Ariana's POV

I have been in the dressing room for what seemed like decades before I heard footsteps, I quickly got up from my sitting position and ran to the door in an attempt to pound on it for help but to my amazement, I twisted the handle and it suddenly opened revealing Dylan's angry face, "so you came here to hide to avoid your work" he yelled, my heart raced as I stared at him, trying to explain myself, "no, no, I would never do that, I was locked in, I pounded on the door but it seemed like no one was nearby"

He raised his brow in disbelief, "let's say I want to believe you, what are you doing here in the first place?" I quickly remembered the file he had sent me to get, I quickly rushed to where I left it and brought it to him, "here is your file, I came to get it for you as instructed" his eyes darkened and there was that glow again in it whenever he's really angry, I took a step backward as he walked towards me menacingly, "And what am I supposed to do with this?" He backed throwing the file at me, it fell open on the floor and my eyes widened, it was blank, nothing was inside.

"Poor Ariana, you still act this way, as always, trying to dodge responsibility," Samantha said from somewhere behind Dylan and for the first time, I noticed other staff there as well, I have no doubt now that Samantha had planned all of this, I had once again fallen for her malicious plot, I stared at Dylan, my knees wobbled trying to give way, he grabbed my arms and dragged me towards his office, "please, you have to listen to me, I had simply gone there for the file because Samantha told me you needed me to get it" he didn't reply as he kept dragging me to his office, his hands tight on my arms that it hurts, I could feel the tears gathering in my eyes threatening to spill, he pushed me into his office and I fell on the floor as he shut the door behind him, I was scared of his anger, his eyes were shining like a yellow glob, who exactly is he? "How should I punish you for your disobedience?" He growled and my hand unconsciously went to my locket for comfort, I saw his eyes follow my hands and they narrowed, he made as if to grab it and I cringed, shifting back in fear, "no please" those single words escaped my mouth on their Accord, that locket, although, I knew not it's origin was one thing that gives me comfort for some reason, he looked at me as if considering whether to let it go or not, he suddenly stood up, "next time you disobey me, I'll deal with you accordingly"

I nodded, "I'll never disobey you" was all I could manage at this point. He stared at me still sitting on the floor, his gaze unreadable, then he turned and walked out the door, I quickly rose from my sitting position on the floor and followed meekly.

Dylan's POV

That night, my wolf was restless, I could feel it struggling to be let out, it has been a while it's been this agitated, in fact, he was only ever agitated when he needed to mate, it's been a while I sought the softness of a woman's bosom and I have been doing fine until now, my mind went to the massive wavy hair sleeping in the room not too far from mine and I growled in agitation, "take her Dylan, why don't you?" I could hear my wolf say to me and I gritted my teeth, "I am in control of my emotions, I do not need any lady in my life to complicate it"

"She is not Myla" I heard it respond and pain shot in my heart at the remembrance of how I was brutally rejected by my mate years back, "of cause she's not Myla, Myla was my mate, a werewolf who knew the importance of a mate bonding but who still rejected me and Ariana is a human, who doesn't even know what it is to have a mate, do you think she'll understand that concept?" My wolf was silent at my question, it must have sensed my hurt, anger, and the taste of betrayal, he had been hurt too by the incident of years ago, I could feel its pain also, I have no use of Ariana this night as I wasn't in my right mind to send for her, I quickly hit the shower and fell on my bed.

Ariana's POV

I jerked awake and looked around my room, everything was the same, something must have woken me up, there, I heard it again, I slight groan like someone in pain, I quickly got up from my bed and followed the sound, it was coming from Dylan's room, was he injured? I thought of going back to my room to get dressed properly before coming back but I had just turned to leave when the agonized sound came again, without thinking, I opened the door and went in, he was lying on his bed, writhing like someone in pain, "no, don't leave me, please don't go" he cried and I realized he must be dreaming, I wondered who it was he was dreaming about, I quietly went to him and held his hands and he grabbed it tight as if waiting for it all along, my eyes widened in surprise as he jerked me into his bed and in a single move, ripped my little nightgown off my body, I struggled against him as his mouth came crashing on mine so violently, I could feel the metallic taste of blood in my mouth, I pounded on his chest but his hand ceased mine, pinning it above my head, gosh, I'm done for, I thought. Whoever it was he was dreaming about, he must be thinking she's that person, I could feel his penis at my entrance and my eyes widened, I just realized he was naked beneath his blanket all along, panic filled me as I struggled to be freed, I struggled to freed my mouth from his capture, the blood was now dripping but he took no notice, he was a beast, a feral growl escaped his throat and for a moment I froze in fear, this wasn't Dylan, I had to wake him up but my hands were pinned tightly above him, in a swift moment, his moved my legs apart and plugged in, I screamed in pain, he stilled at my scream, blinking severally as if to bring me into focus, I shifted from underneath him, hoping he would get off me, the pain was excruciating, he made that feral growl when I shifted but instead of getting of me, he began pounding into me, his manhood was large and huge, it filled me to the brim and I gagged, he wasn't gentle with me, his hands groped my breast and squeezed painfully as he continued pounding and groaning. So this was how my first experience looks like, no candlelight, no flower, no cajoling, just hard and brutal sex. He finally released and stood up from the bed, something akin to regret flashed through his eyes but I'm not sure because it was gone before I could fathom what it was and replaced by anger, "what the heck were you doing in my room?" He yelled and I shivered, "I...I...."

