Chapter 23 22
Soraya's POV
My heart was still pounding against my ribs. Darius had actually kissed me. And I hadn’t stopped him. I grunted, dragging my palms down my face. Why didn’t I push him away?
Who was he to me, anyway? He wasn’t some stranger in the streets, yet he wasn’t supposed to mean anything to me either. And still, his lips had pressed against mine as if he had every right to.
And the worst of it all was that I had let him.
I wasn’t cheap. I wasn’t some desperate girl who would melt at a man’s touch. But what if this only made things worse? He already looked at me like I was nothing but some loose girl from a brothel. Now, by letting him kiss me, it felt like I had just proved it.
A loud knock came at my door, jolting me out of my thoughts.
I spun my head quickly, looking at the door.
The banging came again, harder this time.
“Come out! Right now” That was Emily's voice.
My brows furrowed. What in the world was wrong with this girl? I pressed my ear against the wood and, sure enough, I heard Emily's voice.
“Come out, Soraya! Come out right now!” she shrieked.
I shook my head, muttering under my breath. This girl was insane. Honestly, I was pretty sure this girl was a mental patient, but because her family had money, they probably pulled her out of some hospital. And now she was free to run mad again.
She stopped screaming and I started to hear muffled voices instead. One of them was Darius’, the other one was a male's voice, probably Dante's. They were trying to talk her down.
I rolled my eyes and turned back toward the bed. My gaze landed on the shopping bags sitting there. I sat, staring at them again. Darius really got this for me.
Was it just to apologize? It felt too much for me. Or maybe I shouldn’t think like that. He was rich. To him, these probably meant nothing.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The noise jerked me upright.
“That’s it!” I hissed through my teeth, stomping across the room.
I yanked the door open. “What’s going on?” I demanded.
“Good!” Emily hissed, grabbing my wrist and yanking me fully into the hallway.
“Emily!” Darius barked in anger.
I frowned, startled, trying to pull back. “What are you—”
“Shush!” Emily cut me off. “I’ll tell you what’s going on. Return all the gifts my brother gave you right now and then get your whore self out of this house.”
I stared at her, stunned. “I don’t understand,” I shot back sharply. “Let go of my hand.”
She scoffed. “Oh, I’ll let go of your hand outside of this house.”
She yanked hard, trying to drag me down the hall. But before I could fight her off, Dante suddenly stepped in front of her, blocking her way.
“Emily, stop this rubbish,” he said firmly.
Emily glared at him. “Listen, Dante, I’m not in the mood to be speaking with you right now. I’m taking out the trash. Let me.”
Trash?
She tried to move again, jerking me with her, but this time Darius’ hand shot out. He grabbed her free hand and yanked her back so hard she was forced to release me.
I staggered, clutching my sore wrist to my chest.
Emily’s head whipped around, rage in her eyes, but Darius’s expression was darker.
“Emily.” He said, warningly. “I think you’ve lost your mind.”
He clenched his teeth. “Stop this rubbish! You only still have you head on your neck because we're related”
Emily ignore him and spun on me again. “Listen, Soraya. You better take yourself and whatever dignity you have left and leave this houseUnless…” She snapped her fingers. “I promise you, I’ll make your life a living nightmare in this house.”
I just stood there, staring at her, wondering what the hell I did wrong to deserve this much hatred. Did I meet her in some past life and kill her cat or something? Or maybe this was all just some confusing dream?
I rolled my eyes and shot back, “Listen. I can tell you’re a spoiled brat with a few loose screws, but please, stop barking like a sick dog. It’s exhausting.”
Her teeth clenched so hard and before I could even move, she pushed forward, her fingers tangling into my hair and yanking hard. Pain shot through my scalp.
“What the hell—” I cried out, stumbling.
That was when the door opened.
“What is the commotion here?”
Everyone froze. I twisted my head painfully, thanks to Emily still clutching my hair and saw Mrs. Opaline standing there. Beside her was Kimberly.
Emily instantly let go of my hair, straightening up as if she hadn’t just tried to scalp me.
Mrs. Opaline's gaze swept over all of us. “What is going on?” she demanded, her tone cutting.
Darius stepped forward. “Mom, your niece is throwing another tantrum. Please, call Aunt Ronnie to come take her back. I think she’s tired of her little vacation.”
Emily gasped and turned to him.
Mrs. Opaline was equally surprised. “What, Darius?! Why would you say that? She’s your cousin!”
Mrs. Opaline frowned, glancing between them. “She came here to spend the holiday. To be with Kimberly as well. What are you saying?”
“What did she do? Emily has only been here three weeks. She’s meant to stay two months. Why are you asking she be sent back already?” Mrs. Opaline probed.
Emily’s face twisted, and then she pointed at me.
“It’s her,” Emily said, her voice trembling with fake pain. “She’s the reason Darius is treating me this way. She’s evil.”
I rolled my eyes again. Honestly, if someone had told me I’d walk into a family drama circus, I’d have laughed at their face. But here I was
Mrs. Opaline’s brows furrowed.
“What are you saying, Emily? What exactly did Soraya do?”
Yeah…I also want to know what I did.
“Everything, Aunt. Look, we were fine without her. You know how much you love well-behaved, cultured girls. This one is a whore. I don’t like the fact that Darius is even mated to her.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “Speaking of well-cultured… you don’t seem well-cultured to me,”
“Aunt, she…” Emily started.
“Shhh,” Mrs. Opaline hushed softly, her hand lifting slightly. “Soraya, dear, please explain what happened.”
I inhaled, calming myself. “Um, Mrs. Opaline, I was here this afternoon, minding my business. All of a sudden, Emily bumped into me, stamped on my foot, and started saying all manner of things—calling me a whore and undeserving. After that, she even tried to hit me. Darius and Sam witnessed that.”
I glanced at Darius, and he nodded once.
“I went back to my room,” I continued. “Darius got me some gifts, and then Emily came banging on my door. When I came out, she pulled me and threatened to throw me out of the house, saying again that I was a whore.”
Mrs. Opaline gasped softly. “Emily, is this true?”
Emily folded her arms across her chest, chin tilted like she was queen of the world. “It’s true. But she insulted me back. She said mean things to me as well. She called me a bulldog and said I bark too much.”
Mrs. Opaline wasn’t surprised at all. The softness in her eyes told me that tantrums were a regular thing for Emily. She was a brat, through and through, and from the looks of it, she’d probably thrown enough tantrums to get whatever she wanted all her life.
Mrs. Opaline turned her gaze on Emily. “Listen, child. You don’t have to—.”
Emily cut her off, tossing her head back. “All of you have gone soft. But I know how to handle the situation.”
Her footsteps echoed sharply as she started stomping towards me again.
But just before she could reach me, Darius moved in front of me quickly, grabbing Emily's wrist.
“That’s it. You’re going back. I’m calling Aunt Ronnie. You are going back right now.” He said, pulling her away.