DIMITRII gave a cursory glance to the computer on my lap, frowned and erased the last few letters I had typed which made no sense at all. I had been sitting here, in a corner of room apparently working on my computer, but in truth I had been keeping a close eye on Valeria.Her scent was no longer tainted by the scent of the poison. Thanks to Amelia's concoction, it had finally worked it's way out of her system, but I still watched her closely just in case there would be any other unforseen complications. She was pregnant after all, so there was a possibility that the poison would be more lethal to her in that state. Valeria looked fine now though. The colour had fully come back to her cheeks. Her eyes were bright, alive and most importantly she was eating.I watched her now as she chatted with Amelia who had barely left her bedside as she had woken up. They talked in low tones. I felt it was okay now for me to leave her for a while. I shut down my laptop, tucked it under my arm and p

VALERIAWith nothing better to do, I wandered around the mansion. I had been doing this so often for the past week that I felt I could draw a detailed map of the Dimitri's house with my eyes closed. I had fully recovered from the effects of the poison now but Dimitri still wouldn't let me go back to work."You still need to be closely observed," he had said one day when I attempted to broach the subject of at least leaving the house.Staying at home wasn't the only change that had happened this week. These days, Dimitri always came home early. I had spotted him more times than I could count hard at work on his computer. That meant he had taken to bringing work home with him instead of spending a lot of time at the office. And then there was Summer. She had been staying away from the house. She only returned late and night. When she was in the house, she took pains to stay out of my way. She even went as far as having dinner in her room most of the time. Sometimes I couldn't help but

VALERIAI went downstairs to the living room so I would know the moment Dimitri came into the house. I had long decided to confront him about his decision to keep me at home, doing nothing.I did not have long to wait. Dimitri came in about twenty minutes later, swinging a briefcase, his tie loose. He had the air of a man who had a particularly tasking day at work. I felt a surge of jealousy as I glared at him. I would have given anything to be in his shoes, tired but satisfied with a hard day's work."Hey-" he began, changing direction and coming towards me as soon as he spotted me.I quickly got to my feet, closed the distance between us. "Dimitri, I need to start leaving the house," I said in a tone that brooked no argument."I thought we talked about this-""No. We didn't talk. You just ended up ordering me around. Look, I'll go crazy if I keep holing up in here. I swear I already know the number of stairs in your house, the exact pattern of the ceiling in my room and-" I pursed

VALERIAThere was no break between sleeping and waking. One moment I was deeply asleep, the next my eyes were wide open, staring at the pattern my beside lamp made on the ceiling. I had a vague memory of a dream with Dimitri in it, but what he was saying and what he had been doing in my dreams, I couldn't remember. I reached behind me to fluff the pillows under my head. I shifted in bed, trying to get into a more comfortable position. From the small clock on the table, I saw that it was 2 a.m in the morning. There was still a lot of time before I had to wake up. I closed my eyes, but after twenty minutes, I gave up trying to get some sleep.Since it was a chilly night, at the last moment, I grabbed a robe from the back of a chair before heading out the door. My footsteps echoed on the tiles as I made my way to the balcony. The house was so silent that one could hear a pin drop. A chilly, but pleasant breeze played around my skin, lifted strands of my hair. I lifted my face up to the

VALERIAI felt, rather than saw that there was someone watching me. I raised my head. Noah was there, grinning at the surprise on my face. He placed a finger across his lips. He took a chair and straddled it."Surprise," he said."Well I am surprised!" I exclaimed. His boyish smile was infectious and I found myself smiling back. "I wasn't expecting you. Aren't you supposed to be at work?""That's one of the perks of being a boss, remember? While you're here slaving away in an office, I can afford to pay unannounced, surprise visits to my friends," he said with a chuckle and then his expression became serious. "The last time I was here, I was told that you were not at work. As soon as I heard you had resumed, I just had to see you." He studied my face carefully. "I suppose you were ill.""I was but I'm much better now.""Good. I've been sort of worried. You know, we haven't really spent much time together. The double dinner date with Dimitri was-""A flop." I sighed. "I know."Noah's