Cassandra walked into the interviewing room like a storm.
The door swung open with enough force to make everyone inside jump.
Three interviewers: members of her HR department, looked up, their eyes shooting up in shock from where they sat behind a long table.
Across from them sat a nervous-looking man in his late thirties, mid-sentence in whatever answer he had been giving.
He froze, his mouth still open.
"Ms. Drayke! We weren't expecting you..." One of the interviewers- a woman named Patricia, shot to her feet immediately.
Cassandra's eyes swept the room in one quick, assessing glance and she instantly knew the one person she was looking for, wasn't here.
Her Rose.
Disappointment crashed through her so hard it was almost physical.
"Please don't mind me. Continue what you are doing." Cassandra said curtly, gesturing for them to carry on.
Then she turned and walked right back out, leaving the room in stunned silence.
Patricia exchanged confused glances with her colleagues. The nervous man just sat there, looking like he had seen a ghost.
Out in the hallway, Cassandra's mind was racing.
Rose wasn't in the interview room. And she hadn't been in the waiting area either- Cassandra had checked on her way here.
Which meant she had already finished her interview. So where had she gone that quickly?
Cassandra closed her eyes and inhaled deeply through her nose.
There, at one direction, she picked up her Rose's distinct scent...
Vanilla and strawberry. That sweet, intoxicating scent that had been haunting her. It was faint, but it was there at a trail leading down the hallway toward the elevators.
Cassandra's eyes snapped open, flashing red for just a moment. Then she moved.
Her supernatural speed carried her down the corridor in a blur. Staff members who happened to be in the hallway felt a gust of wind and looked around in confusion, but Cassandra was already gone before anyone could see her.
She reached the elevators just as one of them dinged.
The doors slid open.
And there she was.
"My Rose..." The words escaped Cassandra's lips in a mumble. Lilian raised her head and their eyes locked immediately.
Lilian was standing inside the elevator, one hand still holding her purse, clearly intending to leave. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw Cassandra standing there.
For a split second, emotions flickered across her face: shock, confusion, even a hint of fear.
But then after a split second, her expression smoothed into something carefully unreadable. Guarded.
Cassandra felt relief wash over her so intensely as she fixed her gaze on the woman before her. She heaved a sigh, her shoulders dropping slightly as if Lilian had been lost and she had been desperately searching for her.
Smoothly, Cassandra stepped into the elevator, her eyes never leaving Lilian's face.
The doors started to slide closed, but Cassandra's hand quickly shot out, pressing the button for the top floor. The executive level.
"What are you doing?" Lilian asked, her voice sharp but uncertain.
Cassandra didn't answer, she just moved closer.
Lilian stepped back until her shoulders hit the elevator wall.
Cassandra kept coming until there was barely an inch between their bodies.
Then she leaned in. Her nose brushed against Lilian's neck and she began to inhale deeply.
"What the heck is she doing?" Lilian's breath hitched as she wondered inwardly.
Cassandra's eyes drifted closed for a moment, her shoulders visibly relaxing. When her eyes opened again, they were darker. Heated.
Her gaze traced Lilian's face- her lips, her jaw then lower, getting stuck on the low neckline of the emerald dress that hugged her perfectly.
Cassandra's pupils dilated. For just a heartbeat, her eyes flashed red.
Lilian's pulse hammered in her throat. She knew she should move but Victor's voice echoed somewhere in her mind: *'please Cassandra Drayke* in whatever way' but this wasn't really why she stayed frozen.
Part of her actually wanted to slap her, shove her and demand for her private space.
Yet another part wanted to stay pinned exactly like this, to keep getting caressed by her hot gaze.
On the other hand, Cassandra's breathing had changed. Slower and heavier now.
Lilian could feel heat crawling up her neck. Her lips parted slightly as something low in her belly tightened, warmth pooling between her thighs. Her panties were getting soaked.
"No. Not now. Not for her..." Lilian yelled in her head but her body didn't care what her mind commanded.
Cassandra's hand lifted. Slowly. Her fingers grazed along Lilian's waist without quite touching. Then her arm wrapped around it. Firm. Possessive.
She pulled Lilian flush against her.
Lilian gasped and suddenly...
A deep rumble.
Lilian's hunger had chosen that exact moment to make its presence known. Her stomach growled desperately.
The embarrassing sound shattered the sexual tension like glass.
Cassandra eye's blinked, pulled out of whatever trance she had been in. Her eyes focused again, and concern flickered across her face.
"Is my Rose hungry?" She asked, her voice softer now.
Lilian felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. Of all the times for her body to remind her she hadn't eaten in over twenty-four hours...
"I'm not. I just want to go home after the interview." She said sharply, trying to maintain some dignity.
"No." The response from Cassandra was firm. Final.
"What?" Lilian blinked in incredulity.
"I won't send you away without feeding you." Cassandra said gently and Lilian could pick up something in her tone that didn't match the cruel, selfish, and arrogant Cassandra that she remembered.
Lilian didn't understand. Why was the Cassandra she knew: the one who had made her pour boiling tea on her own arm, who had treated her like dirt, ordered her beaten to death, suddenly concerned about whether she had eaten?
Then a realization dawned on her, her eyes twitching in understanding: it was because Cassandra had something for Rose Bennett.
Before Lilian could analyze her findings further, Cassandra pulled out her phone and began typing rapidly while the elevator continued its smooth ascent.
After a minute, the elevator's doors opened onto the executive floor.
"Come." Cassandra said simply as her hand found Lilian's, wrapping around it with firm possession.
"Wait, where are we..." Lilian tried to pull back, but Cassandra's grip was like iron. Not painful, but absolutely unyielding.
She had no choice but to follow as Cassandra led her down a quiet hallway.
They passed Cassandra's office and continued to a space just beyond it.
When they entered, Lilian's steps faltered, her eyes widening in surprise.
The room was large and serene, clearly designed as a private space away from the chaos of running a company. It had large windows, comfortable furniture and a soft lighting that created an atmosphere of calm.
But what really caught Lilian's attention was the table.
An enormous display of food had been set out. Varieties of dishes she couldn't even name: exotic fruits, eye-pleasing cooked meats, fresh salads, breads that looked like they had been baked minutes ago, pastries that belonged in a five-star restaurant.
It was a feast fit for royalty.
Lilian was taken aback, her mouth actually falling open slightly as she wondered when all of that had been prepared.
What she didn't know was that Cassandra had messaged her secretary while they were in the elevator, ordering this spread to be prepared immediately at the space where she usually ate and relaxed.
"These are for you..." Cassandra had just started gently but her phone buzzed in her hand, interrupting the moment.
She glanced at the screen and her expression immediately darkened. Her jaw tightened painfully, eyes flashing with annoyance.
"Fuck..." She gritted but somehow refrained from saying more as she looked up at Lilian.
"I need to attend to something, but please, my Rose, eat to your satisfaction. And wait for me." Cassandra said, and Lilian could hear the barely restrained frustration in her voice.
Then, before Lilian could respond, Cassandra turned and strode out of the room, closing the door behind her.
Lilian stood alone in the serene space, surrounded by enough food to feed ten people, her mind spinning.
She didn't know what to make of any of this, knowing she wasn't supposed to be eating what her enemy had served.
However, her stomach protested again, reminding her that her hatred and vendetta could wait.
"Screw it!" She muttered under her breath. She was starving. Whatever mind games Cassandra was playing could be analyzed later.
Right now, she was going to eat.
Lilian walked to the table and picked up a plate, her hands trembling slightly as she began to fill it with food.