This chapter is dedicated to cutetiffany67  for her constant supports and love for SBTTB. Also, she shared the SBTTB posts on social media. Thank you <3

Kara’s POV

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             “What is going on here?” A cold voice demanded behind us and we both stiffened for a moment. Snapping out of my daze, the voice registered and I scurried out of Gonzalo’s hold instantly.

Gonzalo’s expression was one I’d pay dollars to see any day.

I snickered but struggled to assure myself that the man would only talk. He wouldn’t do more than talk even though his eyes appeared to be glaring right into my soul at the moment.

Oh my, how I disliked him with all the passion in me! Ricco, the rich, that was all. He acted like his breath could purchase lives!

I was sure he could only treat me this way because he was paying my tuition. I rolled my eyes at my thoughts, realizing they were somewhat selfish and I needed to tone the mental aggression down. Of course I’d only speak humbly if I was actually talking to him.

“I demand an answer.” Young master calmly spoke again, reminding me of the fact that he was still standing right before us.

“We…we were talking and she felt something itchy and...” Gonzalo trailed off.

Then I heard my madre approaching and I went into panic mode.

What if the young master told mother? Then she would scold me right there before Gonzalo and our cold boss as if I was a little girl. I hated being scolded before others. It made me feel humiliated, even if it was a correction in love.

Mother had a smile on her face as usual.

“You’re back home already Sir- Kara, what’s wrong?” she walked closer, probably noticing the look on my face. She roamed her hands over my neck and face but I didn’t know what to say. My face was still red and warm with embarrassment that our boss had caught us in that position.

“Are you alright my dear?” she worriedly questioned while fussing over me like she usually did at all times— even when I got the wind blown into my eyes. Gonzalo just stared at us.

“Nothing’s wrong mama.”

A frown pulled on her face but then she probably noticed we also had company because she didn’t push it. She turned around and I immediately knew she had started dinner already because the aroma of the seasoning on her wafted through my nostrils.

“Gonzalo, your father needs your assistance so hurry up and meet him at the other block. Master, are you set to have your fruits?” Only few people had managed to crawl their ways into the young master’s heart and the short woman standing before him, and my Madre was one of them. Despite being the one who brought him up, she didn’t treat him in an unprofessional way.

She treated him just like who he was.

Her boss. Her young master.

“There is-” his eyes swiftly roamed around my pale skin and flushed face, “absolutely no problem. I am set. Kara, prepare my bath immediately.”

I went stiff again as my eyes slowly widened and my teeth clenched. My name sounded soft and careful on his lips. I would have to hurry so I wouldn’t cross him in the passage like one time when I had greeted him and he had only looked at me with obvious irritation before walking off.

I dared raise my head up and trailed them slowly over the young master, from his black Nike sneakers to his grey sweatpants and then his grey sleeveless hoodie. He a had nice sculpted body, which was outlined even through his hoodie. My brows furrowed in confusion as I snuck a peek at him through my lashes, my eyes slowly trailing over his face.

I didn’t look at him often. I wasn’t scared to check a boy out and that was also one of the various issues I’d has with Young master Stephano while we were growing. He’d grown into a taller, musclier and more handsome respectable man and boy, was he goof looking.

The young master wasn’t a boy in any way. No, he was a man and he looked really dominating, strikingly gorgeous but still dominating nonetheless.

His sea blue eyes locked me in their captivating spell the moment my eyes met with his. I tried to make a move, to do something, anything, but my neck denied me. I tried to carry my legs and transport myself away but they dared me.

I couldn’t, and I didn’t even notice if I was breathing too fast or too slow.

“Kara dear, the young master requested something of you.” Madre spoke softly, snapping me out of my thoughts and that was it. Just like that, the spell was broken. I was free to look away and that, I did in a heartbeat. I was turned around and hurried back into the house without another glance at the young master or my madre.

When I entered the mansion again, I released the breath I never even knew I was holding. I was tired of this. I hated formality and hated the rich. I wanted to have my own money, be independent. Be the rich. Take care of my mother and not have the elderly woman cooking for a cold man who glared all day and remained quiet throughout.

