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“For staking your brother,” I muttered low enough that I thought they couldn’t hear me, but Drake’s laughter followed me up the stairs.
Sunday, my one day off, had turned into the day that Antoine liked to call me into his office and ream me about all the things I’d done wrong that week. Last week, he’d chewed me out for leaving the house a mess after the party. What did he want me to do, spend my whole day off cleaning up after them? I mean, I did that the previous week, he couldn’t expect me to do it every weekend.
If so, I needed a new day off that didn’t follow an event.
Walking as slow as possible, I scuffed my shoes against the ground. It always felt like I was being called to the principal’s office which I wouldn’t have minded had it involved more spankings and far less sneers coming from both of us. I really think Antoine just needed a really good fuck or at least a hand getting the stick out of his ass.
“He can be so charming when he wants to be,” I reminded myself as I came to a stop before his office door. When I’d wanted to quit, he all but had me melting into his hands, but he only seemed to keep that charm as a last resort. “More flies with honey...”
“Are you going to stand out there all night?” Antoine’s voice wafted through the office door, and I scowled at the closed door.
Finally opening the door, I stepped inside.
Antoine sat behind his large desk per usual, the top of it covered with mountains of paperwork. I didn’t quite know what they did for money, but it obviously included lots of paperwork and the ability to sleep all day and party at night.
Maybe they had stocks from the 1920s?
“You wanted to see me?” I laced my fingers in front of me, choosing to try the polite approach first. He, like Rayne, had a way of rubbing me the wrong way. It was like they purposely sought to piss me off. However, it was more Antoine than Rayne lately since the latter was avoiding me.
Antoine’s long blonde hair covered part of his face, the face that hadn’t done the polite thing and acknowledge me. Even though he didn’t leave the house, not as far as I could tell in any case, Antoine still wore suits that accented his form and did nothing to hide that lovely body beneath it.
Stop talking about him like you’re ever going to get a chance to see it for yourself.
“I wanted to talk to you about an upsetting phone call I just had.” Antoine’s tone left no hint of what that phone call could have entailed or if he was actually upset by it.
“A phone call?”
“Yes, about you.”
I didn’t know who could have called him. Like Gretchen and Darren had pointed out, I didn’t have a tangible social life outside of the household, nor had I spoken to anyone who would have called Antoine about me. My parents didn’t call unless I did first. My brother was overseas still doing god knows what.
Shaking my head, I decided I couldn’t think of anything pressing that could have caused Antoine to be upset with me. “What was it about?”
Antoine put his pen down and placed his hands on top of the desk. His pale eyes locked onto me, a low, burning anger rising in the depths of his gaze. He was mad. Why?
“I knew this would happen. I blame myself. You weren’t ready to face the other vampires yet, and still, I pushed you to it.” Antoine sighed and rubbed a hand over his face as if he weren’t aching to yell at me.
“So, this is about last weekend?” I took a stab in the dark. “I already apologized. I can’t make up for my behavior any more than I already have.” Irritation itched at the back of my throat, and I refrained from raising my voice. Really? He couldn’t expect me to grovel for the rest of my life.
“You were supposed to be silent, seen but not heard,” Antoine started with a sharpness to his tone, “but that is an impossible feat for you, isn’t it? You can’t help but speak your mind.”
I scowled. “I’m not in the habit of letting people walk all over me.”
“Clearly,” Antoine snapped, “and now Valentine has put in an offer for you.”
“What?”
“He wants to buy you.”
My brows scrunched together, and then my eyes widened. “What? He can’t buy me. I’m not for sale.”
“He doesn’t see it that way.” Antoine picked his pen back up and shifted a few papers.
“And you told him no, right?” When Antoine didn’t answer immediately, I rushed for his desk, my hands curling around the edge of the desk. “Right?”
Letting out an agitated breath, Antoine dropped his pen. “Of course, I did. It was hard enough getting a decent maid, I couldn’t very well give you up so easily.”
“I’m so thrilled,” I replied dryly.
