A knock came at the door moments after Camellia came into her room. She had just finished steadying her heart after her encounter with James. To her relief, it was the kind maid who she had first met when she opened the door.


    "Mr. Shaw asks you to join him for dinner."


    Camellia looked surprised, but she slowly nodded her head.


    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


    Camellia cautiously entered the dining room, where James awaited her patiently on a huge long dining table. There were two plates set out on the table. When she came in, he looked at her uneasily.


    "Please sit down, Miss Quintana," he plainly stated.


    She looked around suspiciously, wondering why they were alone and why no one else joined them. After a moment, she sat on the chair beside him and James nodded to Sara to serve the rice. Sara came with the rice bowl.


    "How do you find your room? Is it spacious enough for you to hide in?" he mockingly asked.


    She ignored him with a frown and thanked Sara after she emptied two spoonsful of rice on her plate.


    "I learned that you have another brother, is that correct?" Camellia slowly asked.


    He looked up from his plate.


    "I have a brother and a sister."


    "Why do they not join us for dinner?"


    James smirked.


    "You will hardly find them in the house. If you do, you will be lucky," he remarked, continuing to eat.


    "You are alone in the house then?"


    He looked up from his plate again, surprised at the question.


    "I am not alone in this house. You''ve seen all my employees," he remarked, rather annoyed.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    "I know," Camellia began rather foolishly. "I meant as a family, you are alone here."


    He looked unhappily at her as if the thought were painful.


    "Eat or your rice will grow cold," he remarked, avoiding the question.


    She picked up her spoon and observed him, his face hiding uneasiness from her words.


    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


    As Camellia left the dining room, Bow came running up to her. Surprised, she bent down to pick up the dog. James followed behind her. He looked annoyed that she was holding his dog, but did not say a word, as he did not want to look crazy. He passed her, strolled into a room, and closed the door behind him. Camellia curiously followed him and stepped to the closed door and let Bow down. She placed her ear to the door, but to her horror, Bow strolled up to the door and barked.


    "Shhhhhhhh," Camellia quickly remarked.


    But Bow continued barking, and Camellia quickly stepped aside just as the door opened. James looked at her suspiciously as Bow slipped through his legs and trotted into the room.


    "Were you looking for something?" he asked, rather annoyed to find her snooping around.


    She quickly shook her head and then peered inside.


    "What room is this?"


    He frowned and opened the door for her.


    "Come in if you are curious. I don''t like people snooping around behind my doors," he sarcastically remarked.


    She frowned and slowly walked in. Her mouth opened in awe. The room was full of bookshelves. At the opposite was wall-size windows and an enormous desk. A fireplace stood to the left with two comfortable-looking sofas and a loveseat with its own foot-setter.


    "Is this your office?" she asked.


    James walked over to his desk and picked up a folder.


    "This is the library and my office. As you can say, it is my place to hide from the rest of the world," he mockingly remarked.


    Camellia ignored his taunt and walked over to one of the shelves. She turned to James, who obviously had forgotten her and was looking through some paper.


    "Can I?" she asked.


    He looked up to her.


    "What?"


    "Can I look at your books?"


    James frowned.


    "Go ahead," he began, "that is if they interest you."


    He returned to the papers on his desk. Bow came over to Camellia and snuggled his nose against her leg. She smiled and took a book out. It was rather old. Slowly she opened the book and read the first page. Bow moved to the fireplace and sat down. She smiled and followed the dog to the fireplace. But before she sat down, she looked at James to see if he minded. Seeing that he was occupied, she sat down next to the dog by the fireplace.


    After a moment, James glanced from his papers to look at her. He found her sitting by the fireplace making herself at home in his office. He frowned and looked away, annoyed that she was happier than him in his own home. His eyes unwillingly glanced at her again. He found her attractive as she sat next to his dog and read a book, a book which he probably had never read. A slight smile appeared on his face, but then he remembered that she was here for his father''s wealth. His smile died, as he did not like it one bit. Forcefully, he pulled his eyes away from her. Author: uniqnovels.com.