Lena walked across the room without making a sound and stopped beside the table near the window.
She turned her back to Alex. Then she leaned forward to set the tray down.
The movement was perfectly ordinary but the table was a little farther than it looked, and she had to bend at the waist to reach the center of it.
Her black skirt rose revealing the smooth, pale skin of her thighs. Alex breath seized, his eyes went straight and locked in on her thighs.
The waist was narrow where it should be. The apron strings tied in a neat bow just above her hips. The chestnut hair tied back to show the long, pale line of her neck.
’She is fucking sexy.’
Then something strange tugged at the back of his mind. The Vance house had a lot of maids and none of them ever dressed this sparingly.
Lena dressing like that now should be suspicious. Normally, he would have taken it as a coincidence but he was not Steven anymore. He had the memories of this body.
And a slow, devious smile spread across his face.
The Vance family kept an old tradition. Every child of the main bloodline was given a personal maid at an early age. She would swear an oath to the Vance she served, and the oath was simple.
Her body belonged to only her master when he comes of age.
It was not a cruel tradition, at least not in the way outsiders might imagine. A maid chosen for the main bloodline was proud of her position, and the families who sent their daughters considered it an honor. The oath only took its full meaning when the master came of age, and everyone in the estate knew exactly what that meant.
Alex had turned eighteen only a few months ago.
The coming of age. The awakening ceremony.
And on that same night, according to custom, he should have also taken Lena as his own. Lena herself had prepared for it for years, and she had waited. Her entire adult life, she had waited for that one night.
But then Alex didn’t awaken a class and unable to use mana, leaving him simply broken.
He had not even looked at Lena, who had come every morning dressed like this, with her collar a little lower exposing her cleavage and her skirt a little shorter.
Alex sighed softly, ’That’s crazy.’
He understood the depression, at least in theory. A man loses his birthright and the title of heir goes to his younger brother. Overnight he becomes worth less than a commoner, even with the Vance name hanging over his head. Anyone would be shaken by that.
But still...
’He had this sexy woman right in front of him every morning with the SSS-rank talent sitting between his legs, completely wasted.’
’What kind of man lets that happen, talk about wasted potential. A talent like this had to be honed...’
And there was a beautiful lady standing right in front of him, willing and ready and starving for it.
’...and since the old Alex couldn’t do it I’ll do it for him.’
Lena finished arranging the plates, smoothed the front of her apron with both hands, then straightened her back and turned around.
Her brown eyes flicked to his face. Only for a moment.
And in that moment, he caught something there. She had been looking at him, searching for a reaction, for a single sign that her young master was finally himself again.
And he had given her nothing once again.
She lowered her eyes at once, as though ashamed of herself for hoping.
She was only a maid, after all. She could not show that she was disappointed in her master.
Lena clasped her hands behind her back and bowed.
"Your meal has been served, young master."
Her voice was gentle and even.
"Please call for me when you have finished, or if you need anything at all. I shall take my leave."
She straightened and turned around.
Her skirt swayed with the movement, and she began walking towards the door.
Alex watched the slow sway of her hips as she walked away. A thought clicked softly inside his head, and the smile on his face grew wider.
’That’s right, she is my personal maid and supposed to follow every order I give her.’
It was so simple that he almost laughed.
He leaned back on the bed, folded his arms, and let a naughty idea take shape.
"Wait, Lena."
She stopped.
Her shoulders went still for a fraction of a second, and then she turned around.
"Yes, young master?"
Alex let out a small cough and pressed one hand against his stomach.
"Actually... I’m not feeling very well today."
Her eyes widened.
"Are you unwell? Should I call the physician?"
"No, no. It’s nothing like that."
He waved a hand weakly, as if the gesture cost him a great deal of effort.
"I’m just tired and I don’t think I can eat on my own this morning."
He looked at her with the most innocent expression he could manage.
"Why don’t you feed me?"
Her lips parted slightly, but no sound came out.
For a moment, it seemed that she had stopped breathing entirely. Her fingers immediately loosened on the doorknob.
Alex watched her carefully.
He could see the thoughts turning behind her eyes. And underneath them, something else.
A warmth rising in her cheeks. A faint pink that crept from her jaw to her ears and refused to go away.
Three months.
For three months, she had stood in front of him every morning, and he had never once asked her for anything.
And now he was asking.
Lena lowered her gaze and swallowed.
"...As you wish, young master."
Her voice was softer than before. It trembled very slightly at the end, as if she were trying to keep it level and failing.
She let go of the door, walked over to the table and lifted the tray of food.
A steaming bowl of cream soup that was already getting cold and bread. The smell reached him first and his stomach growled loudly.
He had not eaten in two lifetimes, after all.
Lena reached the bed and stood there for a moment glancing at the edge of the mattress as though unsure whether she was allowed to sit.
"You may sit," Alex said.
She nodded quickly and lowered herself onto the edge of the bed, close enough that he could feel the warmth of her body through the sheets.
She placed the tray carefully across her lap and picked up the spoon.
Her fingers were shaking. It was not much but he saw it.
She dipped the spoon into the soup, scooped up a full serving, and blew gently across it to cool it down.
Then she raised the spoon and brought it towards his mouth.
"Please, young master."
The spoon was only inches from his lips. Then Alex leaned his head back, pulling away.
"No."
Lena blinked.
The spoon froze in midair. A single drop of soup slid down its edge and fell back into the bowl.
"Is... is something wrong with it?" she asked quietly. "Is it too hot? I can bring a different dish if it is not to your taste, I..."
"It’s not the soup."
’She’s already hasty. A woman in heat indeed.’
Alex let a slow, relaxed smile spread across his face.
He patted his thighs with both hands.
"Feed me while sitting on my lap."