(Nik's POV)

Spending most of the night with Jenna was one of the best nights of my life, by far.

I told her the story of Vasilisa the Beautiful, which she seemed to enjoy until she dozed off.

I stayed for a bit and just watched her sleep until I begin to feel like a creeper and left her room around 5:00 am.

With a few hours to kill, I sat in my room and began to sketch her.

I vividly remembered how breathtaking she was as she sat in my roadster the first time I brought her here to Castle Rykov – the way her hair blew in the breeze, the way the sun kissed her face, the way she smiled...

I tried to capture that...capture her in all her glory.

However, like me, my charcoal pencil wasn't worthy of such beauty.

I wonder if she'd let me paint her sometime...let my brush caress her body in ways that I cannot...yet.

Since it was far too early for such ungentlemanly thoughts, I disrobed before leaping off of my balcony and heading out into the woods for my breakfast, as well as to bring back some fresh meat for Jenna's meals this week.  

I dropped my kill off in the ice house for my staff to skin and clean, and then climbed back up to my suite where I readied myself for the day.

It was just before 7:00 am when I headed down the hallway, passing Ursula on the way, wishing her a pleasant morning.

I went to my office and packed my briefcase for the day and then anxiously sat and waited 'til 7:55 am, before heading up to escort Jenna to breakfast.

I was headed up the third flight of stairs when I heard her fumbling about, so I quickly ducked behind one of the large tapestries that conceals one of the many secret doors that leads to the hidden passageways that weave throughout the castle.

I exit in the hall, behind one of the large statues and silently approach as she mumbles something to herself about what way to go.

Instead of appearing suave as I had hoped, I scared her instead.

That's the story of a spider's life, I suppose...always scaring the girls away.

As I walked her down to the dining hall, I couldn't help but notice how quiet and awkward Jenna was behaving. 

Don't misunderstand...she is generally shy, but this morning, she's been uncharacteristically quiet, avoiding eye contact with me at all costs.

What happened between last night and this morning?

I thought everything was going great.

Last night I had been her savior, but this morning, I feel more like some kind of pariah.

I sighed as I took my seat at the dinner table as Jenna stared at her plate like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

Even in her most awkward and unflattering moments, she's still so damn beautiful.

In fact, I find her little quirks and shyness most appealing and endearing.

I decided to bite the bullet and give her a flirty compliment, but all that did was cause her to gulp her orange juice down as if she had been stranded in the Sahara for days.

Breakfast continued in much the same way, with Jenna avoiding me, except for when I asked her something, which she gave one word answers to.

Saddened by the bizarre turn of events, I stayed quiet for the rest of the meal.

I was hoping to begin my pursuance of her today...woo her...but no.

Now I don't know if I'm coming or going, and for a guy with eight legs like me, that can be even more confusing.

Not to mention the fact that I am a giant, ancient, deadly, immortal spider and she...she's a small, young, mortal human with a bad case of arachnophobia. 

Talk about disadvantages...

But despite all of our differences, she's utterly perfect in every way, while I'm...not.

I don't know what mother was thinking.

After a breakfast of uncomfortable silence, I tell her it's time for us to leave.

Anton is out front waiting with the Rolls, to drive us to the mills.

He opens the back door as always, and I let her slide in first before I do.

Once again, Jenna is ignoring by looking out the window.

I get it...this is all new to her, but dammit...I want her attention!

After a few more minutes of silence, I decide that two can play this game.

I pick up the newspaper that Anton always has ready for me in the car and begin reading about a bunch of nonsense that I could give a toss about.

Seven minutes pass and finally, she decides to speak.

"When we get into town, could you please point me in the direction of an electronics store or somewhere I could get a charging cord for my phone...if it's not too much trouble," she asks timidly.

I lower the newspaper. "There's a small shop in town that sells those types of items. We'll go during lunch," I tell her in a neutral tone, acting as if I don't care.

"Thanks..." she replies quietly. "But...I don't want you to have to waste your break on the count of me. If you'll just point me in the right direction, I can go myself."

"Absolutely not," I say sternly, causing her to slightly flinch. "Sorry," I sigh. "It's just that it can be dangerous for foreigners in town, sometimes," I explain. "Some will try to take advantage, since you do not understand things like our culture or monetary exchange...not to mention that you do not speak the language yet."

"Yeah...I guess I didn't think about things like that," she replies chagrined before turning back to look out the window.

Twenty minutes later, and we're approaching the mill.

As we round the bend that leads up to the entrance, I lean over and point to the waterfall. "That is Rykov Cascada...or Rykov Falls, in your language."

"It's beautiful," she comments quietly.

"It is," I agree. "However, it does get rather cold here during the winter months, and I have seen it freeze a time or two," I chuckle as she looks at me.

"It gets that cold?" she asks with a grimace. 

"Yes, but I look at it as a time of rest and renewal," I begin. "When the falls freeze, it has a serene type of beauty to it...as if a raging lion is finally sleeping."

"That's one way to look at it," she chuckles.

"I suppose," I grin and the look back out of the window. "And there..." I point at the large, brick factory to the left of the falls, "is Rykov Industries."

We pass through the gate and come to a stop in front of the main entrance where Anton opens our door.

I get out first and then offer her my hand before we head inside.

The showroom is the first thing you see upon entering.

"Whoa...I wasn't expecting this," Jenna says as her eyes take in the first of three rooms. "I thought this was a factory." 

"It is, but this space allows customers to come in, view our products, the quality, and place orders," I tell her as I extend my arm outward, inviting her to look around.

