CAMILA *^* "I'd like to make a point..." I started, few mintues after sitting for dinner. After freshening up and sorting myself out, I came down for dinner, expecting to see the visitors, but it was just king. Maybe they weren’t here yet. I was sitting opposite King who still hasn’t spared me an ounce of attention since I came. "Mr. king, I have a few things to lay off about this contract." I said again, this time grabbing his attention as he paused halfway into sticking a piece of beef into his mouth. King raised his head to speak for this first time tonight. "I never thought of you as the type to not acknowledge table manners, Miss Frost." He finished and resumed eating. I rolled my eyes innerly. "Thank you for whatever that means, I just want to clear some thick air here concerning the contract-" "If you're so eager to begin working again, I assure you I wouldn't mind. But I've had a tiring day, and I need rest." He paused, bringing his gaze into mine. "You need re
CAMILA . . . “—What do we have here?” Her voice sliced through the dim kitchen like a knife… silken, sharp, and so very unwelcome. I turned slowly, the fridge still open behind me, one hand wrapped around the box of cookies like it was stolen gold. I didn’t need a mirror to know I looked guilty as hell with wide eyes and a slightly parted mouth. Katherine. She stood there in the doorway like she’d stepped out of a fashion ad. She was dressed in some slinky silk thing that didn’t look sleep-worthy but screamed of high-maintenance seduction. Her arms were crossed over her chest, one hip cocked, her eyes doing a slow drag over me from head to toe. “Stealing now?” she asked, her voice sugar-coated with sarcasm. “Didn’t take you long.” I blinked. “I wasn’t stealing. It’s a kitchen. I got hungry.” She gave a breathy little laugh. “How charming. Like a stray kitten who thinks she owns the house just because someone left the door open.” I closed the fridge softly and set the cookie
CAMILA ... I sat stiffly on the tall wooden stool, trying not to fidget under the heavy gaze of the man in the room. King. The studio was cold, the kind of cold that settled into your bones and made you feel like you were sitting naked even though I had a thin robe wrapped around me. I shifted my shoulders awkwardly, but his voice came fast, low and commanding. “Don’t move.” I froze instantly, swallowing down the shiver creeping up my spine. “Chin slightly higher,” he said, circling me like a predator sizing up its prey. “Relax your fingers. Tilt your head.” His commands were sharp and emotionless. Like I wasn’t a person at all, like I was just a shape to be captured on canvas. I watched him for a moment, the way his brow furrowed as he painted. His hands moved fast, like an expert, as if he’d done this a thousand times. Maybe he had. The silence stretched so long it became unbearable. “King,” I said carefully, “what happened to the girl before me?” He didn’t answer, o
CAMILA...It had been half a month since I came to King’s house. Half a month since the night he almost kissed me, half a month since Katherine and her Leonard packed up and left the next morning with barely a word.Thank God to that because I couldn’t stand her for one more day.Half a month of living in this enormous, beautiful house with just myself, King and Claire.King wasn’t much better, he only appeared for breakfast or the painting sessions, and even then, it was like being near a ghost. He was always keeping a wall between us no matter how much I tried not to think about the moment in the art room.Sometimes I caught him staring when he thought I wasn’t looking, but the second my eyes found his, he would vanish into himself again.Claire had been my only true companion, her laughter and bubbly energy filling the emptiness I was beginning to feel in my heart, but even she had other places to be. Other friends. Other life even.I was going crazy with boredom, loneliness was
KATHERINE...I paced around my room with my phone pressed tightly against my ear, my voice low and furious.“I’m telling you, Camila is ruining everything,” I hissed into the receiver. “She’s a bad egg for the plan. She’s making him… different.”On the other end, my best friend, Sasha, sighed. “Then take matters into your own hands, Kat. Stop waiting around. If you want to win, you have to fight dirty. You know that.”I clenched my jaw, my nails digging into my palm. “I know. I just thought — I thought it would be easier. She’s nothing special, for god’s sake.”“Apparently, he thinks otherwise,” Sasha said, dry and cutting. “Fix it before you lose your chance.”Before I could reply, a sudden, piercing scream tore through the night air and I stiffened.“What was that?” Sasha asked.“I’ll call you back,” I muttered and ended the call without waiting for a reply.I threw the phone onto the bed and hurried out, my heart thundering but not out of concern. No. It was pure, burning curios
CAMILA...The fire was everywhere.Smoke choked my lungs, the walls cracked and blackened. I tried to find my way though the smoke to my mom or dad, but I could barely move because of the smoke and fire.I could hear Ella crying far from me and I struggled to breathe as I moved to her. The heat was unbearable, the roar of the flames louder than any scream I could muster.“Ella!” I screamed at the top of my voice. “Keep talking I’ll get to you!” I coughed in between words but luckily, my sister heard me as she kept screaming for me to locate her.I dragged her and hugged her when I got to her, keeping her close to me and trying so hard to see through the thick flame around us.Everything was burning, every freaking thing.“Mom! Dad!” I shouted, but the only answer was the creaking, crumbling groan of the house falling apart.I tried to run with my sister towards my parents room but something hot and heavy crashed down between us, cutting me off.The last thing I remembered was a pa