"Get out!" He screamed without waiting to listen to my explanation, sore and bleeding, I stood up from the bed and ran out, I didn't stop running until I got to my room, jammed the door behind me, and bolted it.

Dylan's POV

I paced my room in anger, I couldn't explain what had just happened, one minute it was Myla's face that I was seeing and the next minute I was inside Ariana, the feel of her supple flesh zapped through my memory and I growled at the image, I walked out and went into the woods, pulling my clothes, I let my wolf out, I could feel it's claws and furs as it took over, it jumped out happily and howled, it's sense of smell heightened by the change, he caught a whiff of something, more like a faint smell of witch but it was gone before he could be sure about it. it took off, a predator preying the woods, it was dawn before I

came back to where I had kept my clothes, changing back into human form, I quickly wore it and walked inside, I passed through Ariana's door and paused, I knew she had cried all night, I suddenly felt like apologizing for what happened but what was the use, it wasn't gonna change anything, "mark her, make her yours" I heard my wolf say and I frowned, "never" I whispered fiercely, disappointed, it stayed quiet. I opened the heightened side of my being and listened, it seems like she had ceased crying, I could hear her soft snore, she must be sleeping now, I quietly walked to my room, I will allow her to stay at home today and rest, I will go to the office alone, I quickly got dressed and on my way out, informed Greta to allow her sleep, although, she looked surprised but she didn't dare to question my order.

Ariana's POV

I opened my eyes and it fell on the bedside clock, I jumped up from my bed, I couldn't believe I had slept for so long, Dylan would grill me, I wondered how I was going to face him after what happened, I still feel a little sore down there as I rushed into the shower, in thirty minutes, I was through and I opened my door to see Greta baring a tray of food, "I thought you would sleep the whole morning" she said breezing into my room, "I'm sorry, but you should have woken me, master will be very mad at me".

Greta looked at me in a way that made me blush, "he has gone to work"

"What? Without me? Why?" I asked all in one breath.

"I should be asking you that"Greta stared at me, her gaze curious and I averted my gaze, "I don't know" I mumbled staring at the tray "that smells nice," I said trying to change the topic and she sighed, "whatever it is you're doing, you have to be careful, Master, has no place for love and romance in his life"

"I'll keep that in mind," I said as I got one of her rolls and bit into it, "this is so delicious," I said and she stared at me for a moment before leaving, closing the door behind her. I sighed as I dropped the rolls, I certainly have no appetite to eat anything, I just took a few mouthfuls to distract Greta from pursuing the topic, I scoffed at her reference to love and romance, of cause, even a fool knows that I was just a lowly slave anyway and last night event was something she wished to forget very fast, it was just as painful that my first experience was so awful, maybe I was really cursed as Samantha had said, nothing really go well with me, maybe it's true that I caused my mother's death

That night I slept and dreamt I was being chased, I was running with a faceless being and something huge was after us, red eyes, claws and furs as black as the night, I was panting for breath, suddenly, the faceless being slipped and fell, she screamed, "Ariana run" just before the beast pounced on her, I screamed in horror at the sight, I screamed and screamed and jerked awake from the nightmare, I was drenched in my own sweat, I slowly stood up and went to the bathroom to splash water on my face.

