Chapter 1
It all started with a touch. A simple brush of my hand as I plated mashed potatoes in front of him on the dinner table, a graze against my back as he maneuvered through the kitchen for one of his prepacked honey-glazed ham sandwiches, and a squeeze on my shoulder whenever his mother decided to be a raging bitch.
Ledger Chopard always seemed to find a way to touch me.
It led to a few hidden giggles, followed by small kisses in the butler’s pantry, under the covered porch near the flower beds, and my personal favorite, in Mr. Ledger Chopard’s Victorian-style bedroom. One that I was snuck into every night, laying next to the love of my life as he held me to sleep.
Scardale Hills’s richest bachelor had maneuvered his way into my heart, and he used his pearly whites and the subtle chemistry of a single wink to do it. We were two birds from different trees, yet he spoke to me... treated me as if I was the woman of his dreams, and because of that my heart was his to have.
“Sairose,” a finger snapped behind me, and I turned around quickly, steading the serving tray in my hand. Mrs. Chopard, with her ever so elegant grin, bit back the words she really wanted to say for the sake of her guests, and nodded towards her son. “Ledger would like a drink, his glass has been empty for at least three minutes now. Be on your toes, not your heels.”
She tightened her fingers around the stem of her champagne glass and nodded her head toward him. I nodded with understanding, taking a deep breath and turning to face the music. Ledger stood far off left, near the dinner tables, talking to some of the men that frequented these parties. Almost every two weeks, the manor seemed to be filled with people, dancing to awful jazz music and sucking champagne from their glasses when they really wanted Johnny Walker to drown their woes.
Still, I was merely a maid – doubled to a server, whose duty was to make sure that the wealthy people were pleased. I weaved through the crowd, drawing nearer and nearer to him.
The freckles splattered across his nose grew more and more visible, and he lifted his hand up to his forehead, brushing away his golden brown waves. He needed a trim. Ledger spoke with his hands, no matter what he said, his fingers always pinched together, or his palm was always out-turned. It was something I think he did for confidence, although I wasn’t sure he needed it, dominance oozes from every part of him, and with just a single look he could assert his authority.
His turn was over to speak as another man gave his opinion, and his eyes wandered for a second, surveying the crowd. My heart thumped in my chest. It was honestly my fault I hadn’t gotten to him just yet, my legs seemed to slow down the closer I got, I just wanted to admire my sweet boy.
His eyebrows furrowed in confusion once he didn’t find me in the sea of people, but finally, I was inches away and his eyes latched onto mine. My breath lept out of my throat as his eyes softened, and a small smile played on his lips. I looked away and down at the tray to hide mine, standing at the mercy of the four men.
“Refreshments, gentlemen?” I asked, and they happily exchanged their empty glasses for full ones.
“Thank you, Sairose,” Ledger’s deep, husky voice awakened something inside me, forcing me to look up at him. Like always, there was a flash of something in his eyes, something I’d often spend trying to figure out.
“You’re welcome,” I breathed, regretting it instantly as the scent of his sandalwood cologne filled my nose. I pursed my lips together. I couldn’t move just yet, not whilst his eyes held me in place. From the corner of my gaze, a shadow passed by but I didn’t pay any mind to it. Not until it roughly grabbed a drink from my tray and somehow managed to throw the remainder of the drinks, and the empty ones, falling onto me and shattering against the floor.
“Oops,” a woman shrieked, stepping away from the mess before she could get wet, and then tilting her head at me.
“What the fuck, Adrienne?” Ledger grabbed my arm, pulling me away from the shards of glass. He bent a little to get a look at my legs, and then my arms. A hot blush crawled up my neck, and I was glad I wasn’t the same color as the people around me, or else everyone would see just how embarrassed I am. “Sairose, are you okay?”
With the number of eyes on us, especially Adrienne’s whose gaze lingered on his touch, I pulled my hand away quickly. My chest rose and fell, and even though the champagne was cool, seeping through my blouse and onto my skin, it was no match for the heat that flooded my body. I threw daggers at the unapologetic woman, who lifted the drink to her lips and took a sip.