CAMILA...I woke up with the lingering feeling of warmth still pressed against my skin.For a moment, I didn’t know where I was, but then last night came crashing back into my mind.The painting.The apology.The kiss.Oh my freak!He kissed me!My lips tingled at the memory, and I pulled the covers tighter around myself, burying my face into the soft pillow to hide my growing blush — even though there was no one to see it.At some point last night, I must have fallen asleep in the studio, and King… he had brought me here without waking me up.Something about that made my heart ache in a way I didn’t want to acknowledge. I turned to look at the small clock on the bedside table. 10:38AM.“Shit.”I jumped out of bed, scrambling to freshen up and throw on a simple cream top and jeans. I tied my hair into a loose braid and practically sprinted toward the dining area, praying I wasn’t about to get my first official scolding for being late.As I neared the dining room, the smell of butte
CAMILA . . .It was sometime past midnight when I made up my mind.The house was silent except for the soft ticking of the antique grandfather clock downstairs, each tick hammering at my nerves like a countdown to something I wasn’t ready for.I slipped out of bed quietly, pulling on a pair of socks to mute my steps against the marble floors.My heart was thundering so loud in my chest that I was sure someone could hear it through the walls.This was insane.This was stupid.But curiosity burned hotter than fear.I had to know.I crept up the main staircase, wincing at every tiny creak. As I came face to face with the door everyone has warned me not to open, my heart pounded even more louder.I hesitated, my hand hovering just inches from the brass doorknob.‘Don’t do it.’ The voice in my head screamed louder now, but Katherine’s words rang just as strong:“You want the truth? You’ll find it there.”I closed my eyes and sucked in a breath.Then, with trembling fingers, I gripped t
CAMILA ... I sat stiffly on the tall wooden stool, trying not to fidget under the heavy gaze of the man in the room. King. The studio was cold, the kind of cold that settled into your bones and made you feel like you were sitting naked even though I had a thin robe wrapped around me. I shifted my shoulders awkwardly, but his voice came fast, low and commanding. “Don’t move.” I froze instantly, swallowing down the shiver creeping up my spine. “Chin slightly higher,” he said, circling me like a predator sizing up its prey. “Relax your fingers. Tilt your head.” His commands were sharp and emotionless. Like I wasn’t a person at all, like I was just a shape to be captured on canvas. I watched him for a moment, the way his brow furrowed as he painted. His hands moved fast, like an expert, as if he’d done this a thousand times. Maybe he had. The silence stretched so long it became unbearable. “King,” I said carefully, “what happened to the girl before me?” He didn’t answer, o
CAMILA . . . “—What do we have here?” Her voice sliced through the dim kitchen like a knife… silken, sharp, and so very unwelcome. I turned slowly, the fridge still open behind me, one hand wrapped around the box of cookies like it was stolen gold. I didn’t need a mirror to know I looked guilty as hell with wide eyes and a slightly parted mouth. Katherine. She stood there in the doorway like she’d stepped out of a fashion ad. She was dressed in some slinky silk thing that didn’t look sleep-worthy but screamed of high-maintenance seduction. Her arms were crossed over her chest, one hip cocked, her eyes doing a slow drag over me from head to toe. “Stealing now?” she asked, her voice sugar-coated with sarcasm. “Didn’t take you long.” I blinked. “I wasn’t stealing. It’s a kitchen. I got hungry.” She gave a breathy little laugh. “How charming. Like a stray kitten who thinks she owns the house just because someone left the door open.” I closed the fridge softly and set the cookie
CAMILA *^* "I'd like to make a point..." I started, few mintues after sitting for dinner. After freshening up and sorting myself out, I came down for dinner, expecting to see the visitors, but it was just king. Maybe they weren’t here yet. I was sitting opposite King who still hasn’t spared me an ounce of attention since I came. "Mr. king, I have a few things to lay off about this contract." I said again, this time grabbing his attention as he paused halfway into sticking a piece of beef into his mouth. King raised his head to speak for this first time tonight. "I never thought of you as the type to not acknowledge table manners, Miss Frost." He finished and resumed eating. I rolled my eyes innerly. "Thank you for whatever that means, I just want to clear some thick air here concerning the contract-" "If you're so eager to begin working again, I assure you I wouldn't mind. But I've had a tiring day, and I need rest." He paused, bringing his gaze into mine. "You need re
King ^*^ I woke up feeling the most peace I’ve had in years. Not just peace in body, still in mind. The kind of peace that felt foreign, like waking up inside someone else’s life. There was no pounding in my skull, no screams clinging to the back of my throat. Just peace. warm and soft through my body, and the quiet chirping bird outside. I hadn’t slept like that in years. I knew that It wasn’t the bed. It Wasn’t the medication I stopped pretending to take. It Wasn’t the damn darkness in my heart. It was her. Painting Camila did something to me. To whatever haunted me. It calmed the noise. She didn’t even know it. And that was the part that scared me the most. My phone buzzed from the dresser. I grabbed it, expecting the usual flood of meaningless messages. Instead, one name flashed across the screen: Leonard. Of course. I answered on the third ring. “Morning, sunshine!” he chirped too loudly that I almost felt dead. I didn’t say anything. Just stared out the window. “Ah