The Carrero Contract - Selling Your Soul (Book 1 of Contract Trilogy)

25

I wander out of the bedroom feeling refreshed, robed and a tad pink from my bath and DIY beauty treatments for the last hour. Figuring if I pampered the crap out of myself I would both feel better physically, look a hell of a lot better and it would drag my mind from the ever-obsessive head mess that is Alexi Carrero. I feel calmer, more focused and determined to not let that man have a long-term effect on me, yet I'm still sombre.

Yawning still fatigued as I wander aimlessly into the almost silent surroundings and realise I am still not alone. She never left and she is stretched out on the couch watching Netflix on low volume while flicking through a magazine.

I sigh heavily and make a beeline for the open plan kitchen in a bid to ignore her and curse her for not fucking off when I made it clear that is what I wanted. I jump when her phone vibrates harshly across the glass coffee table and she flashes a smile my way as our eyes connect when she goes to catch it. Spotting me and acting like she is not imposing on my space at all in any way. I roll my eyes, leaving her to her call and turn to the fridge in a bid to find food that requires no cooking. I am not really in the mood for stove tops and fussing. I just want to eat and go lie back down in bed and vegetate with a book.

I am focusing on some relaxation and drowning out my woes for a few hours. The best way to move on is to put HIM out of my head anytime he pops in there.

''Hey you, Uhuuuh, all better and wandering around in a very unsexy bathrobe,'' she declares loudly after a moment of listening to whoever is on the other end. I assume it is Mico, and he will be relieving her if I have anything to do with it. I cast a sharp glance and yank the refrigerator open to scan the contents, finding cured ham, cheese and salad for a sandwich and start putting it all out in front of me on the counter. I lean into the open door letting the cool interior fan my face for a moment as I reach for a jar of mayo. I'm still running a mild temperature and enjoying the cool air and jump when I come out to see the little perky girl right at my side.

''Yep she's right here, hold on.'' She extends the phone to me with a grin and I frown back at her. I guess Mico isn't convinced I am not dead and at least I can tell him to remove his warden if I get to talk to him. I nudge her back with my bum and dump my new finds on the surface beside the bread. I shove the phone under my chin, bumping the door shut with my hip and rummage for a knife in the drawer to add to my array of sandwich constructing ingredients with eyes on the task.

''It's Camilla, you can call off your little watchdog now I am upright and managing to fend for myself.'' I answer brightly as in way of a hello, determined that he will be sending puppy eyes home as soon as I am done.

''You sound better anyway.'' The raspy, deep huskiness of a voice that is not Mico makes my stomach flip over and my heart jump into my mouth. He was not who I was expecting to hear, especially not with how she was talking to him. That voice and its unearthly ability to fuck me up so easily ... so much for clearing my head of this ever present and looming darkness.

It's like he senses anytime I start pulling away and set my brain on letting go and jumps up to keep a hold.

''Alexi? I thought it was Mico.'' I state the stupid obvious, flustered and at a loss for words when caught unawares, not sure what to say or how to act now he's the one on the other end of the line. There's a long awkward pause and I swear I can almost feel the tension thickening the air around me making it harder to breathe. Despite the confusing events of the last few days, he still has a physical effect with just his voice.

''Look ...'' Alexi clears his throat and trails off into silence again for a moment and I just halt every fibre in my body and wait, like a dumb pathetic woman, for the man to say something else to me. Poised on a precipice that maybe he might have had some sort of personality transplant overnight. ''Last night ...'' He trails off again and I swear he is doing it to torture me, it's almost unbearable waiting for him to say whatever it is he is going to say.