The Vessel - Jenika Snow Page 0,2

mother taught me.

It was a mixture of lavender, a few other essential oils, vinegar, water, and a couple other family secret ingredients that was so much better for the gorgeous, natural wood in Lucian’s house, and it made me feel better knowing I wasn’t using a bunch of chemicals.

Merla gave me a nod, as she understood what I was doing. She went back to cleaning.

The truth was, I had a whole full bottle in my bucket. I just wanted an excuse to check out Lucius. I liked seeing him in his suits when he got off work, the power that always surrounded him, but it seemed even more potent when he just got out of the office.

For months, I’d been lusting after my employer, but I wasn’t stupid enough to tell anybody, to be unprofessional, or to be caught staring. Instead, I did things like pretend I needed to do a refill of the cleaning supplies.

I made my way into the kitchen and turned the corner to step into the room. The kitchen screamed of wealth and modern decor. Stainless steel appliances, white marble countertops, coordinating cupboards with rose gold accents. I didn’t even want to think about how much all this actually cost.

I saw him before he saw me. Lucius Blacksmith and his intimidating form leaned against the counter. He had one foot crossed over the other, a palm braced on the counter beside him, and a bottle of beer in his free hand. On the granite next to him was a bottle of scotch, the cap facing up beside it, and an empty glass next to that. He tipped the bottle back and took a long pull from it, and as I stepped farther into the kitchen, my bucket hit the wall, causing a loud, echoing noise. That, in turn, had Lucius glancing over at me, the bottle still to his mouth, his eyes locked on me. His expression gave nothing away, just this stark, stoic mask covering his gorgeous, masculine face.

I gave him a small, polite smile, but inside I was a wreck, nervous as if I were under a microscope and he was examining me. I felt his eyes track my every move as I made my way over to the sink. I set the bucket on the counter, the bottles rattling around slightly. I chanced a look over at him; of course he still stared at me, probably wondering why I couldn’t take my focus off him.

Lucius was a man in every sense of the word, exactly what I envisioned a real man was like. God, how he probably was in bed… how he’d take care of a woman in more ways than one.

“How is your evening going, Elise?”

I knew my eyes were wide. I felt them, like I was a deer caught in headlights, unable to do anything but be frozen in place. He knew my name. Sure, I’d been working for him for the past three months, but aside from a few small interactions, hellos or goodbyes, good evening or good morning, Lucius didn’t really speak with me. We shared plenty of pleasantries, but hell, even those didn’t mean he knew every employee on his payroll. And, it wasn’t like he hired me. Everything had gone through Merla.

I nodded. “Good. Thank you, Mr. Blacksmith.” I hated that my voice betrayed my emotions. I felt my face heat because of that and quickly turned away from him to face the sink, trying to hide as much as I could.

For a moment, I forgot why I was even in the kitchen then realized I needed to “make another batch of cleaner.” But I could still feel him watching me, his gaze heavy and thick, but I tried to ignore it despite the fact that I wouldn’t be able to do the simplest of tasks right now because of him being so close.

I bent at the waist and opened up the cabinet underneath the sink, gathering what I’d need. I happened to glance over at him, and my breath left me when I saw where his focus was.

On my ass.

It’s not like I was wearing anything remotely revealing or attractive. All the staff wore the same thing. Either black slacks and a white cotton T-shirt, or a black knee-length dress with a white apron around the waist. I tried on the slacks at first, but the material felt restricting and itchy, so I just went with the dress, which was far easier for me to work