All Chapters of Between the Sheets: Chapter 1 - Chapter 6

The First DayI never imagined my life would end up here. The first thing I noticed about Hawthorne House was the silence.Not the peaceful kind. Not the kind you find in libraries or museums.This silence was different. Heavy. Expensive.The kind that made every small sound feel like a mistake.My shoes clicked softly against the marble floor as I stepped inside the enormous entrance hall, clutching the strap of my worn bag a little tighter. The doors behind me closed with a quiet but final sound that made my chest tighten.I had seen large houses before.But this wasn't it.It was an empire .Hawthorne House was nothing like the places I had cleaned before. The floor beneath my shoes wasn't tile or cheap wood,it was polished white marble that reflected the towering chandeliers .The walls were lined with towering columns and oil paintings framed in gold. Everything looked pristine, untouched like dust was too afraid to settle .I felt like I had accidentally wandered into a place I

The Locked Wing Two days passed before I realized part of the mansion wasn’t meant to be cleaned. The west wing. I discovered it by accident. My cleaning cart rolled quietly along the hallway when I noticed the difference immediately. The lights were dimmer. The air cooler. And every door along the corridor was locked. I frowned. That was unusual, even for a house this big. Most of the mansion had open rooms—guest bedrooms, sitting rooms, libraries, offices, and storage areas. Marta had given me a cleaning map during my first shift, and although it looked complicated, nothing had seemed deliberately forbidden. Until now. Curiosity tugged at me. I pushed the cart a little further down the hall. The corridor felt different. Quieter. Like the walls themselves were keeping secrets. That’s when I saw the final door. Unlike the others, this one wasn’t plain wood. It was dark oak with carved detailing along the edges—intricate vines and twisting shapes that looked almost ant

The Locked DoorMy brain immediately tried to invent reasons to refuse.But unfortunately, Adrian Hawthorne wasn’t the kind of man people refused.So I followed him.Out of the library and down the quiet hallway.My heart beat faster with every step.Where exactly was he taking me?We walked for nearly a minute before I realized something …This was the west corridor.The locked wing.Adrian stopped in front of the dark oak door I had seen days earlier.The plaque beside it gleamed under the hallway lights.PRIVATE COLLECTION.My heart skipped a beat.Adrian reached into his pocket and pulled out a small silver key.Then he glanced at me.Sure hope he doesn’t kill me or give me a hefty punishment.“You were curious about this room.” it wasn’t a question.I froze.How did he know ? Did Marta tell him?“I…”He unlocked the door before I could finish the sentence.The heavy wood opened slowly.Warm light spilled into the hallway.And suddenly, I was staring at something breathtaking.Paint