Lorelei POV

"He said that?"

Skye gasped in horror, her eyes widening as she sat on the edge of the bed.

I had just finished telling her everything that had happened with Kaelen, and fresh tears still blurred my vision, spilling over my eyelashes no matter how many times I wiped them away.

"I told you," I said, my voice cracking as I brushed my damp cheeks with the back of my hand. "I don’t know why he suddenly took an interest in me, but clearly, he just wants to sleep with me."

I didn’t even know why I was crying this much over his words.

The worst part was that there wasn’t a single lie in what he had said.

After all, my education had stopped when I was barely ten years old, and for most of my life, I had been nothing more than a maid. Someone who scrubbed floors, served meals, and learned very quickly to be seen and not heard.

So what else could I possibly offer a man like him?

Yet despite trying to reason through it, the tears wouldn’t stop coming.

It hurt so much because those cruel words had ripped away the little pride I still had left, forcing me to confront one of the truths I had been trying so hard to escape ever since I arrived here.

That I was truly worthless.

That no matter how far I ran or what name I hid behind, I would always be the cursed twin.

The failure.

The one who wasn’t good enough.

"Hey," Skye said softly as she moved closer beside me. "Look at me."

I shook my head and wiped at my cheeks again.

"Lorelei."

The sound of my real name made something inside my chest tighten.

"Look at me."

Slowly, I lifted my gaze and met Skye’s fierce brown eyes.

"That man is an asshole."

She said it with such immediate conviction that a wet laugh escaped me before I could stop it.

"He’s the Alpha King," I whispered, as if reminding her how dangerous those words were.

"He’s still an asshole," she insisted, completely unbothered.

Then she reached forward and took my hands, holding them tightly in her own.

"And he’s wrong. About everything."

"How do you know?" I asked, my voice cracking as I looked down at our joined fingers. "You know almost nothing about me."

"Maybe," she countered gently. "But I know that you’re not meant for this kind of life, and yet here you are, surviving. I know you’re the strongest person I’ve ever met."

She squeezed my hands, forcing me to feel the weight of her words. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

"And I know that being a maid doesn’t define your worth. Being uneducated doesn’t define your worth. What he said to you was cruel, unnecessary, and specifically designed to hurt you because he’s a miserable bastard who doesn’t know how to handle his own emotions."

I stared at her in awe.

A part of me that I hadn’t even realized was starving had desperately needed to hear those exact words.

"When did you become a therapist?" I couldn’t help asking, a small smile tugging at the corners of my lips.

"About three seconds ago."

She grinned, and I burst out laughing, completely surprising myself with how easily the sound came after all that heavy sobbing.

When the laughter faded, a long, tired sigh escaped me.

The ache in my chest was still there. After all, deep old wounds had been ripped open today.

But it definitely hurt a little less now.

"Thank you," I muttered, squeezing her hands back.

"You’re welcome," she said.

Before I could say anything else, she pulled me into a tight hug.

"Now don’t cry anymore. Seeing you like that really broke my heart."

Once again, she was acting like a worried parent even though we were the exact same age.

Still, the warmth of the gesture melted a little more of the ice around my heart, and I wrapped my arms around her, hugging her back.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Skye said suddenly after we finally pulled apart, excitement returning to her voice.

"What?" I asked, clearing my throat as I reached for the tray she had brought earlier. For the first time all evening, I was finally starting to regain enough of an appetite to eat the dinner that had been sitting untouched between us.

"I have a new roommate," she announced. "A new maid was brought into the servant quarters today."

"What?"

This time my eyes widened.

I was genuinely surprised by how quickly they had filled the room I had only recently vacated.

"Yeah, she seems nice, but she’s really, really quiet," Skye explained, twisting her mouth to the side in thought. "Honestly, I’m worried she won’t even last a week in a place like this."

A sudden pit formed in my stomach at that thought. "Did she say what her crime was?" I asked, lowering my fork.

Skye shook her head with a sigh. "I haven’t gotten a chance to ask her yet. I’m just giving her a little more time to adjust."

I nodded at her words, then went back to eating, with Skye joining me soon after.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t stay forever. Her shift was over, leaving me once again alone with nothing but my own thoughts.

I tried not to think about it, but as soon as night fully fell, it became almost unbearable.

Desperate to shake the feeling off, I decided to take a shower before going to bed.

I stepped into the bathroom and turned on the water, letting it run hot. Steam quickly filled the small space as I stood beneath the spray, letting the water cascade over my hair and down my shoulders.

"The only thing someone like you is good for is scrubbing floors and spreading your legs."

Those words echoed in my head, forcing me to press my forehead against the cold tile and squeeze my eyes shut.

He was wrong.

He had to be wrong.

But the doubt was already there, festering like an old wound that refused to heal.

I stayed in the shower until the water ran cold, hoping it would wash away the ache in my chest.

It didn’t.

When I finally turned off the water, I reached for a towel but found nothing.

I looked around the bathroom, and my heart sank as I realized I had forgotten to bring one in.

"Of course," I muttered to myself.

I pushed the bathroom door open and stepped out, still dripping wet, planning to grab the towel from the hook near my bed.

But at that exact moment, my bedroom door swung open.

My eyes widened as my gaze locked with a familiar pair of gray eyes.

He froze.

I froze.

Then, as if suddenly realizing what was happening, I looked down at my naked body.

A scream tore out of me as I spun around and rushed frantically back into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind me. The towel remained completely forgotten on the bed, while a second later, the door to my bedroom slammed shut as well.