I think I finally understood how Arthur felt when I forced him to eat. I shoved down bite after bite, wondering how many I'd have to eat to safely be considered “done.” After a minute, I set my fork down, watching Jack out of the corner of my eye to see how he’d react. When I didn’t see any noticeable changes I finally pushed my plate away.
"What do you think? Should we head to bed now?" I asked, wiping my mouth.
"Absolutely not!" He cried indignantly. “I only have a few precious hours left with you and you already know the chances of me waking up as myself again are slim. The last thing I'm going to do is waste one second we have together sleeping."
He reached over and grabbed my hand, bringing it to his lips. He pressed my palm to his cheek. His eyes held a tinge of sadness as he look
Silence filled the air again. We sat there for a while watching the flames crackle in the fireplace. I wasn’t sure how long we stayed like that. However, I did start to notice as his hand loosened and slowly began to slip from my side. As I glanced over, I noticed his glass beginning to tip dangerously in his hand. I gasped, catching it right before it fell."Jack!" I cried, checking to make sure it didn't spill.He jumped as if I'd startled him. I glanced over, he looked confused. Had he fallen asleep? I snickered and set his glass on the table."I think it might be time for bed,” I suggested"No, no. I was just resting my eyes," he grumbled sleepily."Well, then let's rest them in bed," I insisted, standing. I t
I fell in love with him when he was Jack. Although, I honestly don't know if I ever really knew who “Jack” was. The doctors say his condition is rare. Therapy might help, but there's no guarantee he’d ever fully recover.I only knew a few things to be absolutely true about him. He was the last living member of an old and incredibly wealthy family called "Weston," he lived alone in a humongous mansion hidden in the Canadian wilderness, he had an incredibly rare mental illness that made him believe he was a different person nearly every day, and I was hopelessly in love with him.I met him by accident. I was twenty-six, broke, and on the verge of being homeless. I wasn't close with my family but did keep close ties with one friend from my hometown: Sara. She was one of the few people I felt comfortable enough to confide in.
I don't know how much time had passed by the time I woke up, but I could tell it was already dark. I heard a gentle crackling and the scent of smoke was faintly noticeable. Thomas must have lit a fire for me. How kind of him.As I turned, I felt something tugging gently on my hair. Did it get caught on a part of the bed? I reached up to untangle it, but instead of hard wood, my fingers touched soft skin. That woke me up. I gasped and sat up, looking around in a blind panic."Sorry, did I wake you?" Mr. Weston's voice spoke from the dark.I rubbed my eyes, hoping they would adjust to the darkness. Mr. Weston? It couldn’t be. I must’ve been dreaming. But I wasn’t. Slowly, his silhouette became clear.
I wasn’t sure exactly what was happening in my dream, but it felt nice. I was in this warm, hazy place. I couldn't really focus on my surroundings though. All I could focus on was the burning heat between my legs and the pleasure it sent through my body. I heard my name being murmured by a raspy voice.Anna.The hazy dream world started to vanish around me. As I opened my eyes, I was met with darkness. Slowly, I remembered where I was. I was back in the canopy bed in Mr. Weston's room. However, the pleasure between my legs was still there and getting stronger. I felt something hard pressing against my thigh."Anna,” the voice murmured again.This time, I recognized it. It was Mr. Weston. The shock woke me completely. Blush filled my cheeks as I reali
A gentle shaking woke me from my sleep. I opened my eyes to see Thomas standing over me. He looked concerned. Memories of last night came rushing to me. I tried to leap up, but he pressed me to the bed by my shoulders. A wave of fear filled me.He must have seen the fear in my eyes because he raised one hand and put a finger to his lips, a signal for me to be silent. He pointed over my shoulder. It was at that moment I realized Mr. Weston was sleeping with his arm still around me.Thomas leaned in close to me and whispered, "Try not to wake Mr. Weston unnecessarily when you get up. Consider this the beginning of your training. Come downstairs when you are dressed and ready. You have much to learn today."With that Thomas released my shoulders and quietly left. In the silence, I became all too clearly reminded of wha
Mr. Weston stared at Thomas and me for a moment. His face gave nothing away. Who was he today? Did he remember us? Did he remember me? Did he remember what happened last night? A smile slowly filled his face."Good morning, Thomas. Ms. Walton. I’m happy to see you’re still here. Thomas, what have I missed so far?”“Nothing, Sir. You haven’t left us yet, actually,” Thomas replied."Really? That’s great!” Mr. Weston turned to look at me. “Well, that being the case, we should probably have breakfast sooner rather than later. I know how hard Thomas works the trainees and you’ll need your energy, Ms. Walton. Let’s eat.”
A short time later, the door to the kitchen swung open. The chef appeared with a large serving cart carrying more silver trays. He spent several minutes laying the spread of food and drinks in front of us before excusing himself back to the kitchen.Mr. Weston was right. I did need my energy today and right now, I was beyond starving. I hadn't eaten anything since my lunch on the plane the day before. I was absolutely famished and the food looked far too tempting.But, again, the fear of “etiquette” came to mind. Were there rules for this kind of thing? Should I wait until Mr. Weston started eating? Was there an “appropriate amount” of food to take? Was there a system for the silverware? The questions were swimming around in my head, but my body betrayed me. A loud growl echoed from my stomach. Mr. Weston looked at me with a mixture of s
I followed him into the garden. The place we first met. The scene was just as beautiful as the day before, but I could hardly focus on it now. He sat on the same stone bench as before. He looked my way and motioned for me to sit with him. We stayed silent for a while, watching as the morning sun rose higher into the sky.As much as I wanted to know the truth, I didn’t want to push my luck. At least, not any more than I already had. I sat silently, hoping he would work up the nerve to answer my question. Not that I would be surprised if he didn’t. After all, I knew just as well as he did how embarrassing this whole situation was. I was about to give up and tell him to forget about it when I heard him sigh.He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Anna, what I'm about to say will probably be the single most humiliating speec