“I am so sorry, it’s a good thing that you’re a maid though, you should already be accustomed to things like these.”
“Be quiet,” Ledger snapped at her, and she raised her eyebrows at him, shrugging her shoulders. I rolled my eyes, flipping the tray into my other hand and storming off. As I weaved through the crowd yet again, this time I wasn’t as invisible. My black bra shone through the thin white button-down, and I pushed into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me and slamming the tray onto the sink.
It was already starting to get sticky, and the smell of alcohol on fabric made my stomach gurgle. I twisted my nose, reaching for the stupid tie they made us wearing, and ripping it off my neck.
I wanted nothing more than to take one of those shards and shove it at her. The look on her face burned into my brain, I knew she did it on purpose. And Ledger, I knew I couldn’t expect much from him but sometimes I wished he’d just do more.
“Shit,” I whispered, into the sink as I held myself up by my arms. I was so high on adrenaline, now that it was coming down I felt nearly breathless. I was grateful that the family was weird enough to have air conditioning in the bathroom because I needed it.
The door creaked open, and Ledger’s tall frame filled the room, nearly getting stuck in the narrow doorway.
“Sai?”
“Ledger, what’re you doing?” I hissed. “You need to leave before someone sees you.”
“You’re right,” he said. He turned around but instead of leaving, he locked the door. My shoulders dropped, and his apologetic eyes met mine as he held up a shirt.
“I’m sorry that happened, Sai, some people are insufferable.”
I took in a deep breath before reaching for the shirt, but he playfully tugged it away.
“I’m not in the mood for that right now, Ledger.”
Ignoring me, he threw the shirt off his shoulder and reached for my buttons. I knew better than to get in his way because he’d only drag this on until he won. Ledger rinsed out the old shirt, using it to wipe the remaining champagne from my skin before using paper towels to dry me off. I wanted to remain angry, but his focused face as he got me cleaned up made it impossible. He buttoned me into the clean, dry shirt, and I pulled away from it.
“Alright, you’re done, you can leave now.”
In the mirror, I ran my hand through my afro, frowning at the way it shrunk. I should’ve braided my hair, I was tired of having to do it every single time I had to get ready but time has been scarce.
“You’re still mad at me?”
“Ledger,” I sighed. “I’m not I just... I need a second and you shouldn’t be in here with me. If your mother sees us –”
Ledger stepped closer to me, his body practically pressed against mine. “She won’t.”
“She’ll notice you missing,” I whispered as he placed his finger underneath my chin, pulling my face over to his.
“Let me worry about that,” he muttered, stroking my chin tenderly with his thumb. My breath hitched in my throat, and a knowing smirk crawled onto his lips.
I hated that Ledger knew how to get to me. I hated that he knew that all it took was for his body to be inches away from me and my entire mind went blank. Those gray orbs held mine with certainty, and it didn’t take long for me to melt into him.
“I’m sorry again that I allowed that to happen to you,” he said, his smirk slowly dropping into a frown. “You have no idea how angry it makes me to have to watch you go through that.”
“Yeah well, you’re going to have to keep your cool a little bit more, you grabbed my arm and everyone saw. We don’t know what they were thinking.”
Ledger grew closer to me, closer and closer until my back hit the wall.
“I wish I could’ve done much more than that.”
Me too.
Ledger sighed, averting his eyes for a moment, and my eyes dropped to his attire for the night. His Brioni suit, specifically tailored to his body, then had specks of water on it from cleaning me up, and a few of his buttons were left undone. Poking out was his chest, high and muscular, pecs creating a sturdy outline through the layers of clothing, and slowly, I drew my bottom lip into my mouth.
Ledger’s hand left my chin, and found my waist, tightening around them.
“You look so beautiful tonight, Sai,” he breathed, humming in contentment. “You look beautiful all the time... no wonder they’re all so jealous of you.”
“We should go now, Ledger,” I warned, finding a dangerous glint in his eyes. He placed the other hand on over my head as if an indication that he wasn’t going anywhere.
“Not yet,” he shook his head. “Not until I make it up to you.”
I furrowed my eyebrows, my heart pounding so loudly that I could hear it echo in my ears. “Make it up to me, in here?”
