Clara's pov  I don't think he noticed the tip of his finger touch my cleavage, but I doubt he missed my breathy gasps.

  "You must be really cold," He said, and I gave him a nod.

  The glow in his eyes finally dies down, he hands over the coat in his hand, and I put it on. The coat covered my body, all the way down to my knees. I mumbled out a thank you before finally passing out. When I woke up, I was in a bare yet cosy bedroom, it hard minimal furniture but a welcoming atmosphere.

  That stranger must have brought me to his house, I concluded, scanning the room with my eyes before sitting up.

  "I thought you were going to be asleep for quite a while, but this is preferable," My heart jumped up to my throat when I found him seated by the side of the bed.

  "I don't think I've gotten the chance to introduce myself to you yet..." He said unbothered by my shock, "I'm Killian Stone, and you?"

  My jaw hit the floor with a thud, "Killian stone? Do you mean THE Killian stone?"

  "You've heard of me?" He asked with doubt, still evident in his voice.

  I wanted to scream and slam my head against the wall. How was he speaking of himself as if he were some random joe when he was the freaking Alpha King!

  Then again, maybe he wasn't the Alpha King? Yeah... Perhaps I just happened to run into someone with the exact name and–

  "Girl, stop lying to yourself, I'm 99% sure that's him..." Veil said in frustration, my heart pounded hard against my rib cage. Was I really in the presence of the Alpha King?

  Should I ask directly? Would I look stupid if I do so?

  "Probably," Veil said, not helping. "At least thank him first. We would have probably died because of pneumonia if it wasn't for him,"

  Veil was right. We could have died, but before I could even open my mouth, he stretched an envelope and placed it in my fingers.

  "Take this as compensation. It's still late, so you can leave in the morning,"

  I looked at the envelope stupefied for a second or more before I finally found my voice.

  "C-compensation?" I stuttered out, shaking down to my toes, "What happened between the two of us?Did we -"

  He suddenly sucked in a breath, "No, by goddess! I'm talking about how I almost ran you over because I was drunk driving," He confessed a wave of shame in his voice as he buried his face in his palms.

  "I nearly killed you by accident, so check. If the amount isn't good enough, then..." He took a deep breath, "... I'll add more to it. How does that sound?"

  I stared down at the envelope. It was thick and weighed heavily in my hold.

  This might be enough to get me by for a while, but then I'll find myself in a tight spot again in the blink of an eye.

  I need to think about this strategically.

  "Maybe you can compensate me in another way,"

  He looked at me with cautious curiosity.

  "What way?"

  ------------------

  He was the Alpha King.

  "Told you!" Veil echoched with confidence.

  But I was sinking with embarrassment. I can't believe someone like him saw me at my lowest. He must have thought I was pathetic .....

Or maybe not.

  His face was usually a taunt, blank mask that I could never get a read on.

  Looks like he only helped me out the first time because he felt guilty about his drinking and driving.

  I'm curious: What made the Alpha King get so drunk? especially since he was so stoic most of the time.

  Whatever it was, I decided to focus on other things, like my new job as his personal maid.

  The head maid, Martha, a plump, pretty middle-aged woman, drilled me about my responsibilities. I had a one week training period, during that time I stayed in the servant quarters, but I was informed that I would be moved to another room, a personal one that was close to the Alpha King so I'd be able to tend to him without delay.

  The first thing I had to do was bring him his morning tea. He liked his tea extra bitter with no sugar at all. I couldn't relate. That was his preference, not mine.

  I knocked on his door, heart thumping with tension. I was starting from the very bottom now, but even if I was set back, I wasn't going to give up, I'll forget all about Josh's betrayal and move on with my life.

  "Come in," he called in from inside. My heart was still racing as I made my way in, and I told myself to be courageous.

  I had to reclaim everything that was taken away from me, one step at the time.

  But no amount of mental fortification would have prepared me for what I saw when I stepped into the alpha Kings bedroom.

  My heart literally skipped a beat, and my wolf howled within me. It took all the self-control scrapped from every crevice inside of me to stop myself from dropping the tray and tea in my hand.

  He was only wearing pyjama pants. Everything from his waist upward was free to view. His abs were chiselled, his muscles defined, and his broad chests looked like they would make the best firm pillows.

  "My eyes are actually all the way up here, clara," he spoke up, gesturing with two of his fingers.

  I blushed, flustered, and stretched the faux silver tray towards his direction.

  "My deepest apologies, Alpha Killian I–"

  "I don't need an apology, I just need you to be more discreet. You'll see me more often, dressed like this more than you would see me in a suit and tie"

  He took the mug, took a sip, and said without warning, "I did a background check on you,"