LILY
No matter how hard I slapped his back, he didn’t seem to care. Until I realized we were already inside the car. He fastened my seatbelt, and I could smell his fragrant cologne. His warm breath brushed against my skin, and soon I fell asleep. I could hear voices around me, trying to force my eyes open, but I couldn’t because of the heaviness I felt.
Moments later, I felt myself lying on a soft bed. It felt like I was in my parents’ mansion in Alabama. In my dream, I saw my grandfather’s angry face.
“Leave me alone! I won’t follow what you want!” I firmly said, even in my sleep.
I could feel tears rolling down my cheeks. I was crying because I saw my mother in my dream, also crying. Then, I felt strong arms wrapping around me.
The next morning, I woke up with a headache and couldn’t remember what had happened the night before. When I opened my eyes, I was in a large room. It wasn’t the room from last night—this was another one entirely.
I got up and rubbed my face with my hands. That’s when I remembered I had been drinking last night. I also remembered seeing Arlo kissing someone.
I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration. I was annoyed at myself for drinking so much when I couldn’t even handle the consequences.
I heard a noise outside. I was about to stand when there was a soft knock at the door.
“Ma’am Lily, are you awake?” asked an unfamiliar female voice from outside the door.
I opened the door and saw a woman, possibly around Arlo’s age.
“Good morning,” I greeted politely.
“Good morning as well, Ma’am Lily. I’m sorry if I woke you up. Sir Arlo asked me to check if you were awake,” she replied.
“It’s fine; actually, I’ve been awake for a while,” I said.
“My sister Nikki was right when she said Sir Arlo’s girlfriend is beautiful.” Her compliment made my cheeks warm.
“Thank you very much. So, you’re Nikki’s sister?” I asked.
“Yes, Ma’am, I’m her older sister. My name is Ann.”
“Nice to meet you. By the way, was Nikki the one who changed my clothes last night?” I asked.
“I’m not sure, Ma’am, since I just arrived from the county. But don’t worry, when Nikki gets back, I’ll tell her you want to talk to her. She’s currently at the supermarket.” I nodded.
“Thank you. Please let your boss know I’ll be downstairs shortly,” I said.
I started to wonder who changed my clothes last night. I needed to talk to Nikki because I couldn’t stop thinking about it. If it wasn’t Nikki, then it must have been Arlo.
Arlo’s oversized shirt felt like a blanket on me. I opened the cabinet and inside were some of my packed clothes. Nikki must have arranged them for me. I took out my skinny jeans and red sleeveless top.
Before heading to the bathroom to shower, I peeked out the window because I heard the noise of a cat and a dog.
When I looked out, I saw Arlo wearing shorts and a black T-shirt. This meant he had a cat and a dog, but yesterday, I didn’t see them in his house—there were two cats and a dog.
The dog must have seen me because it started barking repeatedly while looking at the window where I stood.
I quickly pulled back and went into the bathroom, my heart racing for no reason. Inside the bathroom, I stepped into the shower. I closed my eyes as the warm water cascaded over my body.
After finishing my shower and getting ready, I left my room. The mansion was quiet, and there was no one around.
“Ma’am Lily, Sir Arlo is in the garden. He said you’d have breakfast there. You know, Ma’am, it’s rare for Sir Arlo to have breakfast at home. Usually, he eats out, even dinner sometimes and lunch. I hope you stay in Sir Arlo’s life for a long time,” Ann said.
“I’ll head outside now; he might get impatient if he’s hungry,” I replied, avoiding her remarks because I didn’t want to give them false hope.
I couldn’t tell how long I’d stay in Arlo’s house. We agreed: I would take and keep the money he gave me. Once he became the CEO of their company, I would leave. I also wanted to talk to my mom without Grandpa Williams finding out—I needed to get my passport.
When Arlo saw me approaching, he stood up straight. His dog started barking again, looking at me intently as if something was wrong with my outfit or maybe my face looked unusual.
