Surrogate for My Brother-in-law - Chapter 24: Chapter 24
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I had thought Leo made me his personal maid as an act of kindness. It was clear to me after just a few days that he had ulterior motives. I just didn't understand what they could possibly be.
Working for Leo became exhausting. I realized after a few days of endless mind numbing tasks that he was punishing me. I just couldn't understand why he was so angry. What had I done?
The chores were less exhausting and difficult than the ones Eva had me doing. But there were so many menial tasks that I barely had time to blink, let alone take a break. I wasn't able to look at Dr. Lee's texts for days.
Mornings were the worst. Leo expected me to be in his room at the crack of dawn. The problem was I was still suffering from morning sickness.
Dealing with the nausea and sickness meant that I couldn't eat breakfast. I had to clean myself up, dress, and hurry through the halls to reach Leo's rooms. Then I had to help him get dressed and ready for the day.
When Leo went down to have breakfast with the packs, I made his bed and gathered the laundry. That would normally be my opportunity to do a little quick studying. But I had a list of other, minor chores to finish while the laundry ran.
At some point I had to try to eat, because the one day I just skipped breakfast to try to keep up I ended up fainting. One of Leo's wolves noticed me and demanded to know why I was napping outside his room. I made up some excuse and after that I didn't skip any more meals.
After all of that, I had to prepare lunch for Leo, because he liked to eat while he worked on paperwork for his pack. Leo said he shouldn't make extra work for the kitchen staff since he had a personal maid.
I swept his office and emptied the trash bins while he ate. Then I had to grab lunch for myself. Then I had more chores. It honestly seemed like Leo was just making things up as he went along. Then I had to help him dress for dinner.
I helped serve dinner, and then ate with the kitchen staff. Then I had to clean up dinner. Then I had to draw a bath for Leo.
After all of that, I could barely stay awake long enough to change into my nightgown. The idea of sneaking into the laundry room to study was just too exhausting.
That went on for over a week. I was struggling to keep my eyes open any time I stopped moving. I caught myself leaning against any solid surface for just a moment of rest.
My feet were constantly sore and swollen. Walking across the manor was a trial. My joints ached constantly.
To add to my misery, Leo's presence made the pup more active. It had progressed from faint kicks to full on bouncing and wiggling any time its father was near. And Leo kept me nearby all day long.
I used my healing abilities to keep the pup soothed when I could, and to alleviate some of the worst pains. I thought there might be information in Dr. Lee's books that would help me, but I never had a chance to read them.
I wished I knew what had happened to make Leo so furious with me. I caught him glaring at me over his paperwork while I cleaned his office any time I dared look up. I mostly kept my eyes on the ground.
I was beginning to worry that my belly was going to start showing soon. I knew that werewolf pregnancies were much shorter than human, a little over half the length. I could tell that the pup was growing; I felt it when I reached for my healing powers to sooth the baby. Eventually it would be impossible to hide my pregnancy.
Maybe I should have taken Ethan's offer to join his pack. I couldn't imagine him being as cold and demanding as Leo was. But until I knew where my mother was, I didn't dare.
And despite everything, I found that the idea of leaving Leo behind too painful. He hated Tessa the maid, but he loved me when he thought I was Eva. I still cherished the memories of our nights together.
Eva hadn't asked me to switch with her for a few nights. I thought she and Leo must have worked something out between them. Or she had simply grown tired of her tryst with Leo's brother Zane. No wolf had ever kept Eva's attention for long.
So it was a bit of a shock to find her sitting in my room one day before lunch. I'd spilled broth on my shirt while preparing Leo's meal and had to run to my room to change. Eva was perched on my bed with her arms crossed, tapping her foot impatiently.
“Where have you been?” she demanded.
“The kitchen, I was making Leo's lunch,” I explained. “I have to get back, he'll wonder why I'm late.”
Eva snorted. “Like Leo cares where some pathetic maid is. Here, put on some of my clothes and get your make up done. Cover those horrible scars already.”
“What? Why?” I couldn't imagine why Eva wanted me to dress up as her in the middle of the day.
“It's none of your business,” Eva said, throwing a shirt at me. “I have someplace to be. I'm supposed to be with Leo this afternoon. So you're going to take my place. That's all you need to know.”
I thought about refusing, but instead decided to bargain. Maybe I could get more clues about my mother. Any hint would help.
“I want to see my mother,” I said. “At least a photo.”
“Ugh, whatever,” Eva said. “I'll get you your picture. Just get dressed already.”
I switched outfits and went to get my make up. I had to distract Eva from the fact that I was removing make up, not adding it. I daubed foundation across my unmarked cheek.
“What do I tell Leo if he asks where I am? I mean, the maid who's supposed to bring his lunch.”
Eva shrugged. “I dunno. Tell him you gave yourself a day off.” She rolled her eyes. “He's been working you to the bone, you need a break really.”
I blinked. That was almost kind. For Eva, anyways.
“I don't know why he's been so interested in you lately,” Eva added, naturally ruining the moment. “He even asked who you were, and where you came from.”
“What did you tell him?” I asked as I added Eva's favored color of eye shadow and lipstick to my face.
“That we were maybe cousins or something. And that your useless human mother had abandoned you,” Eva added with a sneer.
I seethed at the insult to my mother. I wanted to argue. I wanted to hit her. But I knew better than to start a fight I could never win.
“Won't he be mad if he learns the truth?” I asked.
Eva shrugged. “Who would tell him? And why would he care? You're just a half-blood maid.”
She was probably right. Leo cared about his wife, not Tessa the maid. He'd made that very clear over the past few days.