I couldn’t help but wonder if his mouth usually stank or not because his lips were always clamped shut and the man was always stiff. Someone else should have gotten seizure with the excessive stiffness, but not him, never the young master.

I didn’t want to ever be in any situation that would warrant me keeping quiet while someone spoke and ordered me around. That was why I was happy to be in the University, even though the person paying for my studies was still my mama’s cold boss. I would be through in a year time and that was when I would clock twenty two.

I had it in mind that when I graduated, I would take my mother out of the mansion and into my own house. The house I would build. I kept that in a part of my mind as I entered the young master’s bedroom. The more pressing task was before me in the present.

It was time to prepare the bath.    
Thirty minutes later, I heaved a sigh as I got out of the bath, quickly cleaning my hands on my green knee length gown. I was grateful because I could finally escape to the maid quarters and stay away from the complicated man called Stephano.

I still had about a week before school was to formally resume so every percent of me knew I’d have to put up with him.

I slowly huffed as the image of how he had been glaring at me when I was at the garden with Gonzalo surfaced. Snickering, I did a victory dance in my head. Gonzalo’s facial expression had been priceless and that meant I wasn’t the only one our young master had that intimidating effect on.

I sniggered again; despite the strange fluttering feeling of nervousness I was still trying to stamp down as the image of those blue eyes had scanned everything in my body flashed before my eyes in a split second. Gonzalo himself had looked like he would pee in his pants.

Then my brows furrowed again as I recalled him glaring while he’d asked me to prepare his bath. What did I do to deserve such coldness from him?

My ringing phone blared into the silent room and startled me, making me release a yelp. A frown pulled onto my face as I fished for the phone in my pocket and a smile graced my lips as I realized who was calling.

“Marcus...” I trailed off and bit my lower lip.

Marcus was a guy I had a massive crush on. The first time I met him was at school, when I had represented my department for a debate competition held by my faculty on revenue and expenditure.

Marcus was in the same faculty as I was but not in the same department. We had met in the hall on the day of the competition, both going at it with stubborn heads till there was a tie and we had both been awarded by the faculty.

I had acted hesitant when he later asked me for my number but I had ended up giving him after constant asking. What the he certainly didn’t know was that I had developed a slight crush for him. The guy was good looking and had sleek black hair and deep chocolate orbs but that wasn’t what had attracted me to him the most. He had this slick charisma that you just couldn’t ignore.

My shaky hands reminded me that I was still staring at the device and I slowly swiped my thumb over it. Speaking to him might as well help to ease my sudden tenseness.

“Hello?”

“Hey baby.” Marcus’s surprisingly soft voice sounded like lullaby in my ears. The endearment had me coloring slightly in the cheeks.

The guy knew how to get his way into a girl’s panties but even though he was the school’s sweetheart, he had assured me that he would still stand on the queue of guys asking me out till I was ready for him.

Almost all girls in the school wanted him but he wanted me alone. This made me feel on cloud nine, to say the least.

“Hi.” I spoke shyly and smiled at myself. My right hand came up and locked in a strand of my hair as I began to twist it in different motions.

“Where are you?” He asked casually. Why would he want to know where I was? Did he want to ask me out?

“I’m at home, at my mama’s place.” My voice was clear.

Marcus laughed on the other end and oh, what I would have done to hear him laugh again... “You’re such a baby. You still call your mom ‘mama’? That’s boring.”

Something tugged at my chest at his declaration, it was defense. He’d sounded somewhat insulting.

“Yes, I prefer calling her that. It’s just how I grew up. Why did you call?” I slowly bit my lower lip but my smile had slowly faltered. I didn’t see anything wrong in calling my mom ‘mama’ even though I was now an adult and in the University.

“I was wondering if you’d like to get away somewhere.”

“Hmm. Where’s that?”

“The beach.”

My eyes widened as I immediately began to feel uneasy. The beach? I had never been to the beach though my best friend, Adrian had been there with Lucas, her boyfriend so many times. My hand left my hair and came to my lips. I subconsciously used my left index and middle fingers to drum lightly on my lips.

