Novels by asia

Bridget walked into Ridge Enterprises at 7:50 a.m. on Wednesday like she was stepping onto a minefield.The lobby security guard gave her the same polite nod he’d given her every morning this week, but today it felt like he knew. Like everyone knew. She kept her head down in the elevator, staring at the polished steel doors instead of her reflection. She didn’t want to see the faint mark Alexander had left on the side of her neck last night. It was barely visible under concealer, but screaming to her.The twenty-third floor was already humming. Phones ringing softly, keyboards clacking, the low murmur of early-morning strategy calls. She dropped her bag at the small desk outside Alexander’s office. He’d assigned her on Monday with a curt “This is yours now” as he pretended to organize files while her pulse hammered.His door was closed. No light under it yet.She opened her laptop, pulled up the market analysis spreadsheet he’d emailed her at 1:14 a.m. Subject line: *Preliminary due d

Bridget arrived at Ridge Enterprises at 7:58 a.m. Tuesday. The building felt different today. Sharper edges, heavier air. She’d barely slept. Every time she closed her eyes she saw Alex’s face above her on that couch. His dark eyes, clenched jaw, the way he’d stopped himself even when she was begging. “Not yet. Not until you’re mine completely.”She rode the elevator alone. Heart in her throat. Wet between her legs from the single text he’d sent at 2:17 a.m.: *Door will be locked. Come straight to my office.*The twenty-third floor was silent. Lights low. She walked the corridor like she was trespassing.His door was closed. She tried the handle. Locked.A soft click. It opened from the inside.Alex stood there. Tie gone. Top two buttons of his shirt undone. Sleeves rolled, his eyes burning.“You came,” he said.“You summoned.” She stepped inside and he locked the door behind her.The room smelled of coffee and him. The blinds were half-drawn. Rain started again outside, soft against

Alex stayed in the office long after Bridget left. The rain had stopped, but the air still felt heavy, charged. He could still smell her. Something citrus-sharp and clean, lingering on the chair where she’d sat. He could still see the flush on her cheeks when Jake walked in, the way her shoulders stiffened, the way she’d looked at Alex afterward like she was daring him to do something about it.He hadn’t.He’d let her walk out.Now the silence was suffocating.He paced once, twice then stopped at the window. Pressed his palm to the glass. Cold seeped into his skin, but it did nothing to cool the rage still simmering under his ribs.Jake’s smirk. The casual way he’d said “She always comes around.” Like she was a habit he could pick up again whenever he felt like it.Alex’s fist clenched.He pulled out his phone, and found her number.Typed: *Meet me at the mansion. Now.*Sent it without explanation.He didn’t wait for a reply. He grabbed his keys and left.The drive to Evergreen Ridge

Bridget arrived at Ridge Enterprises at 7:42 a.m. on Monday. She wasn’t giving Alexander Hale the satisfaction of calling her late. The lobby security guard nodded like he already knew her name. The elevator ride up felt longer than last week, her reflection in the mirrored walls showing a girl who’d spent the weekend replaying one brush of fingers and one low-voiced threat. She’d changed outfits three times this morning before she settled on black trousers, white silk blouse, hair pulled into a tight ponytail. Very professional. She stepped off on the twenty-third floor. The corridor was quiet, lights still half-dim. His office door was open. Alex stood at the window, back to her, phone to his ear. Dark suit. Sleeves already rolled to the forearms. The sight hit her like caffeine straight to the veins. He turned. Eyes found hers instantly. “You’re early,” he said to her without a smile. Just that steady, assessing look. “Thought you’d appreciate punctuality.” She walked in wit

Alex sat alone in the dim office long after the last employee had left. Rain still tapped against the windows like impatient fingers. The city lights below blurred into streaks of gold and red.He couldn’t stop replaying it.Her soaked blouse clinging to skin he had no business imagining. The way she’d lifted her chin and thrown his words back at him. “Only when they stare like that.”He’d stared. He was still staring, in his head, at the memory of her mouth forming the challenge.His fist came down on the desk. Not hard enough to crack anything. Just enough to feel the sting.“Fuck,” he muttered.He shouldn’t have leaned in. Shouldn’t have brushed her hand. Shouldn’t have let the words slip out: “I could teach you a few things.”Patrick’s voice echoed from last week’s call.“She’s back in town, Alex. Struggling after that boy, and won’t talk about it. I’m worried she’ll spiral again. You’re moving to Evergreen Ridge anyway. Keep an eye on her for me? You’re the only one I trust with

The rain came down in sheets, hammering the roof of the cab like it wanted to break in. Bridget Malone stared out the streaked window at the glass tower of Ridge Enterprises rising against the gray Seattle sky, and felt the same fury coil in her chest that had been there since her father dropped the bomb two weeks ago. “You need structure, Bridge. A real job. Alex is doing me a favor by hiring you on as his assistant while you figure out what comes next.” A favor. From Alexander Hale. Dad’s oldest friend. The man who’d once carried her on his shoulders at barbecues when she was six and now, apparently, thought she needed babysitting at twenty-four. She paid the driver, stepped out into the downpour, and let the cold soak through her thin jacket in seconds. Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She didn’t need to look to know who it was. Jake. *You’ll regret leaving me.* She’d already blocked him twice. Somehow, he kept finding new numbers. She swiped the notification away wit