Gaius had stopped pretending it was anything but training.
“Anticipate me,” he ordered her every morning as he unclipped the chain from the bedpost. “Learn my moods before I speak. Know what I need before I ask. Fail, and you’ll wish you were still just a servant.”
The lessons were relentless.
If he entered the room tense after a meeting, she was expected to be on her knees with water ready before he sat down. If his jaw tightened a certain way, she learned to lower her eyes and stay silent. If he paced, she moved to the spot where he liked to find her waiting — back straight, hands on thighs, breathing shallow so she wouldn’t annoy him with noise.
He tested her constantly.
A snapped finger meant she should bring the ledger from his desk. A certain look meant she should kneel at his f