“Are you there?”

“Yes, but beach? I...uhm...” I rambled and he chuckled. It was a bit mocking and I hated it because it made me feel self-conscious like I was being mocked but like the other times, I let it slide.

“Don’t tell me you’ve never been to a beach.”

“Actually, I have been to a pool party but not-”

“That’s childish. You’ve never been to an actual beach? Wow, you’re hot and all... I thought you were one of the girls in school who used to rock it.”

I blushed crimson in embarrassment and opened my mouth to speak again when a weird sound came from behind me. Turning around, I almost screamed when I came face to face with a flat chest. Toned, chiseled and strong, making me so flushed that I knew I was beet red. I wouldn’t mind trailing my tongue over it though.

Wait.

What the actual-? Who owned this chest? I would have gushed but my eyes didn’t allow me jolly in the nice view because I trailed those eyes upward and stiffened when I came face to face with the young master. His expression was hard as usual, hard and demanding.

“Hand me the phone.” He spoke slowly. Oh goodness, luck never seemed to be on my side when it came to this man. Heck, I was supposed to have been out of here a long time ago.

“I sc…sir-” I failed to get a proper word out as I kept stuttering, avoiding his smoldering, sea blue orbs.

“Hand me the phone, Kara.” He spoke calmly again. My heart palpitated.

My name on his tongue sounded delicately genuine and tender, unlike his harsh expression. Also, not many younger people still had that Italian accent heavy in their tongues after the modernization and others didn’t even understand the Italian language even though they were born and bred here. I myself only understood bits of words in my mother tongue.

Amusement seemed to be lurking somewhere in young master’s eyes and it didn’t ease my flustered self. The young master was talking to me — something he rarely did— and he was...he was shirtless.

“Who is that babe? Your big dadda?” Marcus taunted on the line. Shut up...I was tempted to say but pressed my lips together.

“Her boyfriend.” Young master calmly replied like it was the most normal thing on earth. I felt my heart flutter even though it’d been a lie. Why had he said that?

I sputtered. “What? Si-”

He gave me a knowing look, a look he’d expected me to read and understand. I hoped I would faint anytime soon. A smile almost tugged at my lips because I saw him do something other than glaring. Still, nervousness encased my being.

“Kara? You have a boyfriend and I never knew. Why didn’t you just tell me that all these while?” Marcus spoke in utter disbelief. I blinked; I’d almost forgotten he was even on the line. I fumbled for words as the realization dawned on me.

“Marcus I don’t ha-”

“She doesn’t have anything to say to you anymore. The next time you call this line again, you’ll be in trouble.” He grabbed my phone from me as his heart shuddering glare returned.

I stood before the man with a thumping heart. My mouth felt dry and I slowly licked my lips, waiting for him to speak but he didn’t. He watched the little act of mine and his eyes seemed to even harden.

I subconsciously stopped licking my lips. He thrust the phone back into my now cold hands, his touch warm as we made small skin contact. “Have it.” He stated coldly.

“Th-thank you si-”

“Save it. When are you returning to school?” His eyes took in every inch of my face suspiciously. I flushed for the umpteenth time and berated myself for it. I should learn to act more formal and confident. Not like a teenager who had her hormones all over the place and still didn’t understand her system.

“Next week.”

“I don’t want you to have any contact with that boy anymore. Never.”

“Si-” I gave him my look of bewilderment. I partially hated myself because when he wasn’t around me, I would have big plans of countering his orders in defiance but when he was near; I would go all soft and turn into a stuttering mess.

“What’s his name?”

“Marcus Sullivan.” I spoke without thinking.

Why was he asking? I didn’t know what he wanted to prove but this only served as a reminder that I needed to work harder than I was doing so I would take my madre with me and we would be fine on our own without feeling his absence in our lives. The man nodded at what I said and skimmed his eyes over me pathetically one last time.

“Leave.”

He didn’t have to tell me twice. I was gone like the wind.    

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A/n: thanks for reading. Kindly vote and comment your thoughts. I promised an update and here it is.

Your girl,
Hephzibah.