His eyes darkened, and he leaned forward placing a small fleeting kiss on my lips.
“In here.” He confirmed.
I couldn’t process a thing as Ledger disappeared from in front of me. My lips parted with a gasp as his hands traced up my leg, forcing one up and onto the sink with a loud noise.
“Ledger!” I hissed. But he ignores me. Ledger trailed slow kisses up my exposed thigh, and I clenched my jaw, wishing that our uniforms consisted of pants instead.
Oh who was I kidding, I’d probably help him take them off if they were.
I put all of my weight onto the wall, knowing that it wouldn’t be long until I could hardly hold myself up. Ledger’s hand rested right underneath my ass, squeezing as he buried his head underneath my skirt. I whimpered, half because I wanted it – needed it, and half because I was scared that someone would come banging on the door.
His tongue found my panties and like the lustful animal he was, he hungrily dragged his tongue against it. I clenched my eyes shut, placing both palms facing down onto the wall. His fingers curled around the cotton crotch, pulling it aside.
“You try to deny me yet you’re soaking wet,” he grumbled. I opened my mouth to hit him with a snarky remark but at a single swipe of his tongue, I could no longer speak. “When will I get tired of the way you fucking taste, Sai?”
I gasped. He knew he was silencing me, rubbing his tongue in circles against the throbbing bud and I instantly found my hands in his hair, curling around the roots.
“That’s it,” he muffled. “Use me, Sairose, use me as you wish.”
Damn it. A frenetic moan escaped my lips, and as he commanded I rubbed myself against his tongue, bringing immense pleasure and locking me in a state of delirium. Ledger’s carnal groans left me panting, and I reveled in the melting feeling of his hands, his mouth, and his body. Like a gentleman, on his knees, he submitted to me and let me use him for my relief. I couldn’t think of a man that I thought more worthy of me than Ledger, at least not at this moment as the familiar fleet of pleasure settled in my lower stomach. I clamped my own hand over my mouth, muffling my moans as I came. Ledger stayed until I was left a twitching mess, and stood only to hold me up, covering my mouth with his so that I could taste myself.
“The night’s almost over my love,” he whispered, laying his head against mine. “And then you’ll be right next to me where you should be.”
Like always, I found my consolation in his words. I wrapped my arms around his neck and laid my body against his. It was time for us to depart and although I’d been the one telling him to leave, I found myself wishing that he’d stay.
“You know the drill, go first, I’ll put your things away.”
I straightened my clothing in the mirror, before glancing back at him. “Thank you.”
He licked his lips, leaning against the wall with my wet clothes in hand. With a single wink, he ushered me on, and I turned away, leaving the bathroom, feeling much better than I had before.
#
“Are you all set for tonight? I think Eve’s already asleep – she wasn’t feeling too well.”
My mother lingered at my door, fixing my nightgown as an excuse just to touch me. I leaned against the frame and smiled down at her.
“I’m all set, go ahead and rest up, Mom. Tomorrow’s another day.”
She sighed, raising her hand to my face. My mother’s skin wrinkled as she wrapped her lips into her mouth, showing off her age and the things she’d been through. Her hair had more white than black and she used to dye them but she just... gave up on it. It was always tied in a tight wrap throughout the day, but bedtime was when she let her hair breathe.
For a moment, I couldn’t help but frown, the sudden realization of how old she was getting hitting me like a ton of bricks.
“I love you, Sairose, sleep tight, and I’ll see you early in the morning.”
“I love you too, Mom,” I muttered, and she waited until I shut the door behind me to pad to her own quarters. The mansion was divided in two from the second floor, to the third. Employees stayed on one side, and residents lived on the other.
Chopard Manor provided a... ‘home’ for people who were a little less fortunate, and unfortunately, my mother fell under that category for ten years straight after my father died. She has enough to get up and leave, but I think even if she wanted to, she wouldn’t. This place provided a familiar comfort after she became a widower that I’m not sure she’ll ever be ready to let go of. I was age thirteen when we arrived, and Eve, as far as I knew, had just... always been here.
“I’m not even asking you if you’re coming to bed – but can you stop standing at the door like a boogeyman?”
