His Relentless Possession

11-His Rules

Raiden had arrived and was sitting very close to me across the dinner table. This was the closest we'd been since we met at the church on what was supposed to be our wedding. Thankfully, that had failed miserably, much to my relief.

At least he isn't dead drunk this time, I thought as I glanced at the man sitting across from me.

Now that I had the chance to see him up close, I had to admit Raiden was extremely handsome and attractive. Light blond hair, flawless skin, bright blue eyes, and a very handsome face with a straight nose. He looked like an angel, a prince, a Greek god—everything along those lines.

As I'd noticed before at the church, Raiden was very tall, and I barely reached his shoulders, even in those ultra-high heels I was forced to wear at our disastrous wedding. I wasn't surprised he had a girlfriend or at least a lover... or two... or more...

I was also certain that someone as dazzlingly attractive and charismatic as him wouldn't be interested in a girl like me. I wouldn't say I was a plain Jane, but I wasn't exactly supermodel material either. I bet Raiden only dates supermodels or superstars, given his wealth, social status, and looks.

I hated to admit it, but that actually worked in my favor...

Despite his handsome and attractive face, I found that there was nothing about Raiden's character that matched his looks. The aura he'd been giving off since stepping into the room was purely dark and suffocatingly intimidating.

The silence was choking me, and the tension was unbearable. What should I do? Start a conversation? Just begin eating? Would that be rude?

Sigh... Why am I overthinking everything right now?

"Umm... I'm Ivelle Maxford. It's... nice to meet you," I said, trying to smile a little. I couldn't see what my face looked like, but I was sure the attempt at smiling had failed.

"I already know your name, and I know you don't really think it's nice to meet me. I could say the same thing," Raiden replied flatly.

"I guess you're right. I already know your name too, so I'll just start eating," I said just as flatly.

To my surprise, Raiden continued the conversation.

"I heard you're here because you owe my old man five hundred million dollars. Thirty days of your company is worth that much? You're pretty expensive... What's your 'professional name'? I want to look you up," Raiden asked, continuing to stare at my face.

"I... don't do that kind of work..." I replied.

"Of course you don't. You don't look the part," Raiden said as he flicked his eyes from the top of my head down to my waist, which was all that was visible to him since I was seated.

"What?" I asked, unable to hide my annoyance.

"Your face is plain, and your figure is so-so. I wouldn't buy you, let alone for five hundred million bucks. To be honest, I'm surprised my old man has such low standards," Raiden said, as if he were appraising a product on sale.

"For your information, I don't want to be here either," I snapped.

"Good. I don't need another gold digger on my hands, especially one that doesn't have the looks. So, listen carefully to what I'm going to say," Raiden said, placing his hands under his chin and looking straight at me.

"...I'm listening," I said firmly.

"Just to be clear, after 30 days, we're both going to tell my old man to end this crazy deal. Don't worry, you'll be able to leave, debt-free, just like that," he said clearly.

"Agreed. Great! Music to my ears!" I replied, much louder than I intended, overjoyed.

"While we're stuck living here together, I have a few rules..." Raiden continued, ignoring my outburst.

"Ok..." I replied, more softly this time.

"Rule number one: you must never, ever enter my bedroom," Raiden stated, his blue eyes still on me.

"Sure..." I agreed without needing to think. I mean, why would I even consider entering his bedroom?

"Rule number two: you will not touch me without my permission," he continued.

"Ok... of course," I agreed readily. Why would I want to touch him?

"Rule number three: you won't speak to me unless you're spoken to," he said, staring deep into my eyes to make sure I understood every word.

"What about when we're sorting out whether I'm doing something for you or if you're asking me for a favor?" I asked, curious. I didn't think I would want to start a conversation with him, but it could be necessary sometimes.

"...We can talk then, I guess..." Raiden replied after a few seconds of thought.

"Ok... Anything else?" I asked.

"Final rule, rule number four: you will do everything I ask you to do—no matter what, no matter when, and no matter where you are," Raiden stated slowly and clearly.

...No matter what, no matter when, and no matter where... Isn't that crazy?

"I think the fourth rule is a little... much?" I asked, giving my opinion.

"I never asked for your opinion. You just broke rule number three," Raiden stated curtly.

Shit. Is he serious right now? How much of a tyrant can this man be?

If I replied, would I be violating rule number three again? What should I do? Hold my tongue?

"I never asked you to agree to the rules. I was merely stating them. Oh, and I never mentioned the punishment for breaking them, did I?" Raiden said, and I swear I could see his eyes sparkling with evil.

"No... you didn't," I mumbled, staring back at him.

"Usually in our mafia world, we punish people by cutting off a part of their body or removing an organ. You've probably seen something like that in movies? It's not that different, really..." Raiden said casually.

"You've got to be kidding me..." I muttered.

"I wish I was. But I'm a gentleman, you see, and hurting women isn't my thing, so I'll adapt the punishment a little for your sake... and for mine as well," Raiden said, a sadistic smile curving his lips.

This was probably the first time I'd seen him smile, and it was not pleasant.

"What do you... mean?" I asked in a whisper. I couldn't predict what he had in mind, but at least he wasn't going to chop my body up, so I guess that was good news?

"Each time you break one of the rules, I'll take a part of your body as my own," Raiden said, his eyes narrowing slightly at me.

--To be continued...