Working for Leo became exhausting. I realized after a few days of endless mind numbing tasks that he was punishing me. I just couldn't understand why he was so angry. What had I done?
The chores were less exhausting and difficult than the ones Eva had me doing. But there were so many menial tasks that I barely had time to blink, let alone take a break. I wasn't able to look at Dr. Lee's texts for days.
Mornings were the worst. Leo expected me to be in his room at the crack of dawn. The problem was I was still suffering from morning sickness.
Dealing with the nausea and sickness meant that I couldn't eat breakfast. I had to clean myself up, dress, and hurry through the halls to reach Leo's rooms. Then I had to help him get dressed and ready for the day.
When Leo went down to have breakfast with the packs, I made his bed and gathered the laundry. That would normally be my opportunity to do a little quick studying. But I had a list of other, minor chores to finish while the laundry ran.
At some point I had to try to eat, because the one day I just skipped breakfast to try to keep up I ended up fainting. One of Leo's wolves noticed me and demanded to know why I was napping outside his room. I made up some excuse and after that I didn't skip any more meals.
After all of that, I had to prepare lunch for Leo, because he liked to eat while he worked on paperwork for his pack. Leo said he shouldn't make extra work for the kitchen staff since he had a personal maid.
I swept his office and emptied the trash bins while he ate. Then I had to grab lunch for myself. Then I had more chores. It honestly seemed like Leo was just making things up as he went along. Then I had to help him dress for dinner.
I helped serve dinner, and then ate with the kitchen staff. Then I had to clean up dinner. Then I had to draw a bath for Leo.
After all of that, I could barely stay awake long enough to change into my nightgown. The idea of sneaking into the laundry room to study was just too exhausting.
That went on for over a week. I was struggling to keep my eyes open any time I stopped moving. I caught myself leaning against any solid surface for just a moment of rest.
My feet were constantly sore and swollen. Walking across the manor was a trial. My joints ached constantly.
To add to my misery, Leo's presence made the pup more active. It had progressed from faint kicks to full on bouncing and wiggling any time its father was near. And Leo kept me nearby all day long.
I used my healing abilities to keep the pup soothed when I could, and to alleviate some of the worst pains. I thought there might be information in Dr. Lee's books that would help me, but I never had a chance to read them.
I wished I knew what had happened to make Leo so furious with me. I caught him glaring at me over his paperwork while I cleaned his office any time I dared look up. I mostly kept my eyes on the ground.
I was beginning to worry that my belly was going to start showing soon. I knew that werewolf pregnancies were much shorter than human, a little over half the length. I could tell that the pup was growing; I felt it when I reached for my healing powers to sooth the baby. Eventually it would be impossible to hide my pregnancy.
Maybe I should have taken Ethan's offer to join his pack. I couldn't imagine him being as cold and demanding as Leo was. But until I knew where my mother was, I didn't dare.
And despite everything, I found that the idea of leaving Leo behind too painful. He hated Tessa the maid, but he loved me when he thought I was Eva. I still cherished the memories of our nights together.
Eva hadn't asked me to switch with her for a few nights. I thought she and Leo must have worked something out between them. Or she had simply grown tired of her tryst with Leo's brother Zane. No wolf had ever kept Eva's attention for long.
So it was a bit of a shock to find her sitting in my room one day before lunch. I'd spilled broth on my shirt while preparing Leo's meal and had to run to my room to change. Eva was perched on my bed with her arms crossed, tapping her foot impatiently.
“Where have you been?” she demanded.
“The kitchen, I was making Leo's lunch,” I explained. “I have to get back, he'll wonder why I'm late.”
Eva snorted. “Like Leo cares where some pathetic maid is. Here, put on some of my clothes and get your make up done. Cover those horrible scars already.”
“What? Why?” I couldn't imagine why Eva wanted me to dress up as her in the middle of the day.
“It's none of your business,” Eva said, throwing a shirt at me. “I have someplace to be. I'm supposed to be with Leo this afternoon. So you're going to take my place. That's all you need to know.”
I thought about refusing, but instead decided to bargain. Maybe I could get more clues about my mother. Any hint would help.
“I want to see my mother,” I said. “At least a photo.”
“Ugh, whatever,” Eva said. “I'll get you your picture. Just get dressed already.”
I switched outfits and went to get my make up. I had to distract Eva from the fact that I was removing make up, not adding it. I daubed foundation across my unmarked cheek.
“What do I tell Leo if he asks where I am? I mean, the maid who's supposed to bring his lunch.”
Eva shrugged. “I dunno. Tell him you gave yourself a day off.” She rolled her eyes. “He's been working you to the bone, you need a break really.”
I blinked. That was almost kind. For Eva, anyways.
“I don't know why he's been so interested in you lately,” Eva added, naturally ruining the moment. “He even asked who you were, and where you came from.”
“What did you tell him?” I asked as I added Eva's favored color of eye shadow and lipstick to my face.
“That we were maybe cousins or something. And that your useless human mother had abandoned you,” Eva added with a sneer.
I seethed at the insult to my mother. I wanted to argue. I wanted to hit her. But I knew better than to start a fight I could never win.
“Won't he be mad if he learns the truth?” I asked.
Eva shrugged. “Who would tell him? And why would he care? You're just a half-blood maid.”
She was probably right. Leo cared about his wife, not Tessa the maid. He'd made that very clear over the past few days.
End of Surrogate for My Brother-in-law Chapter 24. Continue reading Chapter 25 or return to Surrogate for My Brother-in-law book page.