Page 35 of The Darkness is Calling

Oliver is a pleasant man, but I don’t love him. And he knows that.

Just as I know the idea of this marriage came from our families, who saw a benefit to their respective businesses in our relationship.

A lord and a Vor?

A completely unsuitable and senseless affiliation, and to this day, I still do not understand what made our parents put pressure on such an important step in my life and Oliver’s.

I am confused, and there are many things I still do not understand. But I realized that once the plans for this permanent union advanced, my relationship with Oliver became almost mechanical. As if we had already been married for many years and each of us simply lived our own life while preserving the impeccable image of a serious couple.

And he will not be present at my performance.

I avoided telling him for quite some time that I had decided to give the recital, precisely because I knew he would be away during that period, and I did not want him to cancel his plans. I only told him last month, but I did not describe the event as something important, because a large part of me does not want him there.

I would have wanted to share that moment with someone who truly matters to me, not with someone who attends only for the sake of looking good in the photos the press would take of us together.

So I let him believe it was just a simple recital, like others he had not been able to attend, and chose to bear, on my own, the weight of a pressure only I truly understand.

Because, in reality, I am alone.

Aside from Oksana, who is like a sister to me, I’ve never managed to truly love a man the way I see in movies. That kind of magic that makes you forget everything that matters and makes you capable of dying for the other person, because without him, life would not be worth living anyway.

I play and play and play, until my fingers grow tired and the sounds become heavy.

Eventually, I decide I’ve delayed the inevitable long enough and force myself to find the courage to go to bed.

Although it is almost midnight, none of the brothers seems to have returned home. Knowing how close they are, I assume they will come back together, since they left that way too.

After a quick shower in my own bathroom, I dress in a thin set of pajamas and take a robe with me to cover my bare legs.

If I known something like this would happen, I would have brought long pajamas, but for now, I only have a classic set from Victoria’s Secret, a T-shirt and shorts.

It could have been worse if all I had with me were the thin negligees I have not even taken out of my luggage yet.

Nothing about this day went the way I thought it would.

And not in a good way, for fuck’s sake.

By the time I step back into his room, my heart is already racing. In the quiet of the night, I get another chance to look around the surprisingly tidy room. Royal blue dominates the space, blending perfectly with the classic furniture, giving me the feeling that I am standing in the bedroom of a modern king.

The wood finishes are delicate, but without excessive details that would make the room feel oldfashioned. The shapes are rounded, elegant, with a stable and powerful air.

Just like the man who sleeps here.

I move forward with a sigh, and after leaving my robe on the armchair, I slip beneath the fine sheets, which feel as if they are wrapping around me like the delicate wave of a deep ocean.

Even though I am tired, I toss and turn, waiting for the monster to appear.

What will he do?

Will he laugh at me for being here?

I don’t think so. He does not seem like the kind of man who would be that petty in a situation like this.

Will he try to take advantage of me because I am in his bed?

I hope not.

No matter how attractive I know he is, I could not accept something like that. He is a stranger. A monster. Earlier today, his hands were covered in blood, and then he ate dinner with calm, acting as if nothing had happened.