That day I was feeling off, I can't pinpoint what exactly it was that was wrong with me, I was staring at my pale face in the mirror when a knock sounded a d Greta popped her head in, "you're to go to master's room right now and get it cleaned" she instructed and for some reason, I felt terrible anger at that, I glared at her, "oh yeah? Tell master I said he can go to hell"

Greta's eyes widened at my reply, she has never seen me this way, I was always obedient and docile, well I can't understand myself either because I have never seen myself in this form, Greta frowned, "if you don't do as instructed, you'll get punished, you're lucky you were given a room here and not sent to the den of slaves" she bristled as she shut the door behind her. I could hear her retreating footsteps and I sighed, the fight suddenly going out of me, after what happened, going to Dylan's room was the last thing on my mind but right now, it doesn't seem like I have a choice. I quietly walked to his room and was relieved when I didn't see him, I quickly had his room cleaned, I was about to remove the bedspread when my eyes caught the blood on it, my blood, my first experience was horrible, I shivered as I recalled it, I wondered if it was always that painful, the feel of his muscular chest on my back sent a tinge to my toes and for a moment I wished for a repetition of what happened, it was the first time I felt it, I frowned as I shook my head, "what was wrong with me?" I quickly tidied the room and left quietly.

[Somewhere in Northeast coven]

My eyes flashed open at what I just saw, that little girl has turned into a grown woman and the seal placed on her is cracked, a seal was placed in her locker, as long as she wore it around her neck, she won't know who she was, she won't fall in love with anyone and she would live to please others and do as she was bidden, that way she would be safe to live in this world but there is just one reason why it is cracked now and that is she has had an intimate encounter with a male, had she fallen in love despite the seal placed on her? But how could that happen? There has to be some explanation, I would have to find out what's going on? Who is this person that is powerful enough to crack her seal? What was that her name again? Oh! yes, Ariana, she must be having nightmares right now and feeling confused, I think the time has come for me to act, it's high time I introduce myself into her life.

My name is Eric Masha and I'm a wizard from the northeast coven, I belong to the same coven as Ariana's mother, before her death, she had foreseen it and has desperately sought a way to keep Ariana safe and so had used her power to work a locket, one with a seal on it and had begged me to make sure Ariana wore it around her neck should anything happen to her. The necklace was supposed to seal her heart from developing feelings for anyone and at the same time, make her obedient, that way, she could live peacefully with anyone. I had fulfilled my promise to her by making sure Ariana wore the necklace and had taken her to her father on that fateful day, what I don't know was that if Ariana's mother knew that the locket would suppress Ariana's power if she actually inherit the witch Gene and also cause her to lose her memory. Ariana's mother had died trying to work that locket because she would have been able to escape before the day she was attacked but she had chosen to stay behind, to her, her daughter is her priority, so on the day she finally made the locket, she died and now that seal which she used her blood to do is cracked, I fear for the repercussions and that's why I must go to Ariana, I have to look for a way to somehow close the crack on the locket, that's the only way to stop the impending doom and I guess it's time to bring her back from the human world, it's time she returns to her world even though that was the last thing her mother wanted for her, to return but it's his job to keep her from harm's way.

Ariana's POV

It's been a week since that incident, a week since I've set my eyes on Dylan, he's probably avoiding me but I don't care a bit, in fact, I am grateful for that because I don't think I wanna see him either. I was in my room pondering on my role as his slave after that last incident when the door burst open to reveal Dylan's angry face, "oh! he's always angry" I thought to myself and he growled making me wonder if he has heard my thoughts, I stared at him with a feeling of indifference, "why ain't you dressed, get your ass down to the office today" he snapped and I was suddenly filled with indignation but held myself from giving him a befitting reply, I simply rolled my eyes at him and saw his eyes narrowed, "don't test my patience" he whispered fiercely, I stood there looking at him, hoping he'll get the hint and move away for me to get dressed, "so? What the hell are you still waiting for?" He thundered as his face darkened, "I would have gotten dressed if you'd allow me, I still have my privacy to get dressed, don't I?" He has the grace to look embarrassed as he stared at me for a split second and without another word, moved out and shut the door behind him.

I sighed, who would have thought I would have such courage to speak back at him in that manner, I have no idea what has come over me, I keep getting strange dreams and now I'm having the courage to talk back at my boss? I quickly dressed in a simple work cloth and went out to join him.

*

*

I had just gone to get Dylan's morning coffee and was on my way to his office when I bumped into someone I have never seen in the company before and almost spilled my cup of coffee on him, "I'm so sorry" I quickly apologized, my eyes seeking his cloth to see if there's any chance that my coffee must have spilled on him, " please forgive me, I wasn't looking" he suddenly put his hands on my arms, "it's okay, I'm fine, you didn't spill any coffee on me anyway"

I felt a strange sting where his hands had connected to my arms and I immediately moved away from his touch, what was that? Did he feel it too? Because he quickly moved away and set a little space between us, I stared at him and oddly felt I've seen him before, he brought out his hand for a handshake, "I'm Eric Masha" he quickly no introduced himself and I forced a smile, " I'm Ariana" I replied and wondered if his eyes narrowed at the mention of my name or if it was my imagination, either way, I have to get this to Dylan, "nice to meet you" I quibbled as I quickly walked away.

