Page 43 of Scent Of Obsession
That was a date.
It was incontestably a beautiful day.
I even thought Mrs. Walton had given me a smile earlier when I ran across the stairs. I roamed my room with excitement, my toes making the flooring creak. I whirled around, drunk with the idea of a night out. I imagined the splendor of the opera in each of my steps. Gaining momentum with my spins, I fell over my bed, feeling dizzy.
I distinguished a small packet next to me and drew a smile. Posed delicately on the bed, it was wrapped in a ballet-slipper-pink gift wrap. I got up on my knees and hastened to read the majestic card on top of it. It reverberated in the light, the shiny black background covered with real gold forming a flower pattern. The writing was regal and elegant, like a royal invitation.
Butterflies blossomed in my belly as I repeated my new nickname in a whisper.Flower goddess. That name felt like a spring breeze sweeping me across the most enchanting places in the universe, perching in the highest of clouds.
That packet could only come from one man. The one who spoke little but captured my soul between his words. The one who was infamous but capable of beauty. The one who despised mortals just called me goddess.
Radcliff.
Unpacking the gift, I laid eyes upon the most beautiful and luxurious thing I’d ever seen in my entire life.
A precious jewel.
A hair brooch fit for a queen.
The most dazzling lily.
I took the hair jewel between my palms. Sparkling diamonds were spread like a sumptuous liana that would clip like a bridal hairpin. I grazed the white-gold lilies added to this elegant design, along with small pearls forming little flowers at the end.
It was the first thing I owned that was entirely mine. It was certainly expensive but, most incredibly, custom-made especially for me. Radcliff had translated my soul with disturbing ease. It was more than a simple gift; it was a message illustrating the power of the interest he conveyed to me.
I hurried to the mirror and fixed the brooch in my hair. A flush crept on my face as I watched my reflection. I combed my hair, running my fingers through it, feeling like a recently hatched butterfly. Wearing something from Radcliff triggered a strange sensation in me.
I felt special.
I should forbid an attraction with him. It was the most uncanny of scenarios. We were two opposites whose dreams intertwined together for a messy outcome. But as I spent time with him, I was convinced I could reach out to his humanity and make him change his mind about the aphrodisiac and the dark schemes he had in mind for it.
My phone rang, and I blanched. I was no longer looking at my reflection but at the name of the caller. My uncle. I hastened to pick up.
“My Lily, I’m so sorry it took me so long to reply. Please, forgive me. How are you?” he asked. “Radcliff isn’t too monstrous with you?”
I simpered in my bed, a coy smile on my face, still on my cloud. “He isn’t like I was expecting, Uncle. He’s actually…”Charming.“Not that bad. And that flower, Uncle? It’s amazing! Well, obviously, I don’t approve of what he wants.”A weapon of extreme desire for personal gains.“But when you get to know Radcliff, he’s—”
“Wait, what?” Uncle Eugene howled. “You don’t get to know a man like him. He doesn’t care about you, Lily, nor anyone.”
“That’s not true. He invited me tonight to an opera and got me this incredible—”
“Lily,” he huffed. “He’s manipulating you and probably wants only one thing from you.”
“No.” A cold shiver traveled through my spine. Radcliff could have touched me without my consent or hurt me, and he hadn’t. “You have to believe me, Uncle. I know there is good in him.”
“Have you seen his face, Lily? He’s hideous.” He snorted. “A beautiful girl like you should pay attention to a guy like Adonis, not that creature.”
“He’s not hideous,” I bit out. “If he’s as bad as you tell me, why did you leave me with him? You didn’t even call me back!”
My heart was pounding. My uncle remained silent, facing the venom of my words. Seconds became a loud minute, and a knot appeared in my throat. I swallowed it away, regretting having yelled at him.
“I’m sorry, Uncle. I gotta go. Please, let me know—”
“I didn’t mean to leave you with him, I had no choice. I couldn’t face you and tell you that… I’ve failed you. That man has no soul. I never wanted that for you,” he pleaded with growing desperation. “Be careful with the influence he’s having on you. You don’t sound like my sweet Lily, the one that I know and raised.”
You didn’t raise me. The sisters did while I waited for you to pick me up for the holidays.
“I hope you’ll find yourself back. Talk soon.”
