His lips were soft and silky on my dry and chapped ones. A warm, rough hand softly caressed my neck and cheek. He was hesitant, his lips light and lingering.

Pulling back, he gazed down at me with hooded eyes. The flecks of gold in his eyes sparkled. His eyes searched mine. For what, I had no idea, but the way they looked into mine...

His hand lightly wound in my hair as he pulled me closer against him. His lips crashed back down on mine, quicker, harder

I gasped as his arm around me tightened, making my bruises twinge. Taking the opportunity, his tongue entered to dance with mine. Using his grip, he gently tilted my head to gain better access.

The sweet gentleness that Ezra consisted of was present in the kiss, but so was a hidden restraint and control that I hadn't noticed before. I still wouldn't have if I didn't feel it in the confidence of his hands as he held me close and manipulated my body in small tugs and pulls.

He spun around, pushing my back into the table. His hands travelled down my body, leaving a wake of awareness everywhere they touched. I wrapped an arm around his neck and ran my fingers through his chocolate hair, grabbing it like he had mine.

He lifted me onto the table. Standing between my legs; his face closer to mine. His hand returned to my hair.

I tugged his hair tighter. I wanted his lips on mine. It had been too long since I had last engaged in these acts consensually.

He didn't seem to find that as appropriate behaviour. His hold tightened and pulled my head back. He stepped forward, his head tilted down- his lips hovered over mine.

"Patience." His lips brushed against mine. "I want to enjoy this."

I did too, but I also need his to consume my senses. I needed him to make himself all I could think about.

He finally gave me what I wanted a few seconds later.

His mouth returned to mine, diving in and taking control. He tasted as fresh and sweet as he smelled and acted.

I held him to me with my hand in his hair and one clutching to his shirt near his waist. Not that I needed to keep him close. No. He took care of that himself, allowing no room for air to slip between us.

I could feel his length, hard against my stomach. I squirmed against it. He gripped me by the hip- stilling me.

"Ahem."

I tensed along with Ezra at the sound of a throat clearing. I quickly detached my lips from his.

"Am I correct to assume the potions are prepared, Ezra?"

My eyes shot over to glacier blue ones. Cassius stood in the doorway. One of his hands held a folder while the other was tucked into the pocket of his trousers.

"Seeing as you have time to spare for frivolous activities."

Ezra placed his palms flat on either side of me on the table. His head dropped to my shoulder with an annoyed growl that ended with a sigh of frustration.

"I still have time. How I choose to spend it has nothing to do with you as long as you get what's promised by when it's promised."

Cassius nodded. His eyes slightly narrowed on Ezra, but he didn't notice since his head was buried in my neck. "Well, I hate to interrupt-" it didn't look like he cared either way, "-but I need to speak with Ms. Riar."

Ezra released a heavy breath. Lifting his head he looked down at me and wiped the annoyance off his face. He smiled lightly.

"To be continued?" He asked.

I nervously glanced towards the door where Cassius stood seemingly bored. It felt strange having a stranger standing by and witnessing our intimacy.

I gave Ezra a small nod that made his eyes blaze. He placed a soft kiss on my lips before stepping back and letting me hop off the table.

"I'll see you later," he said as I walked towards the door where Cassius waited.

I probably wouldn't see him until tomorrow. I was already nervous and excited about it.

With a smile over my shoulder, I followed after Cassius who led me towards his office.

"Take a seat Ms. Riar," he said as we entered.

He rounded the table and sat- unbuttoning his suit coat.

I hesitantly lowered myself into the seat- darting my tongue out to moisten my lips and tasted remnants of Ezra.

"Have I done something wrong?" I asked. I had been acting accordingly, not a foot out of line. What did he want to talk to me about?

He pulled out a 'laptop' from his desk drawer. "No. I wanted to go over some vital information about the upcoming week."

He ignored me for a few minutes as he typed on his laptop. I nervously fidgeted, each sound amplified in the tense silence.

I swallowed as I watched his fingers dance over the keyboard. He probably thought I was the whore they all thought I was. Especially after catching me in a comprising position with Ezra after what happened in the bathing pools. No normal person recovered that fast and moved on.

"In a week's time, you will be introduced publicly as our wife."

His words made me jump. I didn't expect him to speak as his fingers continued typing without pause.

"There will be esteemed guests arriving a few days prior to the event. You will be going shopping with Ezra and Zev today to prepare for your role. I will inform you the night before guests arrive so you can be moved and prepped in the room that will serve as yours for the duration of the occasion." He stopped typing and leaned back in his chair. His fingers drummed lightly on the arm. "I do hope I don't have to stress the importance of your cooperation, Ms. Riar?"

I swallowed nervously. He was asking me, but there was no decision to be made. Only one answer was acceptable.

I nodded.

"Good."

He turned away and pulled a folder off the shelf behind him. He tossed it towards me; it landed on the desk in front of me. Strands of my hair shifted in the breeze it created.

"I have taken my time to create a detailed background story of how we all came to be. Over the next few days, I want you to memorize each word in that folder."

Daunting panic started to mount as I flipped through the sheets of paper. There were a lot of words.

"In there, there is the story of how we met and also basic information about the five of us that you should know as our wife along with facts we created about you that we all memorized. I do not care if they are inaccurate. They will only be necessary for a short period of time. In the very back, there will be profiles of important individuals that also need to be memorized."

My face flushed red as I came across a page with rather interesting information. Apparently, according to the words in the folder before me, Cassius was a controlling man who liked to bend me over and fuck me whenever he felt the need. If I was to be asked by another lady, I needed to reply enthusiastically how I liked the feeling of not having to think or decide, just feel and enjoy.