In our small room holding two twin beds, Eve called out from hers. She lay in the darkness, draping a hand over her eyes.
“Don’t tell me you’re still afraid of the dark, Eve,” I chuckled teasingly, knowing that she’ll deny it although it was true.
“It’s time for your Beau to come and get you, I need my sleep and you’re disturbing me.”
“Oo,” I hummed, plopping onto my bed. “You can just say that you miss me here every night.”
“When you leave I push our beds together and pretend that I’m on one of those huge beds the Chopard’s sleep on. I won’t be missing you any time soon.”
I giggled, throwing a hand over my lips. “Fair enough. I trust that you have my best interest tonight.”
“Fuck me,” she groaned. “You’re spending too much time around that old man – you’re starting to talk like him. Plus, I look out for you every single night, you don’t need to keep asking.”
Eve was a case and a half, I’d give her that. But she made living here a lot easier, I wouldn’t switch her up for the world.
“That old man is only three years older than her,” Ledger’s voice filled the room, and I smiled at him as his body blocked off the lights from outside. “And we are eternally grateful for you, Eve. These nights wouldn’t be possible without you.”
“Great,” Eve grumbled, sitting up on her elbows. Her red hair fell over her shoulders, and she narrowed those fiery brown eyes at him, scrunching her nose in the process. “Now if you don’t mind I have a raging headache, and there’s nothing more that I want than to have the two of you far away from me. Please.”
“Okay, okay, jeez,” I chuckled. Ledger outstretched his hands, and I titled my head at him, taking it. Quietly, he hid me behind his body as he silently shut the door, and like every night, we tiptoed quickly across the floor and into his room, locking the door behind us.
“Mm,” he hummed, wrapping his arms around my waist. “Is it bad to say that I was going around whispering in people’s ears that they should get going because there’s a storm coming in?”
“Is there one?”
Ledger grinned sheepishly, shaking his head left to right and I giggled, slapping the chest of the silly man.
“I needed to be with you,” he sighed, plunging his head into the crook of my neck. Ledger inhaled my scent and lifted me onto his body by my waist. “I kept tasting you... and smelling you on my lips it was driving me mad.”
I pursed my lips together to surprise the smile that wanted to appear, and he walked us over to the bed, laying me down gently. Ledger held up his weight with his elbows on either side of my head. He hovered over me, staring into my eyes but his hair fell over them once again.
“I can’t take you seriously when you have bangs covering your eyes, babe,” I giggled, brushing them away.
“I need a trim,” he grouched. “When do you think you’ll have the time?”
“We can try tomorrow night, I’m really tired and my feet are aching.”
Ledger frowned. “At least let me get you some warm water to soak them in.”
“Mm mm,” I protested. “All I want is for you to get in bed with me so that we can go to sleep.”
He wasn’t convinced. If it were left up to him, my legs would be soaked in Epsom salt, and apple cider vinegar while he waited on the floor so he could massage them. But tonight I just wanted to lay underneath him. Nothing more, nothing less.
“As you wish, my love.”
He crawled onto his bed, peeling his shirt off his body and pulling the sheets over us. Ledger wrapped his arms around me pulling me into his chest.
I closed my eyes, eager to find sleep but all I found were replays of his mother sneering at me to hand over drinks, and a random woman plowing into me because she saw me talking to Ledger. Then ledger’s frustrated face as he was forced to bite back his words, and the way I felt, the embarrassment, and anger that I couldn’t do anything with.
My eyes popped open again, and I rested my hand on his.
“I wish things were different...” I muttered, hoping that he was awake. “That you didn’t have to be ashamed of me and that we could just live as normal – without hiding.”
“Hey,” Ledger scoffed, rolling me over so that I was facing him. His frown deepened, and he shook his head as he grabbed my face on either side. “I could never be ashamed of you, Sairose. That’ll never be the case. We’ve both seen how my family can be and I’m just... putting that off for as long as I can, but I’ll tell them soon. I promise.”
Ledger’s eyes held so much sincerity. It always did. I nodded, letting him place a kiss on my head, and this time I kept my eyes closed as I drifted off to sleep.