However, we're stopped by Ruslana, a human lady who mans the showroom.

"Good morning, Mr. Rykov," she smiles – her eyes slightly crinkling in the corners. "I see you have brought a guest with you today," she says in her native Romanian as she looks from me to Jenna.

"Not guest, Ruslana, but a new employee...my assistant, from America," I answer her in Romanian, before smiling at her surprised look. "Jenna, this is Ruslana – Ruslana, this is Jenna," I introduce them and they shake hands.

"Ruslana has worked here close to 19 years now," I tell Jenna.

"Wow...it must be a great place to work then," she smiles.

Ruslana understands English fairly well, so she gets the gist of what Jenna and I had said. "It is," she nods. "I hope you'll be as happy here as I have been."

"I hope so," Jenna responds softly.

"I'll let you two get on with things," she says as she begins to back away. "If you need anything, I'll be at my desk," she smiles.

"Thank you, Ruslana," I say as Jenna follows with, "It was nice to meet you."

She smiles before disappearing into the other room.

Jenna then walks over to one of the racks that hold the larger bolts of designer silks, such as the Damasks and Brocades.

"So pretty," she comments as she runs her hand over it.

"We make those on our 16th century Jacquard looms," I tell her.

"Really...that old?" she asks doubtfully. "I'm surprised that something that old still works."

"They do...very well, actually," I assure her as I gesture towards the fabric she's admiring. "I'll show them to you when you are finished looking around here."

She nods with a smile as she continues perusing – completely in her element amongst all of the fabric.

"This would make some beautiful clothing," she comments as she leafs through the different silk samples.

"Those are the finer silks – Charmeuse and Crêpe de Chine," I tell her. "And that over there is our Chiffon, and next to it is the Dupioni silk."

"It's overwhelming," she says quietly as she looks around in awe. "I had no idea that there was this many different types of silk."

"There are approximately 50 different types of silk, although most is categorized for silk from the silkworm. However, a single spider can produce up to seven different types of silk for different uses. This is in contrast to insect silks, where an individual usually only produces one type of silk. Not only that, but spider silk is far more superior, and not only has domestic uses such as clothing, bedding, drapery, and upholstery, but industrial, medical, and military as well," I begin. "It was recently discovered that it is stronger than Kevlar, and can be used to make bullet-proof clothing, ropes, nets, seat belts, and parachutes. In fact, it is so strong, that it could easily catch a falling plane."

"Whoa...I would've never thought that," she replies, looking up at me with her eyes wide. "Spider webs seem so fragile."

"A single dragline from a spider has a tensile strength comparable to that of high-grade alloy steel," I boast.

"Yet easily taken down with a handy, old broom," she jokes with a giggle.

I frown, thinking about her doing that to my webs, which causes her to sober.

"Sorry...I know this stuff is important to you," she apologizes.

"No...it's alright," I sigh. "I just wish that more people knew just how beneficial spiders really are."

"Yeah..." she says in a pacifying tone before looking away.

"You should know that militaries and law enforcement agencies from around the world have recently chosen my mills to begin producing certain items for them...items that could save countless lives," I retort.

"How?" she asks, looking back at me with her brows furrowed.

"Well...we just so happen to be the only mills that possess Darwin's bark spiders that produce the toughest known spider silk, which is 10 times tougher than Kevlar," I answer. "We use their silk to make ballistics armor and footwear, as well as the thread for cross-hairs in optical instruments such as telescopes, microscopes, and telescopic rifle sights," I pause. "Spider silk is also used medically, for a wide range of things – everything from sutures to facilitating healing. It connects with the skin and contains antiseptic properties, as well as being rich in vitamin K, which is effective in clotting blood."

"Not only that, but it's also used to make breast implant and catheter coatings, as well as mechanical insulin pumps," I continue. "The silk of the golden orb weaver was recently used in research concerning mammalian neuronal regeneration."

"I had no idea," she says enthralled. "I'll have to remember that, next time I'm injured," she chuckles.

"Let's hope that never happens," I say...dreading the very thought. However, I take solace in knowing that I can heal her.

"Spider silk from my mills is also used for making a wide range of personal care products such as high-end cosmetics and lotions, and even condoms," I swallow nervously after realizing what I said while Jenna's face turns bright scarlet.

"I'm sorry...that was not a very gentlemanly thing to say," I tell her sincerely.

"It's okay..." she croaks embarrassedly. "I'm sure that does save as many lives as the other stuff...if not more."

"Indeed," I agree, knowing how promiscuous our world has become.

Although I certainly wouldn't mind being promiscuous with Jenna...sans any condoms.

I clear my throat and my dirty mind, suggesting that we move on into the mill, but not before I tell her that she's welcome to any of the fabric, thread, and yarn here that her heart desires, which seems to please her. 

We head through a large set of double doors that leads into the working part of the mill.

"The ground floor here is where the winding, throwing, and doubling is done," I tell her as she looks around at the various machines...drawing looks from the curious workers – some human...some not.

"This area over here is where we keep the raw silk," I say before we move on.

We enter the freight elevator and take it up to the next two floors where I introduce her to the employees and show her the different looms – ranging from the oldest looms that I told Jenna about, to our newest ones...from the beginning of the industrial revolution.

Our second to last stop is what we call the 'Spider Farm', where the silk is harvested.

I just hope that she takes it well...

A/N : Do you think that Jenna will take visiting the 'Spider Farm' well? Would you? What do you think of Nik's mill and products, so far? Let me hear from you! ❤️

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