"Some details were tailored to explain away some of slip-ups or reactions you may have towards us. They may seem odd to some, but it's not something that hasn't been seen before."

Ahh, label me as the girl who liked to be dominated and it explained away any reason why I might feel intimidated around him. I wanted to slice his face up with a million paper cuts from the offending papers in my hands that helped him in his game of pretend.

"I will have a team get you ready the days we will have guests. There's are... certain expectations in appearance for the Lady of the Manor. They will ensure that they are met."

I knew I wasn't the most fashionable, often preserving comfort over appearance, but that still stung irrationally.

I could already feel the headache forming behind my eyes. The amount of information I had to absorb was already too much without the added stress of having to deal with judgmental stylists. If they were anything like everyone else I had encountered, then I could live without meeting those expectations in appearance.

A creeping sensation wormed its way into my thought. What happened if I failed? If I exposed the sham that all this was? I knew they said that they would make me regret it but...

If things were the way I'd been told they were, then wouldn't me being a woman automatically give me the power?

Would they get the chance to make me regret my choices?

The thought churned inside my head nauseatingly. I couldn't help it, I need to know what was at risk before I made any rash decisions.

"What happens if they find out the truth?"

He had gone back to typing on his laptop but stilled at my question. He looked up, his eyes stabbing me with a chilling warning.

"I'd be careful not to find out the answer to that question, Ms. Riar."

* * *

I pulled at the hem of the dress. After wearing pants the last few weeks, the sensation of bare legs in a dress was strange.

I smoothed my hand down the soft cotton dress. It was light and airy over the thick, hot turtleneck I refused to remove because of the bruises on my neck. Sadly I couldn't hide those that I hadn't notice bloom on my knees since the dress stopped an inch or two above them, but those could easily be blamed on scrubbing floors. The dress had thin straps so it didn't look too odd pairing the two.

I had returned to find the mossy green dress covered in lace patterns laid out on my bed. The green reminded me of Ezra's eyes. It must have been him who left it. The note just confirmed it.

They're all going to find out who you are anyway, why not get a head start?

Head start? For what?

I placed the rich card on the worn dresser. I was sure he'd tell me soon enough.

Taking one last look down at myself, I left the room wearing clean white tennis shoes that I wore when I cleaned inside. They were the only nice shoes I had to go along with the dress. The boots probably would have looked nice, but they were caked in shit.

I walked to the front foyer where Cassius had told me to meet Ezra and Zev. The meeting in his office had ended on a frightening note after the mood shifted with my question. I dreaded the moment I had to return to see if I had the story straight before the guests arrived.

I walked into the foyer and found Ezra standing in a t-shirt and jeans. His brown curls were slightly damp. In his hand, he spun a key around his finger. His face lit up with a smile once he caught sight of me.

"Told you I'd see you later," he said as I got near.

"I never denied it."

"You didn't expect it to be this soon either."

I rolled my eyes as I fought a smile. "I also didn't expect you to be cheating with insider information. You knew we were going shopping today, I didn't."

We walked out together. Zev stood leaning against the sleek black vehicle outside the door. He had a cigarette hanging from his lips as he looked down at his phone. It didn't smell like tobacco, no, the scent of the smoke was warm and spicy.

He wore a grey shirt, dark wash jeans, and a leather jacket. It was strange after only witnessing him in button-ups and dress pants. His lavender eyes watched me closely before dismissively darting to the other side of the car as he flicked the ash from his cigarette.

I followed his gaze and stiffened when my eyes landed on Jaxon. He stood on the other side with his arms crossed and feet, covered in heavy, black boots, apart. The fabric of his white t-shirt strained against the hard muscles that lay beneath his skin. His black jeans hugged his powerful thighs. All I could think of was how hard they were when I grabbing them when he shoved his length into my mouth forcefully.

My face flamed and my palms moistened in a cold sweat.

I could feel his eyes burning into me despite being hidden behind dark shades. His jaw was clenched tight, a muscle jumped as his nostrils flared slightly.

My mouth dried.

"Everything good?"

I hadn't noticed I had stopped in my tracks until Ezra's question. I glanced down to where his hand held my elbow before looking up into his sincere eyes.

"Yeah," I said, forcing a smile as I nodded.

"And it wasn't cheating," he said as he walked in front of me.

I followed while wringing my fingers. He couldn't see how my panic increased as we neared the car. But then again, I did pride myself on how good I was at hiding my reactions.

"H-how," I cleared my throat. "How wasn't it cheating?" I asked.

"It's called being tactical. Strategic."

Jaxon slammed the driver's door shit after getting in. Zev's passenger side followed.

I swallowed and just shrugged my shoulders at Ezra. I regretted it as it pulled at my bruises and brought the terrifying memories of the man who caused them. The man who sat in the car I was supposed to enter. "It's still not fair."

He chuckled. "Life's not fair, Nea."

I looked at his smiling face. It was brighter than before.

"What did your note mean?" I asked, the words popping up in my head.

They're all going to find out who you are anyway, why not get a head start?

Ge flashed his teeth happily as he grabbed my hand. "It means," he said looking down at me with mischief lighting his eyes. "I think it's time to get people to start gossiping about the cute, dark-haired beauty whose hand I wouldn't let go of."

He held the door open for me and followed after me. My face heated from his declared motive, the hand that was still held in his grew embarrassingly sweaty, but he didn't show any signs that he noticed.

Or maybe I was overthinking.

I breathed in as I avoided looking at the rearview mirror where I was sure Jaxon was glaring at me. I could feel it like a physical manifestation of his touch as it induced shivers of fright and that hint of thrill that damned me.

It was going to be a long day.