Veil of Vows

Ch.15

(Sierra's POV)

I was laying on the couch, just thinking to myself, mentally at war after everything that happened today. I stared up at the ceiling, lost in my mind. There wasn't anything in the basement sure, there was a weird smell, like dry blood, but my mind could be playing tricks on me. There was literally nothing there. I'm slowly coming to the conclusion that Chloe may have lied to me, and the thought of her made my anger boil over. She is such a drama queen, an insecure woman—no... actually, now that I think about it, calling her a drama queen and insecure woman was an understatement. She's far worse, manipulative and crazy in ways I couldn't even begin to imagine.

What comes out of her mouth is nothing but lies and ways to manipulate the situation for her benefit. And I'm not gonna give her the satisfaction of me backing down, doing what she says. Not after everything she's done, not after everything she's put me through.

"I should have known better than to listen to her. She's completely out of her mind," I thought, though I was still skeptical about the situation.

Then I heard the doorbell ring. Slowly, I got up and walked toward the front door, wondering who it could be this time.

"Who is it?" I asked, standing in front of the door.

"It's me, Grayson. Can you open the door, darling?" he responded.

I was slightly confused, wondering why he couldn't just use his key. "Uh... okay?" I said, moving my hand to touch the door handle.

As I opened the door, my eyes widened with slight surprise. There stood Grayson, holding a bouquet of roses, a soft smile on his face. "Hi, darling," he said, in the sweetest gentlemanly tone ever.

My cheeks flushed red at the sight of him, standing there with roses that looked so lovely. I was caught off guard, hesitating to speak. "Are these for me?" I asked, wondering if he bought them for me, for himself, or for decoration, whatever.

He let out a soft chuckle, clearly amused by my question. Judging by the smirk on his face, and the slight mischievous glint in his eyes as he towered over me, he said, "Who else do you think I bought them for? It sure isn't for the house decoration now, is it?" He teased as he stepped forward, gently closing the door behind him. The bouquet was still in his hand as he moved closer, his face inches away from mine, his voice dropping lower. "Besides, no decoration would ever match your level of beauty anyway. You're God's perfect creation, and only mine."

My heart nearly jumped out of my chest. Why was he talking to me like that? Before I could respond, he leaned down and kissed my forehead, then looked back at me, locking eyes with a smile. "And you look even prettier when you're all flushed like this, darling." He placed the bouquet of roses in my hands and then walked past me, heading into the kitchen with a slight smirk still on his face.

"Ugh! That guy! How dare he?!" I thought, pouting, flustered and embarrassed. As much as I hated to admit it, I was feeling giddy inside. I forced myself not to smile, but my body felt so tense from his way of showing affection. I really wanted to wipe the smile off my face as I looked down at the beautiful bouquet of roses meant just for me.

I walked over the table placing the flowers there, taking a deep breath to steady myself. Just then, Grayson walked out of the kitchen with a glass of water in his hand, strolling towards me.

"How was your day, darling? Are you feeling much better? Your neck doesn't hurt as much now, does it?" he asked, his tone calm and smooth, with a slight look of concern in his eyes as he focused on my well-being.

I hesitated for a moment before replying, "It was... all right, and yeah, I'm feeling much better now," I said, shifting on my feet. "Elliot's mother came over today."