Chapter 39: A week of Young Master’s Life

Damon walked Lily through the east wing.

Her head kept turning. Left, right, up at the ceiling. She touched everything. Door frames. Curtains. The polished wood of a side table. Like she was making sure it was all real.

"This is bigger than my whole apartment," she said.

"Most things are."

She shot him a look but didn’t stop smiling.

They passed a row of closed doors. Guest rooms. Storage. A small library that Damon had never used. Lily slowed at each one, peeking inside when the door was open.

"Are all these rooms empty?"

"Mostly."

"So you just have all this space sitting here?"

"I bought the house for the land and the privacy. The rooms came with it."

She stopped walking and turned to face him. Her expression was serious for once.

"Can I stay here?"

Damon looked at her.

He pulled out his phone and called Thomas.

"Prepare a room in the east wing for Lily. She’ll be staying."

There was a short pause on the line. Then Thomas spoke.

"Understood, young master. I’ll have it ready within the hour."

Damon ended the call and put the phone away.

Lily’s mouth dropped open.

"You’re serious?"

"You asked."

"I know I asked, but I didn’t think you’d actually say yes!"

"Then why did you ask?"

She laughed. Loud and shameless. Then she threw her arms around his neck.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you."

He peeled her off and held her at arm’s length.

"Don’t cause trouble."

"I won’t."

"You will. Just don’t make it my problem."

She grinned. "Deal."

Thomas arrived minutes later and led Lily toward her new room. She followed him with a skip in her step, already asking questions about meals and laundry and whether the manor had a pool.

Damon watched them go.

He hadn’t done it out of affection. He’d done it because he wanted to. That was the only reason he ever did anything.

Later that night, Lily joined him in his bedroom.

Neither of them pretended it was anything other than what they wanted. By the time the room fell quiet again, Lily was asleep beside him, apparently quite comfortable with her new living arrangement.

Damon remained awake a little longer, feeling the familiar heat beneath his ribs as his demonic essence stirred. Whatever else had changed in his life, that hunger hadn’t disappeared.

The next seven days moved quickly.

Lily settled into the manor like she’d always lived there. She learned the kitchen staff’s names. She found the pool. She started ordering clothes online and having them delivered to the estate. Thomas handled it without complaint.

She was loud. Messy. Always in his space when he didn’t ask for her. But she was also honest about what she wanted, and Damon preferred that to people who pretended.

Claire’s bakery was the next piece.

Damon had promised her expansion. He delivered. A new location, bigger than the first. Better equipment. A full renovation. The paperwork went through in days.

When he offered her a room at the manor, she refused.

"I appreciate it," she said. They were standing in the half-finished bakery, dust still on the floors. "But I can’t."

"Why not?"

"It wouldn’t be right."

"Because of Lily?"

She paused. Then nodded.

"I know what it means that she’s living there. I’m not blind. But that’s between you and her. I just don’t want to be part of it."

Damon watched her. She wasn’t jealous. Wasn’t angry. She just had her own line, and she wasn’t going to cross it.

He could respect that.

"Then we keep things as they are," he said. "The bakery is yours. You run it. I stay out of the way."

Claire smiled. Small but real.

"Thank you."

Eleanor’s side was different.

She didn’t need an invitation. She was already building something bigger than the boutique.

The Sterling acquisitions closed one after another. Fleet by fleet. Asset by asset. Eleanor handled the lawyers, the paperwork, the threats. She never asked Damon for more than he gave. She just delivered results.

By the sixth day, his liquid balance had crossed ninety million.

The system screen appeared when he checked it. Cold. Brief. Just the number and a short line about the return.

He dismissed it.

More important was what Eleanor had added on top.

The latest return was more substantial than money. One of Eleanor’s acquisitions had triggered a Facility Assistance reward: ownership of a full commercial mall in the central district.

The property was waiting for Damon to inspect it and take control.

He hadn’t visited yet. He would, but there was no rush.

The search for a second Bonded Partner continued.

Damon didn’t force it. He met women through business, through Eleanor’s network, through his network as the Thorne family’s heir. Some were beautiful. Some were sharp. Some had that spark he was looking for.

But none of them fit.

He wasn’t going to bond with someone just to increase a number. He wanted a woman who genuinely interested him, and this time, martial talent mattered most.

His demonic essence was returning, but the progress was slow. If he wanted to become stronger at a pace that satisfied him, he needed a partner with exceptional martial potential -- someone whose growth could bring him a meaningful advantage.

He hadn’t found anyone who met his standards yet.

That was fine.

He had time.

On the seventh day, Damon woke early.

The manor was still quiet. Lily was asleep in her room. Thomas was already in the kitchen, preparing breakfast that Damon wouldn’t eat.

He walked to the study and opened the desk drawer.

The letter was still there. Cream paper. Official seal. Vivian Ashford’s name printed in clean black ink.

He read it one more time.

Seven days. Exactly as promised.

Today, she would arrive.

Damon closed the drawer and stood.

He grabbed his jacket and headed for the door.

Thomas appeared in the hallway.

"Young master. Shall I prepare the car?"

"I’ll drive myself."

"Of course. Will you be bringing Miss Ashford back here?"

Damon paused at the door.

"We’ll see."

He stepped outside. The morning air was cool. The Lamborghini sat in the driveway, black and waiting.

Today, Damon Thorne was going to meet his so-called fiancée.

He got in and started the engine.