CHAPTER 8

Denven turns without moving from his spot and looks around the dining hall patiently. From the corner of his eye he sees a silhouette of the same girl from his first day here at the mansion. The girl walked over to him, her hair tied in a messy bun and a thick book in her hand. She wore a   satin nightgown with lace trimmed robe that fell to her knees. She caught him staring at her and raised an eyebrow at him, and rang the buzzer. A different staff member looks out and sees Denven and the girl. The staff smiled at the girl and stood patiently waiting for her orders.

"Goodevening Lady Mia, what would you like for tonight?" The staff sweetly asks, taking out a notepad from behind her pocket.

"I'll have a chicken caesar salad in a big bowl, a glass of water and a cupcake. Have it brought to the library before 12" the girl orders which the staff nods after writing it down. 

Denven stood there watching Mia's every move as she walked away and disappeared as she turned to the stairway. 

The staff that took Mia's order snickers at Denven and hits her notepad on Denven's shoulder making him jump.

"She's out of your league, if anything, she likes educated men with standards. Someone who's higher than you, even richer," the staff mocks Denven before entering the kitchen door. 

Denven sighs and looks around. He wasn't thinking of doing anything with Mark's daughter, he was only admiring her. No offense to the girl, but she looks ordinary like any other woman on earth. Denven assumes that Mia could have Denven's bad attitude, even though they're not biologically related it's still possible that she could have his short temper. 

A man clears his throat to get Denven's attention from behind. Denven turns and sees him with a tray of delicious food, taking it from his hand and about to say his thank you but was quickly slammed a door before he could utter a word.

He sighs and shrugs to himself, walking to his room and shutting it behind him. He sets the tray down on his bed and looks at the dish closer. It was braised pork with potatoes, some stack of pita bread, greek yogurt, and a bottle of water and coke. It was a bit hot for Denven to eat, so he set it aside on the nightstand to cool. 

"For a couple of staff, they sure act like they are higher than me," He grumbles and stands to go to the bathroom. 

Walking out, he was already dressed in his joggers and shirtless. 

He eats up his dinner and opens the bottle of coke to drink. He wasn't a tad bit tired, so he grabs a tray of food and walks out the dark halls. Finding his way to the dining hall, he sets the tray on the counter by the side of the door and walks away. 

He wanders around downstairs, tracing his fingers on the board games at the bookshelves then moves to another room to find a bigger living area space with a sunken floor with sofas. He walks out and is back at the foot of the stairway, he looks up at the chandelier that glistened through the moonlight. 

The rays of the glass danced throughout the whole room, making it more alive than the rest of the rooms he explored. Upstairs, he was shocked to see Mia standing her back facing him. She was swaying quietly with a bowl in hand and eating. Mia then walks away slowly and disappears from Denven's sight. 

Out of curiosity, Denven crept behind her, following where she was going. Reaching the top floor, two more double stairways were behind him that led to a glass dome roof. A silhouette of a girl danced and swayed underneath the moonlight. 

Denven climbed the stairway and watched as Mia, her eyes shut tight and now hugging a book, danced. He looks around and sees the bowl and fork on the floor near the end of the stairway then glances over Mia who was still busy daydreaming dancing. 

Mia then stops, her back facing Denven once more and quickly looks at him. She gasps in embarrassment and darts at him.

"What are you doing here at this time of hour?!" Panic in her voice, dashing down the steps and leaving the bowl. 

"I got curious and followed you-" Denven tries to explain, but Mia turns with angered eyes that are then shaped into disgust.

"You really are what they say you are, poor, desperate, and a perv!" Mia spat, scuffing at Denven whilst quickly walking away from him and disappearing to another hall. 

Denven couldn't catch up to her to explain himself, to let her understand he did not mean to follow her and creep her out. He sighs to himself and goes down the stairs to the ground floor and walks to his room. 

Looking out the window, he sees part of the mansion and finds Mia looking out from her room. She was reading alone whilst sitting by the window, her room was dark so Denven couldn't tell what she was sitting on. He smiles and turns off the lights, looks out the window to see Mia was looking at him from afar. He waves at her and she quickly leaves from the window and shuts the curtains. 

"Goodnight to you too, Ms. Twinkletoes" he chuckles to himself and slips under the blanket of the bed. Drifting off to sleep as he plays back Mia dancing under the moonlit floor.