Dylan was standing, facing the window with arms at akimbo, for some odd reason, I found his stance sexy and unbiddenly my mind went to what transpired between us and found myself wishing I could experience it again with him with a more gentle touch, he suddenly turned and wrinkled his nose as if trying to follow a scent, his icy eyes penetrated mine and I felt my heartbeat sped up

"What are you doing just standing there? Are you going to hand that over? He growled pointing at the cup of coffee in my hands and I felt my face colored, "what was wrong with me?" A strange feeling of Deja Vu washed through me and I moved to drop the coffee on the table, I suddenly hit my foot against the chair at his front and I tripped, spilling hot content all over, I felt the burnt on my skin and heard him hissed, he must have been touched by the hot coffee also, "goddamit" I heard him growled and I looked up to see him trying to remove some documents from his desk to avoid the liquid getting to them, "oh no! I'm done for" I cringed inwardly and grabbed into a document, at the same time, he grabbed the same paper, trying to save it from obvious disaster, my eyes widened as I watched the document divided into two, splitting itself into halves and I found myself holding one half of it and the other with him, my heart thudded and my eyes widened in shock as I stared at him, his face was dark with rage, his pupils dilated, I watched as he clenched and unclenched his hands as if trying to stop himself from hitting me, he really looks like a man that should be feared. "Out" he stated through clenched teeth and I gaped at him, my brain seemingly slow to grasp what he meant. He fisted his hands and hit it hard on the table and I jerked, "I said outttt" he screamed and without waiting for any clarification, I quickly fled and almost bumped into Eric on my way out, I would have fallen face down if he hadn't caught me in time to steady me, he stared at me then at the door behind me, tears threatened to spill from my eyes and before I could make any more fool of myself, I released myself from his grasp and took to my heels.

Author's POV

Eric narrowed his eyes as he watched Ariana flee, his heart tightened at the pain he had glimpsed in her eyes and he felt rage on her behalf, what had the bastard done to her? He fought the urge to use his power to snap Dylan's neck.

"Aren't you coming in or do you want to go after her? Dylan snapped impatiently at him and he took two deep breaths before walking into Dylan's office, he has to get a job here, that's the only way he can stay close to Ariana and keep an eye on her, most especially now that her seal is cracked, he would have to find the perfect time to reseal it and he has to gain her trust, he can only reseal it if she permitted, for that, he'll need her to trust him.

"Well?" Dylan was observing him closely and he forced a smile as he sat down on the seat opposite Dylan's. His eyes quickly survey the mess on the table as a cleaner quickly walked in to get it cleaned up, that must be the reason for his anger toward Ariana, still, that does not justify him making Ariana cry, he vowed inside that someday, Dylan would pay for putting that tears in her eyes. I'm Eric Masha and this is my portfolio, he said, putting his portfolio on the table

Dylan watched the man who called himself Eric and frowned at his reaction to Ariana, he felt like plucking out the eyes of Eric, he had gazed at Ariana with so much tenderness and concern and that didn't sit well with him as her master, he frowned at his discomfort as the grabbed the portfolio on his desk and quickly went through it, it was impressive but he was loathed to hire him, he frowned at his trail of thought, why was he hesitating to employ Eric? The business obviously needs him. His mind went to Ariana, "am I hesitating because of Ariana? She's just my slave" the question and his answer to that churned in his heart but still, he knew that Eric deserves the position, he curbed his feeling of unease and glanced at Eric, "I'll place you on probation for two weeks, if you're good as you project, then we'll move from there but if not...." He shrugged and let his sentence and hidden meaning trail off.

" Probation"?

Dylan glanced at him straight in the eyes, "if you're not okay with the arrangement, you can as well leave"

Eric gritted his teeth, he has seen Dylan's struggle to employ him, he knew his portfolio had impressed Dylan but yet he hesitate to employ him and instead placed him on probation, he needed the job so damn much, so he has no choice than to nod his head meekly, "I accept your offer"

Dylan nodded once, "good, just so we understand each other"

The atmosphere was tensed as they both shook hands, there was an unspoken animosity between them and Dylan wondered why he would be feeling such way to a man he hasn't met before, he would have time to ponder about the reason later, he watched as Eric walked out the door with narrowed eyes.